The BACHtoberfest Choir gives choral musicians from far and wide the chance to meet in Worcester and be part of THE COMPLETE BACH as singers. They will rehearse with Chris Shepard throughout the weekend, presenting the final BACHtoberfest concert on Sunday afternoon. Details about joining the choir will be available in May.

The Worcester Children’s Chorus (WCC) was founded in 2008 as a program of The Master Singers of Worcester by co-directors Jennifer Kane and Malcolm Halliday. A partnership was also formed at that time between the WCC and Assumption University making WCC a choir “in residence” at the University campus where WCC enjoys rehearsal and performance spaces as well as other resources.

The Chorus began as one ensemble with 33 singers, making its debut performance on Sunday, October 19, 2009 during a “Mostly Mozart” program with The Master Singers of Worcester.

Within two years, the Chorus split into two ensembles with the addition of the Da Capo training choir under the direction of Philip Montgomery and became an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. In September 2014, Dr. Pamela Mindell succeeded Jennifer Kane as the Artistic Director after two years directing the Tour Chorus. A Decade of Song Gala Concert was held at Mechanic’s Hall in May 2018 celebrating a successful 10 years and looking toward a bright future for the choir.

The Worcester Children’s Chorus has performed with many area ensembles, including: The Master Singers of Worcester, The Assabet Valley Mastersingers, The Salisbury Singers, the Thayer Symphony Orchestra, the Worcester Youth Orchestra, and the Worcester Chorus. Members of the chorus have also performed on three occasions at Carnegie Hall in NYC, participated in the International Children’s Chorus Festival at Canterbury Cathedral and London, England, as well as the Crescent City Choral Festival in New Orleans. In 2016, the WCC was featured at Fenway Park, home of the Boston Red Sox, where they performed the Star Spangled Banner before tens of thousands.

Dr. Pamela Mindell has worked with a number of children’s choirs, including the Litchfield County Children’s Choir in CT and the Paradise City Children’s Choir, in Northampton, MA, which she founded in 2001.

In addition to her work with WCC, Pamela is also Music Director of the Cambridge Community Chorus. She has served on the faculties of Smith College, Clark University, and College of the Holy Cross. Under her direction, the Holy Cross choirs traveled to Italy and Spain, as well as throughout the Northeastern United States, singing in such venues as Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome and Saint Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City. Other performance highlights include a concert of Sacred Latin American music with renowned soprano Dawn Upshaw, and Osvaldo Golijov’s Pasion segun San Marco, as part of the Mostly Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center. Pamela served as Artistic Director of the Hotchkiss Summer Portals Vocal Chamber Program (CT) for high school singers for ten years.

Prior to her college teaching, Pamela spent a year in Sydney, Australia, conducting and singing professionally. As a soprano, Pamela has performed in several recitals with mezzo-soprano Justina Golden. She has sung with The Boston Secession and Emmanuel Music in Boston. Pamela received her doctorate in Choral Conducting from Yale University, where she studied with Marguerite Brooks and David Connell. She holds a master’s degree in Music Education with Kodàly Certification from The Hartt School as well as a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Princeton University.