The Central Maryland Chorale, formerly known as the Laurel Oratorio Society, is a classical music choral group based in

Laurel, Maryland Laurel is a city in Maryland, United States, located midway between Washington and Baltimore on the banks of the Patuxent River. While the city limits are entirely in northern Prince George's County, outlying developments extend into Anne Arunde ...

. The Laurel Oratorio Society was founded in 1969, and officially incorporated in 1973. The following year

Virgil Thomson Virgil Thomson (November 25, 1896 – September 30, 1989) was an American composer and critic. He was instrumental in the development of the "American Sound" in classical music. He has been described as a modernist, a neoromantic, a neoclassic ...

, a renowned conductor and composer, came to the Society to see a retrospective of his work. The Central Maryland Chorale performs

oratorio An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is mus ...

s, musical excerpts, and lighter choral works approximately three times a year, in addition to its annual Christmas season sing-along of Handel's ''

Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of ''mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach'' ...

''. The chorale supports young artists each spring by providing a vocal scholarship competition. The competition is open to high school seniors between the ages of 16–19. The Central Maryland Chorale conductor and artistic director is Monica Otal and is accompanied by Dr. Theodore Guerrant.

References

History of the Laurel Oratorio Society

External links

* Choral societies Organizations based in Maryland Laurel, Maryland Musical groups established in 1969 1969 establishments in Maryland {{Classical-ensemble-stub