Old St. Patrick’s has a rich history of presenting concerts throughout the year showcasing and celebrating the many talents of Old St. Patrick’s and the essence of who we are as a people of faith. From the sold-out Deck the Hall Christmas concerts to the electrifying Too Hot To Handel Jazz-Gospel Messiah at the Auditorium Theater to the celebration of our Irish heritage at the Siamsa na nGael at Symphony Center, these concerts have become a great source of pride for the community of Old St. Patrick’s and the City of Chicago. Join one of our concert choirs below, under the direction of Bill Fraher, and become a part of the history yourself!
“I love to hear a choir. I love the humanity—to see the faces of real people devoting themselves to a piece of music. I like the teamwork. It makes me feel optimistic about the human race when I see them cooperating like that.” -Sir Paul McCartney
“Music––the other non-addictive, mood altering non substance. Ask your Doctor if music is right for you.” -Anonymous
“I sang in a college choir and loved it. I miss it and want to get back to singing.” – Future choir member
“I love to hear a choir. I love the humanity—to see the faces of real people devoting themselves to a piece of music. I like the teamwork. It makes me feel optimistic about the human race when I see them cooperating like that.” -Sir Paul McCartney
“Music––the other non-addictive, mood altering non substance. Ask your Doctor if music is right for you.” -Anonymous
“I sang in a college choir and loved it. I miss it and want to get back to singing.” – Future choir member
REHEARSALS
If you sang in college or high school or have always wanted to sing in a choir, come and join us. If you are a shower singer, a karaoke singer, or a professional singer, come and join us. If you can match pitch and hold pitch against another harmony, come and join us. If you don’t know if you can match pitch, come and try us out. If you sang in one of our concert choirs last year or a few years back, come and join us again.
For an up-to-date view of concert choir rehearsals, visit the Main OSP Calendar.
Auditions are required will take place before the start of each rehearsal process — see below for specific dates. You need not prepare anything for the audition. If you prefer another time to audition please contact Bill Fraher at BillF@oldstpats.org.
Looking forward to meeting you and hearing you!
For an up-to-date view of concert choir rehearsals, visit the Main OSP Calendar.
Auditions are required will take place before the start of each rehearsal process — see below for specific dates. You need not prepare anything for the audition. If you prefer another time to audition please contact Bill Fraher at BillF@oldstpats.org.
Looking forward to meeting you and hearing you!
Deck the Hall
Thursday, December 5, Friday December 6, & Saturday, December 7 at 7:30 pm
AN ECLECTIC AND LARGE SCALE CHRISTMAS CONCERT WITH ORCHESTRA AND CHORUS.
This concert has become the gateway to the Christmas holiday season. Join us for a fun and rewarding rehearsal process culminating in three sold-out nights of Christmas music and joyful praise — Deck The Hall!
Contact Bill Fraher, Director of Concert Choirs, at 312.831.9353 for more information or to schedule an audition tim. All auditions take place in Hughes Hall, beneath Old St. Patrick’s Church.
Deck the Hall Rehearsal Schedule (Please refer to the main event calendar for the most up to date schedule)
September 12,19, 24, 26, 2019
October 3, 8,10,17, 22, 24, 2019
November 7,12,14, 25, 2019
December 2, 2019
This concert has become the gateway to the Christmas holiday season. Join us for a fun and rewarding rehearsal process culminating in three sold-out nights of Christmas music and joyful praise — Deck The Hall!
Contact Bill Fraher, Director of Concert Choirs, at 312.831.9353 for more information or to schedule an audition tim. All auditions take place in Hughes Hall, beneath Old St. Patrick’s Church.
Deck the Hall Rehearsal Schedule (Please refer to the main event calendar for the most up to date schedule)
September 12,19, 24, 26, 2019
October 3, 8,10,17, 22, 24, 2019
November 7,12,14, 25, 2019
December 2, 2019
Siamsa Na Ngael
Wednesday, March 11, 2020
St. Patrick’s Day and Old St. Pat’s naturally go together! For nearly 20 years, Old St. Pat’s has celebrated the feast of our patron saint with an event so special that we fill Symphony Center on Michigan Avenue year after year.
