Christ Church Concert Series Presents the Maryland State Boychoir

The Maryland State Boychoir, under the direction of Stephen A. Holmes and Joseph G. Shortall, will present a concert this Sunday, November 22, at 4:00 p.m. While Christ Church is set to open within a couple of weeks following an extensive renovation, St. Mark’s United Methodist located at 100 Peach Blossom Lane has graciously agreed to allow the performance to take place in its sanctuary. This performance will showcase the Tour Choir in a performance of choral works, sacred and secular, spirituals, hymns, gospel, and popular music.

Now in its 28th concert season, The Maryland State Boychoir serves the state of Maryland as “Official Goodwill Ambassadors.” The Boychoir performs over eighty times each year throughout Maryland and surrounding states, and on national and international tours that have taken them to thirty different states in the U. S., Ireland, Wales, The Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Italy, France, Bermuda, and Canada. The choristers have sung at many distinguished venues, including The White House, the National Cathedral in Washington D.C., St. Patrick’s Cathedral and Holy Trinity Cathedral in New York City, and the Meyerhoff Symphony Hall in Baltimore. The choir participated, via video feed, in the Israeli Presidential Conference in Jerusalem, with Presidents Shimon Peres and George W. Bush in attendance.

Recent Boychoir musical programs have included a performance (invitational) at the American Choral Directors’ Association’s Eastern Division Conference, Puccini’s Tosca at the Modell Lyric Opera House, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with the Bach Concert Series, Leonard Bernstein’s Kaddish at both the Meyerhoff Symphony Hall and Strathmore Center for the Performing Arts with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra; Mahler’s Third Symphony with the National Orchestral Institute at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center in College Park, Maryland; performances of Howard Shore’s Fellowship of the Rings Symphony with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Andrew Earle Simpson’s A Crown of Stars with the Cantate Chamber Singers. Its annual Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols has sold out three performances for the past twenty years. Other memorable performances include a tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King with the Washington Choral Arts Society at the Kennedy Center, the Fourteenth Annual Baltimore Boychoir Festival directed by Craig Denison, and singing for the Opening Ceremony at the PGA Presidents Cup with Presidents George H. W. Bush and William Clinton in attendance.The Boychoir has also collaborated with renowned international ensembles, including Bonifantes from the Czech Republic and the Drakensberg Boy’s Choir of South Africa.

The Maryland State Boychoir is dedicated to providing talented boys, regardless of race, religion, or socio-economic background, with a holistic and diverse musical education in the tradition of the great European choir schools. Boys in the choir are given opportunities to perform professionally, and a chance to grow socially.

This concert is sponsored in part by the Talbot County Arts and Maryland State Arts Councils. A freewill offering will be received. For more information, contact Christ Church Easton at 410-822-2677.

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