SJBC News

JV Choir heads to Black Hills

2009-06-09T12:11:00.001-07:00

The 26 members of the Junior Varisty Choir embarked on a 7-day tour to South Dakota this morning. While on tour, the choir will collaborate with the Singing Boys of Sioux Falls and minister at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Perpetual Help and Blessed Sacrament Church in Rapid City. Sight-seeing activities include visits to historic Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse Memorial.

SJBC Celebrates Black History Month

2009-02-18T08:06:00.000-08:00

The Concert and Junior Varsity Choirs of The St. John's Boys' Choir hosted a celebration in honor of Black History Month at the historic Paramount Theatre in St. Cloud. The concert featured the young choristers performing music of the African diaspora ranging from African folk music and following its progression to spirituals, gospel music and jazz. The boys joined with members of the Nu-Way Missionary Baptist Church Youth Choir, an all-black ensemble that delighted the audience with music from the gospel tradition. All the young singers were thrilled to collaborate with acclaimed special guest, Jearlyn Steele. Ms. Steele was an inspiration for all the choristers as she worked with them in two rehearsals prior to the performance.

SJBC remembers Dietrich Reinhart, OSB

2008-12-30T07:54:00.000-08:00

President Emeritus of Saint John's University, Br. Dietrich (Thomas Edward) Reinhart died peacefully on Monday, December 29. He was instrumental in the founding of the Boys' Choir in 1981 and remained a strong supporter of the organization right up until his death. Br. Dietrich was awarded the Saint Gregory Award from SJBC in 2000 for his contributions to the organization.

SJBC on the world stage

2008-06-28T10:19:00.000-07:00

The SJBC Concert Choir departed on Friday, June 27 for the Czech Republic where they will represent the United States and the state of Minnesota at the International Boys' and Men's Choral Festival in Hradec Králové and Prague. The boys will travel throughout various regions of Bohemia, exploring the nation's architecture, history and culture. Highlights will include performances at the 700-year old Holy Spirit Cathedral in Hradec Kralove and historic Dvorak Hall in Prague.

JV takes Philly

2008-06-10T10:15:00.000-07:00

The Junior Varsity Choir has embarked on its year-end tour. Their travels this summer will take them to the Keystone State, where they will visit the cities of Philadelphia and Hershey. Their plans include a collaboration with the Philadelphia Boys' Choir & Chorale, a number of church appearances, lots of sightseeing of historical monuments, and of course a trip to the Hershey Chocolate Factory.

Oratorio educates, inspires

2008-04-28T10:12:00.000-07:00

A collaboration between St. Cloud State University and the College of Saint Benedict/Saint John's University yielded incredible results on April 25 & 26. The choirs and orchestras of both universities, in conjunction with the Cantabile Girls' Choir and the St. John's Boys' Choir presented an oratorio by Minnesota composer Stephen Paulus, To Be Certain of the Dawn. The concert was presented at both campuses to full houses. The event was a monumental one in the history of Central Minnesota and did much to educate the young people inovlved about the Holocaust and to engage them in discussion about prejudice and injustice.

Music transcends racial barriers

2008-04-15T10:06:00.000-07:00

The St. John's Boys' Choir were a featured guests at the Changing Faces conference and workshop hosted by the Saint John's School of Theology and CSB's Companions on a Journey program. The Changing Faces series seeks to engage more people in transformative approaches to intercultural ministry. This particular workshop dealt with the topic Black and Catholic: Social and Cultural Challenges in Ministry. The boys presented a program of sacred music, ranging from Gregorian chant to music of the African diaspora. Their program was followed by a lecture by Dr. M. Shawn Copeland on African roots in today's Church.

SJBC sings at State of the State Address

2008-02-14T10:04:00.000-08:00

The boys of The St. John's Boys' Choir were honored to be asked to sing for a distinguished audience at the 2008 Governor's State of the State Address at the St. Cloud Civic Center on February 13. The boys opened the ceremony with two patriotic songs and then lead the singing of "The Star Spangled Banner" before Governor Tim Pawlenty began his address. The boys also had the opportunity to meet and chat with Governor Pawlenty after the event.

SJBC welcomes new boys, conductor

2008-02-05T09:59:00.000-08:00

A total of 23 boys were selected to become part of the 2008 SJBC Training Choir. The choir met for the first time at an annual opening camp on February 1-2, where the boys had the opportunity to make beautiful music, to learn theory and to make new friends. Also joining the organization is Tom Speckhard who was recently appointed conductor of the Training Choir. Tom has worked with singers of all ages before, and currently teaches voice and directs the opera at CSB-SJU.

Boys promote male singing

2007-10-29T09:55:00.000-07:00

The St. John's Boys' Choir were invited guest artists at the Real Men Sing workshop presented by the Angelica Cantanti Youth Choirs and professional men's ensemble Cantus. The boys represented what young men could achieve in the pursuit of musical excellence. Their performance received praise for their sound, musicality and program. SJBC continues to promote excellence in male singing as part of its mission and thank Angelica Cantanti for putting on this valuable workshop as well as Cantus for their mentorship.

Choir remounts opera

2007-10-15T09:47:00.000-07:00

The St. John's Boys' Choir presented an encore presentation of their world premiere commissioned opera, The Star Gatherer. This year's production introduced the work to a number of schools in the Central Minnesota area. The run closed with a gala reception and performance on Saturday October 13. Composer Stephen Paulus was in attendance and was thrilled with the new production. The boys will be performing another major Paulus work later this year, To Be Certain of the Dawn with the choirs and orchestras of Saint John's University, the College of Saint Benedict, St. Cloud State University and the Cantabile Girls' Choirs.

Andre Heywood joins SJBC

2007-07-05T09:39:00.000-07:00

The St. John's Boys' Choir is pleased to welcome Andre Heywood as its new artistic director. Andre comes to us from London, Canada where he completed his graduate study at the University of Western Ontario, researching methods of encouraging male choral involvement. He has worked extensively with church and university choirs, has founded a nationally-recognized chamber choir and has worked extensively with the renowned Amabile Boys' Choir.