The performance features a celebrity narrator, traditional Irish band, vocal soloists, the Metropolis Symphony Orchestra, Old St. Pat’s Concert Choir, dance, and moving stories and tales that recall and celebrate the wonderful arts the Irish culture has to offer. Additional ethnic cultures are often woven into the celebration creating a marvelous mix of artistry, so typical of the Irish American experience.
We form the Siamsa na nGael Concert Choir with more than 100 talented and enthusiastic singers. Consider yourself invited to audition, we would love to have you tryout.
Join our 2020 Siamsa Choir!
Come and join our concert choir and be part of our annual Siamsa na nGael now in its 24th year. We will be commemorating the end of World War II 75 years ago from a Chicago and Irish perspective, centering around the only African American naval ship in the United States Navy,
commissioned through the efforts of some Chicagoans and stationed in Derry, Northern Ireland. The program of song, dance, story, and slide – created and written by Bill Fraher and Mary Pat Kelly – will tell the story of the USS Mason crew and their time in Northern Ireland and the radical hospitality they experienced. Joining the concert choir will again be Metropolis Symphony Orchestra; Irish trad band; soloists Gavin Coyle, Rodrick Dixon, Catherine O’Connell; After School Matters Choir; and a few more surprises. “If You’re Irish, Come Into The Parlour” and “Anchors Aweigh”.
Auditions and first rehearsal will be on Thursday, January 9, 2020 from 7:00-9:00PM in Old St. Patrick’s Hughes Hall.
The rehearsal schedule is as follows:
January 9, 14, 23, 28, 30, 2020
February 6, 11, 13, 20, 25, 27, 2020
March 3, 5, 10, 2020.
All the above rehearsals will be in Hughes Hall from 7:00-9:00 PM. The March 11 rehearsal will be at 4:00 PM at Chicago’s Symphony Center on Michigan Avenue.
Contact Bill Fraher, Director of Concert Choirs, at billf@oldstpats.org for more information.
The performance features a celebrity narrator, traditional Irish band, vocal soloists, the Metropolis Symphony Orchestra, Old St. Pat’s Concert Choir, dance, and moving stories and tales that recall and celebrate the wonderful arts the Irish culture has to offer. Additional ethnic cultures are often woven into the celebration creating a marvelous mix of artistry, so typical of the Irish American experience.
We form the Siamsa na nGael Concert Choir with more than 100 talented and enthusiastic singers. Consider yourself invited to audition, we would love to have you tryout.
Join our 2020 Siamsa Choir!
Come and join our concert choir and be part of our annual Siamsa na nGael now in its 24th year. We will be commemorating the end of World War II 75 years ago from a Chicago and Irish perspective, centering around the only African American naval ship in the United States Navy,
commissioned through the efforts of some Chicagoans and stationed in Derry, Northern Ireland. The program of song, dance, story, and slide – created and written by Bill Fraher and Mary Pat Kelly – will tell the story of the USS Mason crew and their time in Northern Ireland and the radical hospitality they experienced. Joining the concert choir will again be Metropolis Symphony Orchestra; Irish trad band; soloists Gavin Coyle, Rodrick Dixon, Catherine O’Connell; After School Matters Choir; and a few more surprises. “If You’re Irish, Come Into The Parlour” and “Anchors Aweigh”.
Auditions and first rehearsal will be on Thursday, January 9, 2020 from 7:00-9:00PM in Old St. Patrick’s Hughes Hall.
The rehearsal schedule is as follows:
January 9, 14, 23, 28, 30, 2020
February 6, 11, 13, 20, 25, 27, 2020
March 3, 5, 10, 2020.
All the above rehearsals will be in Hughes Hall from 7:00-9:00 PM. The March 11 rehearsal will be at 4:00 PM at Chicago’s Symphony Center on Michigan Avenue.
Contact Bill Fraher, Director of Concert Choirs, at billf@oldstpats.org for more information.
