Uniting Voices (formerly the Chicago Children's Choir) is a non-profit organization, founded in 1956 at First Unitarian Church of Chicago.
| Formation | 1956 |
|---|---|
| Type | Youth organization |
| Legal status | Non-profit organization |
| Headquarters | First Unitarian Church of Chicago, Chicago |
Co-founders | Christopher Moore |
| Website | [1] |
Founded in Hyde Park in 1956, Uniting Voices has grown from one choir into a network of in-school and after-school programs serving nearly 5,000 students across the city of Chicago. Noteworthy faculty include Josephine Lee who currently serves as president and artistic director, Judy Hanson, senior associate artistic director, W Mitchell Owens, composer-in-residence, Lonnie Norwood, Director of Africana studies, and John Goodwin, principal pianist and resident conductor.
In 1956 during the Civil Rights Movement, the late Rev. Christopher Moore founded the multiracial, multicultural Chicago Children's Choir at Hyde Park's First Unitarian Church of Chicago.[1] He believed that youth from diverse backgrounds could better understand each other - and themselves - by learning to make beautiful music together. Today, the choir is fully independent and serves all of Chicago from its home in the Chicago Cultural Center.
Distinguished singers included David Edmonds, who performed with the choir from 1970 to 1977. He sang classical, folk and spiritual pieces as lead soloist in numerous concerts, both in Chicago and on national tours. He can be heard on the choir's 1972 album Chicago Children's Choir Sings at Orchestra Hall. Edmonds also performed with the Joffrey Ballet, the Rockefeller Chapel Orchestra and Chorus, and the Bretton Woods Boy Singers. He died from AIDS complications in 1990.[2]
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Voice of Chicago (formerly Concert Choir) tours:
Concert Choir tours: