Monmouth Civic Chorus


The Monmouth Civic Chorus is a community chorus in Monmouth County, New Jersey, USA. The mission of Monmouth Civic Chorus is to offer a diverse repertoire of choral music to the community in an environment that promotes individual and collective artistic growth and encourages mutual support and camaraderie. MCC was established in 1949, is recognized by national and community awards, and draws its members primarily from the Monmouth County community. Performances encompass [|choral classics]; [|premieres]; [|rare and contemporary music]; [|musical theater, opera, and operetta]; the annual December concert featuring selections from Handel's Messiah and well-known holiday music; Christmas carols and small-ensemble performances around the community; and [|collaborations] with arts partners. MCC has performed [|on tour] in many European countries, and at numerous performance venues in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States.
In addition to concerts, MCC performs a variety of [|community outreach] events, and gives [|scholarships] to high school seniors of outstanding vocal promise.

History

William Gordon Pagdin founded the Monmouth Civic Chorus in 1949. The Gilbert and Sullivan operetta The Pirates of Penzance was the Chorus's first performance, in May, 1950 at the Carlton Theater in Red Bank, New Jersey. MCC's second performance, in January, 1951, was Handel's Messiah MCC continued to perform G&S and sacred works under the direction of its founder until 1962.
When
Felix Molzer took the baton as conductor of MCC, he brought his background as director of the Vienna Boys' Choir and professor of music in Vienna. He added operettas and musicals to the stage repertoire, and expanded concert performances to new stages, among them the then-Garden State Arts Center with the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra conducted by Henry Lewis.
William R. Shoppell, Jr., a music educator and church musician, became MCC's conductor in 1973. Under Shoppell's direction, the performance schedule grew from a classical concert in the fall and a staged musical in the spring, to two concerts and a show in 1982/83. By 1987/88, the season increased to three concerts plus a stage production. MCC began touring out of state under Shoppell's direction in 1981, which led to performing [|tours] of Europe, to be continued under subsequent directors.
Upon Shoppell's retirement in 1991,
Dr. Mark Shapiro was appointed Artistic Director. MCC recorded two [|CDs] under Dr. Shapiro's direction, and increased its presentation of new music, including premieres, and [|innovative approaches] to traditional music. MCC received the ASCAP/Chorus America Alice Parker Award for the March 2007 world premiere of Jorge Martin's Stronger Than Darkness, an adaptation of his opera Before Night Falls, based on the memoir by Cuban dissident Reinaldo Arenas.
Dr. Ryan James Brandau was appointed Artistic Director beginning with the 2012/13 season, upon the departure of Dr. Shapiro, who became the Music Director of the Cecilia Chorus of New York. Dr. Brandau's arrangements of holiday favorites are featured in the Christmas Suite performed annually in December, and on MCC's [|CD], A Merry Little MCC Christmas, released in 2014. Dr. Brandau prepared MCC for a performance of Mahler's 8th Symphony by invitation at Carnegie Hall with the Canterbury Choral Society in November 2017.

Repertoire

Premieres

MCC has performed regional and world premieres, including:
MCC has performed innovations such as new concert formats and commissions, including:
Rare and contemporary music performed by the Monmouth Civic Chorus includes:
MCC has performed musical theater, opera, and operetta, either fully staged, semi-staged, or in revues, including:
Among the choral classics performed by the Monmouth Civic Chorus are:

Guest artists

MCC has worked with numerous vocal soloists, directors, and composers who have moved on to the world stage, several of whom are profiled on the Chorus website. Guest artists featured in MCC concerts and solo recitals include mezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke, mezzo-soprano Barbara Dever, bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green, soprano Angela Meade, soprano , soprano , tenor , and soprano . , a director at the Metropolitan Opera and many other stages, directed MCC in the premiere of Golden Gate, a musical by and . Tony winner Victoria Clark led a master class for musical theater singers to benefit MCC in 2009.

Collaborative performances

MCC has collaborated with orchestras, choruses, production companies, and dance companies, including:
MCC is the recipient of two awards:
The Monmouth Civic Chorus has produced three recordings on CD:
The Monmouth Civic Chorus has performed on tour in numerous European countries. Highlights include singing in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican in Rome, the Duomo di Santa Maria del Fiori in Florence, St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna, the home of Edvard Grieg in Norway, and St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin. Tours under the direction of William R. Shoppell, Jr. took MCC to Austria and Germany in 1984, the British Isles in 1987, and to Austria, Switzerland and Italy in 1990. MCC toured Eastern Europe in 1993, directed by Dr. Shapiro, and Scandinavia in 1996, under the baton of then-Assistant Conductor Steven Russell. Dr. Brandau led the chorus on a tour of the Republic of Ireland in 2015, and the Baltic States in 2018.

Organizational structure

MCC is a not-for-profit organization with no office and no paid administrative staff. All administrative aspects of running the chorus are performed by volunteers. The elected board of directors, consisting largely of singing members, is responsible for developing and implementing the long-range plan, overseeing the group's fiscal health and grant compliance, responding to the needs of the director and members, and maintaining productive relationships with the audience and community.
MCC's programs are made possible in part by Monmouth Arts through funding from the Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. Additional funding is received from individual and corporate donors, foundation grants and matching gifts. MCC has an Endowment Fund as a permanent income source, and a Sostenuto Society for donors who have included the Chorus in their estate planning.
MCC is a member of Chorus America and the New Jersey Choral Consortium.