The Durango Choral Society

The four choirs of the Durango Choral Society include talented local singers ranging in age from 8 to 85. This year’s program, VIVA 50, celebrates the 50th season of presenting beautiful choral music to the community and beyond. Members of the choirs have performed across the globe, including in the cathedrals of Vienna, Zagreb, Salzburg, and Innsbruck, and the concert halls of Honolulu, Prague, Syros, and New York’s famed Carnegie Hall. And they look forward to a concert tour of Florence and Venice in the spring of 2020. The Durango Choral Society has won national awards for choral innovation, premiered a dozen new commissioned works, and collaborated with choirs from around the region. Through the years, the choirs have performed with the Telluride Chamber Choir, the San Juan Symphony, Music in the Mountains Festival, and Fort Lewis College—and the children can be heard as the chorus in The Nutcracker.

One of the Choral Society’s proudest achievements is its robust program of music education for the community’s children, including a choir to sing in at any age. None of the choirs’ varied activities would be possible without generous corporate and individual sponsorships, grants, and donations, which allow for family-friendly ticket prices, an overnight camp for the children’s choirs, and guest artists who enhance the quality and variety of the Choral Society’s many concerts.

VIVA 50 features a number of very special events, including the world premiere of the Society’s golden-season commission: A Hopeful Sound, composed by Linda Rice Beck.

All four choirs perform this December 8, 2019, at the Community Concert Hall. Other celebratory events include a side-by-side performance with singers from Durango High School, special guest conductors and artists, and a vocal workshop open to the entire community. Spring is blooming with concerts, including a preview of the music that will be performed on the Florence tour.

The Durango Choral Society is a nonprofit corporation that relies on community support for a season that includes everything from Mozart and Beethoven to Broadway.

Check out their new website, durangochoralsociety.org, which features a full concert schedule, information about auditions, and more. Look up the Durango Choral Society on Facebook and You Tube to see and hear the extraordinary level of artistry found right here among friends, neighbors, and family members who share a love of the choral art.

All are invited to audition for the ensembles. Or you can sponsor a scholarship for a child’s tuition. Mostly, attend the concerts and give yourself the gift of live music. The Choral Society is indeed blessed with both talented performers and generous patrons, and they plan to provide the community another 50 years’ worth of inspiration, hope, and joy. VIVA 50!