2019-687-E Arts - Voices Chorus arts grant

Browse Search

DocuSign Envelope ID:CCAB FAD D-DC42-494F-B573-EB427B62BCDO Organization Voices, the Chapel Hill Chorus is one of the Triangle's oldest and most Description distinguished choral groups. Our mission is "to foster, sustain, and share the art and joy of choral music and to enrich the Triangle community through excellent performances of music from diverse cultures and historical periods." Voices is a grassroots auditioned community chorus that is administered by a working board elected from the members. Paid staff is limited to our Artistic Director and rehearsal accompanist — both part time. Our fifth Artistic Director, Stephen Futrell, DMA, continues for his second season with us. Our accompanist and concert pianist/keyboardist, Shoko Abe, DMA, continues for her third season. Both resumes are attached. VOICES Chorus' 100+ members perform 2 concerts a year; CANTARI, our 25-member select ensemble performs 2-3 concerts; and SUMMER VOICES, at 60+ members, performs more informal music biennially. Thus, Voices presents five or six unique concert programs every year to collective audiences of about 1300-1500. Programs reflect our mission; music from diverse cultures and periods highlight works by contemporary and local composers infrequently available to our audience. In December, 2018, VOICES brought Dr. Kevin Johnson, DMA to perform his original composition "We Are Christmas" and classical selections from Handel's Messiah in gospel renditions, with a student soloist from Spelman College. May, 2019 saw VOICES performing "Reflections on a Mexican Garden" by Kevin Padworski - only its third performance. CANTARI brought the Triangle a capella performances of "Trois Chansons" by Maurice Ravel, two settings of "If Music Be the Food of Love" and Carol Barnett's "The World Beloved" a bluegrass mass. (See selected work samples.) VOICES members primarily come from Orange and Chatham counties with some from Durham, Alamance and Wake. Members range from 18 to 87 in age; we work to enable those with disabilities to participate and offer scholarships. Members are recruited via Festifall, our members, Triangle SINGS, our website, MailChimp listserv, and local newspaper ads. In the 2018-19 season, 154 individuals have sung with Voices, while we employed 45 soloists and instrumentalists. Seniors comprise approximately 40%of VOICES and 15%of CANTARI while students comprise about 8%of the total. Our challenge is diversity—Voices' members identified as White (91%), African American (10/6), Hispanic (21/6), Asian American (30/6), Middle Eastern/North African (10/6), or Mixed (10/6) (survey 3/19; 80% response rate). Audience demographics reflect the composition of the choruses. Total ticket sales in FY18 were 1,229: 566 seniors, 391 adults, 109 students, 163 complimentary tickets to donors/VIPs/members of the opposite chorus. Sales YTD for FY19 are slightly lower (est. 1,200). Audience ethnic diversity, based on March and May, 2019 concerts, was approximately 2.4%each African American and Hispanic, 3%Asian, and 92%White. Actual audience surveys in FY18 indicated that about half lived in Orange County, with Seniors comprising 67%of VOICES and 55% of CANTARI respondents. In FY19, seniors represented only 42%of the CANTARI audience.