Discover Summit Chorale: A Musical Treasure in NJ

SUMMIT, NJ -- Summit is fortunate to have such a deep history in the arts & culture. Among the many different organizations, Summit Chorale is a perfect example of what the community offers. TAPinto Summit recently interviewed Carly DaSilva of Summit Chorale to learn more about what the historical group does and what exciting events are upcoming.

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Organization: Summit Chorale

Your Name/Title: Carly DaSilva, Membership Co-Chair & Soprano II

Location: Summit, NJ, and the surrounding area

Email: membership@summitchorale.org

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How long has the group been supporting the community?

Summit Chorale is one of New Jersey's oldest active choral organizations, celebrating our 116th year during the 2024-2025 season. We are well into our second century of exciting repertoire and community music making!

How long have you been a member of this organization?

I’ve been an official member of Summit Chorale since Fall 2019—they were seeking more voices for their performance of Rachmaninoff’s Vespers in Spring, so I came in with a desire to learn more challenging music than I was singing for church, and I simply had to join after that fantastic concert. I’ve been growing as an amateur singer ever since.

What drew you to this organization?

There are quite a few community chorales in the tri-state area, but Summit Chorale does a very special thing that I think is both rare and difficult: our music director, Dr. Thomas Juneau, gives us a very thoughtful mixture of repertoire each season that is in equal measure challenging, fun, and relevant when it comes to our current cultural moment as well as educational when it comes to music history. And somehow, this rigor is balanced with our ensemble’s overall infectious passion for music and kindness and warmth toward singers at all levels (from amateurs like me to music educators and professionals).

Tell us about the local importance of the organization?

Accessing opera, musical theatre, and classical choral performances usually comes at a great cost when it comes to time, distance, and money. Not everyone can travel to New York City or Philadelphia to experience this kind of music! Summit Chorale brings these genres of music directly to the local community and makes them easy to access and enjoy amid the hustle and bustle of our increasingly busy lives. Whether you’re a volunteer singer from the community like me who’s never had music education beyond high school, or an audience member who’s never heard of Rachmaninoff or Bizet, you’re learning about the wider world of music and its rich history when you join Summit Chorale for a concert or event.

What types of tasks do you and your organization perform?

My personal responsibility is membership communications: making sure everyone who is part of the chorale knows everything they need to know to show up and sing, and that new members feel supported and welcome! Our Board of Trustees as a whole cooperates with our members and Dr. Juneau to plan and execute six events a season (our annual free 9/11 memorial sing, two fundraisers with food/drink, and three seasonal concerts).

Tell us about your upcoming events?

We have a lovely suite of repertoire for our 2024-2025 season that Dr. Juneau has tied in with the upcoming 80th anniversary of the end of conflict in Europe during WWII. Our Fall Concert, La Vie en Rose, is a celebration of jazz featuring Will Todd’s Mass in Blue and hits by Edith Piaf and Josephine Baker; and our Spring Concert on May 17th, Remembrances, will feature songs of the Holocaust, Hugo Distler’s “Singet dem Herrn”, and will culminate with the beautiful Brahms Requiem. We also have a Winter Holiday Concert taking place two days before the anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge (December 14th), so we’ll be singing popular Christmas hits of the time alongside Ralph Vaughn Williams’s Dona Nobis Pacem, an anthem for peace composed in 1936 that urges the avoidance of a second world war. We also have two upcoming fundraisers featuring food, drink, and fun in addition to music: our cABBAret! with a cash bar and choral arrangements of ABBA favorites; and our very fancy 3-course dinner and wine gala event, Opera Uncorked, which will feature an English performance of the opera Die Fledermaus.

How can the community get involved with this event?

It’s easy—come join us! Bring your friends and family for a very special one-of-a-kind community arts experience that is equal parts inspiring, educational, and simply a joy to hear. For all the dates, times, locations, and tickets for our upcoming events, visit www.summitchorale.org/concerts-and-events . You can also sign up for our email list to receive email updates as our events approach (usually two per concert, very manageable and helpful!). If you’re someone who loves to sing, consider singing with us: our information for prospective chorale members is available at www.summitchorale.org/sing-with-us .

Any other information you would like to include?

Music is a beautiful, powerful force that continues to sustain us as it always has in times of both exuberant joy and bitter turmoil. It’s the embodiment of our human capacity to feel, to create, and to share, and the more we can cultivate an appreciation of music and art in our communities, the richer we all become in spirit and in kinship. It is Summit Chorale’s mission to help grow that appreciation, and in this, our 116th year, I think we’re going above and beyond in doing just that.

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