Welcome for Fall 2020
Lehigh Choral Arts is dedicated to bringing the finest in choral singing to our audiences at home and when we tour internationally. We recently celebrated 150 years of singing at Lehigh, and this year we continue to celebrate the 35th anniversary of our Choral Union.
While we love singing, we also recognize that choral singing in the present pandemic presents significant risks of spreading the novel Corona virus. For this reason, we are not planning any live performances in the 2020 fall semester.
For our Choral Union members – students, staff, faculty and townspeople alike – we hope to begin again in the second semester. We plan to stay in touch in the fall semester and look forward to making music with you when we can safely.
Lehigh Choral Arts plans to hold auditions at the end of the spring semester for singers interested in joining for the 2021-22 season. Interested students may contact Owen Rahr at opr222@lehigh.edu.
For singers interested in the Choral Union, please contact Charis Lasky at CharisLUCU@comcast.net.
For now, please enjoy our most recent recording of the Lehigh University Alma Mater below and watch or listen to some of our past performances. Please also join us on December 20th at 8 p.m. or December 24th at 6:30 p.m. for a rebroadcast of the 2019 Christmas Vespers concert on PBS 39.
If you are a choir alumnus interested in contributing to our semester-long project relating to the theme of "There's No Place Like Home", we would love to have your submissions in the form of poetry, short essays, reflections, or any other creative form that you'd like! Please email your submissions to Doc at sps0@lehigh.edu or contact Lucy McGinty at lam221@lehigh.edu if you have questions.
Reflections By Alumni
ELLIE (WOODS) KAHLE (’11)
“Choral Arts gave my Lehigh career purpose and an outlet to express myself surrounded by an amazing community. It was my home and safe place.” read more
JOHN COLE (’82)
My dear friend and fellow Lehigh Choir alum, Karen (Lindquist) Randall, ’83, once told me, “I think when you sing with people, you form a bond with them that is unique. A choir is different from your normal circle of friends or other groups you form based on many shared similarities. It’s a more diverse group, drawn together by a single, mutual interest. It’s the love of music that matters, at least at first. Then, as you join voices, something mystical happens. The thrill of creating something of beauty together forges that bond and leads to a realization: the differences between people you thought were there really aren’t there at all. You become a better person. Making music has a powerful effect.” I couldn’t agree more. I’ve heard similar sentiments from other musicians, and I know it’s true for me. read more
WHO WE ARE
Lehigh University Choral Arts boasts a choral tradition dating back to the 1870s. The Choir was first formed by director Robert “Boss” Cutler in 1979, taking the all-male Glee Club and all-female Chamber Singers (under the direction of Jerry Bidlack) and combining them into a single group.
Under the tutelage of Dr. Steven Sametz, the Choir has grown to over 70 students from across all undergraduate colleges, majors and disciplines. The LUCA family currently includes the Choral Union; the Choir; the men’s Glee Club; and Dolce, the women’s ensemble. Choral Union, the largest ensemble with 150 singers, includes members of the University and Lehigh Valley communities.
LUCA travels to exotic locations on our bi-annual tours, such as Hawaii (2013), Costa Rica (2011), Portugal (2009), China (2007), Northern Italy (2015), and Spain (2017). Last summer we toured in Hungary and Austria!
The program is directed by Steven Sametz, Ronald J. Ulrich Professor of Music, and Sun Min Lee, Robert Cutler Professor of Practice and director of Dolce.