About NJCS
Celebrating 40+ years of passion, excellence, and imagination, the NEW JERSEY CHORAL SOCIETY is a prestigious choral group, well-known for presenting outstanding and unique programs. An ensemble of auditioned singers from around the tri-state area, NJCS performs under the baton of Interim Artistic Director and Conductor, Edward Schmiedecke, accompanied by Linda Sweetman-Waters.
The New Jersey Choral Society’s repertoire is among the most diverse in the area, each season providing exciting musical opportunities and experiences for both singer and audience member. The NJCS season consists of December holiday concerts, Pops concerts in March, featuring music from Broadway, American standards and jazz, and late spring concerts of major choral masterpieces and classical selections. NJCS enjoys the privilege of sharing the stage with many exceptional performers, often collaborating with other choral groups, soloists, instrumentalists, and dancers who create a unique concert experience with each performance. An initiative to feature new music has resulted in the presentation of world premieres of works by Joakim Seidevall, Terre Johnson, Ed Lojeski, Julian Revie, Rita Blacker and Christopher Vehmas.
The New Jersey Choral Society is comprised of the choir, as well as Chanteurs, our community-outreach chorus conducted by Jill Guartafierro. Throughout each concert season, the New Jersey Choral Society moves seamlessly from classical to Pops and back again, with the passion, excellence, and imagination that has become our brand.
Ever expanding its horizons outside of Bergen, Passaic, Morris and Essex Counties, the New Jersey Choral Society has performed at the White House and made several Carnegie Hall appearances. The choir enjoyed a solo performance tour of the Czech Republic and Germany in 2005, and NJCS singers have performed at festivals in Rouen, Paris, Lake Como, London, Sydney, Vienna, Beijing and Shanghai.
OUR MISSION
Music is an essential part of every community and brings joy, hope and spirituality to all who encounter it. And so, with Passion, Imagination and Excellence, the mission of NJCS is to enrich the lives of those with whom we come into contact through our performances, be it celebrating the joys of the holidays, pop culture or classic masterpieces through both traditional and imaginative programming; engaging the members of our community to expose them to the wonders and opportunities that music can bring to their lives; and encouraging and providing our members with opportunities to grow their individual and collective artistic talents.