Too Hot to Handel
Auditorium Theatre on January 18, 19, 2020
THE JAZZ-GOSPEL MESSIAH AT THE AUDITORIUM THEATER
How many times have all of us been inspired and had our spirits lifted up while hearing Handel’s “Messiah”? No doubt, this timeless composition is among the most beloved musical works in history.
In 1992, Marin Alsop, the conductor of the Baltimore Symphony, commissioned two New York jazz musicians, Gary Anderson and Bob Christiansen, to create a jazz, gospel, blues, funk, spiritual, and classical re-creation of Handel’s genius oratorio. The result was, while still maintaining Handel’s original intent, a swinging rendition of Too Hot To Handel—the Jazz-Gospel Messiah.
Soloists Rodrick Dixon, tenor; Karen Marie Richardson, alto; and Alfreda Burke, soprano combine with a jazz ensemble, full orchestra and a 125-voice “Too Hot” choir. The choir is under the direction of Bill Fraher and is composed of volunteer singers from the Chicago metropolitan area. Interested choir singers are most welcome to audition. The ability to effortlessly carry a tune and a willingness to commit to the rehearsal schedule is all that it takes to be a part of what has become a historical and spirited yearly experience.
We are proud to reach out to the community-at-large inviting singers from all over Chicago to participate in a stunning performance of this classic work, sung yet again and made a-new for all generations to enjoy, in a fresh and contemporary version.
It is not necessary to prepare anything for the audition. Just come and bring your voice and your enthusiasm. As the choir learns 14 choruses in just 12 rehearsals, participation in all the rehearsals is necessary.
For more information click here or contact Bill Fraher, Director of Concert Choirs, at 312.831.9353.
Too Hot to Handel Rehearsal Schedule (Please refer to the main event calendar for the most up to date schedule)
September 16, 23, 2019
October 14, 21, 2019
December 2,16, 2019
January 6, 13, 2020
January 16, 2020 Auditorium Theatre
January 17, 2020 11:00 am Auditorium Theatre
January 18, 2020 Evening Performance
January 19, 2020 Matinee Performance
How many times have all of us been inspired and had our spirits lifted up while hearing Handel’s “Messiah”? No doubt, this timeless composition is among the most beloved musical works in history.
In 1992, Marin Alsop, the conductor of the Baltimore Symphony, commissioned two New York jazz musicians, Gary Anderson and Bob Christiansen, to create a jazz, gospel, blues, funk, spiritual, and classical re-creation of Handel’s genius oratorio. The result was, while still maintaining Handel’s original intent, a swinging rendition of Too Hot To Handel—the Jazz-Gospel Messiah.
Soloists Rodrick Dixon, tenor; Karen Marie Richardson, alto; and Alfreda Burke, soprano combine with a jazz ensemble, full orchestra and a 125-voice “Too Hot” choir. The choir is under the direction of Bill Fraher and is composed of volunteer singers from the Chicago metropolitan area. Interested choir singers are most welcome to audition. The ability to effortlessly carry a tune and a willingness to commit to the rehearsal schedule is all that it takes to be a part of what has become a historical and spirited yearly experience.
We are proud to reach out to the community-at-large inviting singers from all over Chicago to participate in a stunning performance of this classic work, sung yet again and made a-new for all generations to enjoy, in a fresh and contemporary version.
It is not necessary to prepare anything for the audition. Just come and bring your voice and your enthusiasm. As the choir learns 14 choruses in just 12 rehearsals, participation in all the rehearsals is necessary.
For more information click here or contact Bill Fraher, Director of Concert Choirs, at 312.831.9353.
Too Hot to Handel Rehearsal Schedule (Please refer to the main event calendar for the most up to date schedule)
September 16, 23, 2019
October 14, 21, 2019
December 2,16, 2019
January 6, 13, 2020
January 16, 2020 Auditorium Theatre
January 17, 2020 11:00 am Auditorium Theatre
January 18, 2020 Evening Performance
January 19, 2020 Matinee Performance