Monmouth Civic Chorus
Joy. Commitment. Passion.
At Monmouth Civic Chorus, we sing together because choral music makes for a happier, healthier, more connected humankind. When the world feels fractured, we know how lucky we are to gather each week and chase the thrill of a room shimmering with overtones, hearts beating in sync.
We want nothing more than to share that power with you.
Close to perfect, close to home.
We are a community chorus in Monmouth County, New Jersey dedicated to artistic excellence. But our pursuit of a crisp cutoff or an aching phrase is only a means to an end. When you experience an MCC performance, it’s the joy, love, and pride we pour into our music-making that will leave you changed.
Critics have called MCC “close to perfect” and “among the very best in the entire Northeast” (Asbury Park Press). We engage soloists heard in major concert halls in New York and around the world. Hand-picked professional instrumentalists accompany the chorus and play orchestral works.
In addition to singing locally, Monmouth Civic Chorus has brought the finest in choral music to audiences around the world since 1949. Our most memorable performances include those at Carnegie Hall, the New Jersey Performing Arts Center with the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, St. Thomas Church on Fifth Avenue in New York City, St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican in Rome, and St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna with members of the Vienna State Opera Orchestra.
Past performances
Here’s a list of our past performances beginning in the early 1990s. Read more on Wikipedia.
Artistic Director Dr. Ryan James Brandau
Among audiences, MCC Artistic Director Ryan James Brandau is best known for dynamic and uplifting choral and orchestral performances, whether he himself is at the podium or his arrangements on the program. The New York Times hailed his recent debut appearance at Trinity Church Wall Street, conducting its iconic annual Messiah, “the gold standard” against which others “paled in comparison.” For both expert and new listeners, his interpretations are at once resplendent with the past and resonant with the present, earning the Times’ praise as “urgent and eloquent,” “burning and gladdening,” “intimate, alternately sober and joyous,” and, most essential to Ryan’s pervasive artistic intent, “modest yet monumental.”
Among musicians, he is perhaps better known for a clarity of vision and mastery of craft that is uncommonly equaled by a commitment to collaboration with vocalists and instrumentalists — a potent alchemy that not only produces music of the highest level, but invites participation in his music-made joy.
As well as directing MCC, Ryan is the founder and Director of Res Facta, a vocal ensemble bringing together 14 of NYC’s finest professional vocalists, and the longtime Artistic Director of Amor Artis, a chamber choir and Baroque orchestra, which specializes in bridging the Renaissance and Baroque to the present day. He is also the Artistic Director of the symphonic chorus and orchestra, Princeton Pro Musica — winner of the 2021 American Price for choral performance.
In addition to leading his own ensembles, he has prepared choruses for the Vienna Philharmonic, Berlin Philharmonic, New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, and New Jersey Symphony.
As a choral and orchestral arranger, Ryan Is equal parts artistic innovator and technical practitioner, taking pride in works that are as rewarding for musicians as they are for audiences. His expansive holiday repertoire in particular is lauded as “inventive,” “unfailingly gratifying,” and “in a class by itself” by the directors, vocalists, and instrumentalists of the many volunteer to professional ensembles that showcase their best through his well-crafted arrangements and meticulous orchestrations.
And as a lover and scholar of music, he is committed to collaboration with emerging artists and educational organizations, cross-cultural exploration, and building bridges for new audiences by presenting classical works in dialogue with contemporary themes and new music.
Ryan has taught and conducted at Westminster Choir College, Santa Clara University, and Smith College. He holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts from the Yale School of Music, a Master of Philosophy in Historical Musicology from Cambridge University, and a Bachelor of Arts in Music from Princeton University.
He lives in New York City with his husband, Ian, and his dog, Tux.
Our Vision
The vision of Monmouth Civic Chorus is to be a community chorus of the highest standards of artistic excellence.
Our Mission
The mission of Monmouth Civic Chorus is to offer a diverse repertoire of choral music to the community in an environment that promotes individual and collective artistic growth and encourages mutual support and camaraderie.
Our Core Values
Our mission is guided by our commitment to the following beliefs:
- Excellence. We believe in the continuous improvement and artistic growth of each individual member and for the chorus as a whole.
- Participation. We encourage, we value and we recognize the involvement of volunteers who serve in any capacity to achieve the mission of the chorus.
- Inclusiveness. We value an environment that welcomes a diverse membership, that provides a sense of camaraderie for all who participate and fosters a long term commitment to the chorus.
- Financial Stability. We strive to maintain a financially viable organization with integrity and transparency in all operations.
- Community Engagement. We are committed to effective partnerships with other arts organizations and seek to promote choral music through partnerships in the public and private sectors.
- Innovation. We are committed to performing choral music of varied genres, from the classics to the contemporary, in order to attract a large and diverse audience.
Awards
- 2021 American Prize. MCC congratulates our Artistic Director Ryan Brandau, third-place winner of the 2021 American Prize for Choral Conducting, community chorus division.
- 2018-19 American Prize. MCC was a third-place winner of the 2018-19 American Prize Ernst Bacon Memorial Award for the Performance of American Music, community choral division. We received this award for our March 11, 2018 performance of John Corigliano’s Fern Hill at Our Lady Star of the Sea in Long Branch, with guest soloist Kate Maroney, mezzo-soprano.
- 2010 Spinnaker Award for Arts and Culture. We are proud to be the 2010 winner of the Spinnaker Award for Arts and Culture from the Eastern Monmouth Area Chamber of Commerce.
- 2008 Chorus America/ASCAP Alice Parker Award. We are proud to be the 2008 winner of the Chorus America/ASCAP Alice Parker Award, given to only one chorus in North America each year.
Memberships
- Chorus America. Chorus America is the advocacy, research, and leadership development organization that advances the choral field.
- NJ Choral Consortium. The New Jersey Choral Consortium is an association created to help choral organizations in New Jersey develop and grow by sharing information, fostering cooperation and supporting choral arts education.
- Monmouth Arts. Monmouth Arts enriches the community by inspiring and fostering the arts.