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THE LONG ISLAND CHORAL SOCIETY is proud of its unique existence
as the oldest continuously performing musical group on Long Island. It was
founded in 1929 by Dr. Maurice Garabrant who was the organist at the Cathedral
of the Incarnation in Garden City. Norman Hollett and Robert Kennedy, both
organists at the Cathedral, were subsequent conductors. In 1979, Meredith Elaine
Baker became the fourth conductor when the Choral Society became independent
of the Cathedral. Three of the four concerts this Season will be presented in that
beautiful setting, including the annual performance in December of Handel's
Messiah, Part I. The Spring Concert will be presented in the Worship Hall of the
Unitarian Universalist Congregation at Shelter Rock in Manhasset.
The Long Island Choral Society has a reputation for singing the finest works of
choral music in performances of the highest caliber, with professional soloists and
orchestras. This fine all- volunteer choir is comprised of more than 60 singers, both
amateur and professional, who come from more than forty communities in the
metropolitan area. Among singers of note who have performed with the Long
Island Choral Society in the past are John Charles Thomas, Robert Merrill, Gladys
Swarthout, Ray deVoll, and more recently, Betsy Norden, Gary Glaze, Muriel
Costa-Greenspon, Gregory Mercer, and Patrick Carfizzi, who debuted at the
Metropolitan Opera in Rigoletto on Christmas Eve, 1999.
Since 1929, the Long Island Choral Society has presented premiere performances
of music by Honegger, Langlais, Britten, Bernstein, and Stravinsky. They also
performed in the movie This is Cinerama. In 1985 and 1986, the Long Island
Choral Society sang with the U.S. Military Academy Band at West Point in their
1812 Overture Concert on Labor Day Weekend, the first non-military group to do
so. In addition to concerts at many other locations, the Choral Society sang at
Federal Hall in New York City during the celebration of the Bicentennial of the U.S.
Constitution in 1987.
For the 60th Anniversary Season in March 1989, the Long Island Choral Society
performed Verdi’s Requiem for a standing room only audience at the Cathedral.
In 1998, they again performed Verdi’s Requiem, but this time it was for their debut
in Carnegie Hall with MidAmerica Productions. Verdi’s Requiem will return this
Season on April 19, 2009 as they celebrate their Eightieth Anniversary. Their most
recent appearance at Carnegie Hall was in Mahler’s Eighth Symphony on
November 9, 2007 with the Canterbury Choral Society of New York, conducted by
one of Meredith Baker’s mentors, Charles Dodsley Walker.
In July 1990, the Long Island Choral Society traveled to Italy for its first foreign
concert tour. In July 1992, an ensemble toured Holland, France, and Germany,
singing a total of six concerts in thirteen days.
The Seventy-sixth Season was very special with our first performance of Bach’s
Mass in B minor since 1990 and the establishment of the Endowment Fund. Our
Eightieth Season brings you an exciting mix of periods and styles; the first three
concerts performed with full orchestra. Order your season tickets and make a
donation now so that YOU don’t miss a minute of this wonderful music.
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