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Find your voice in the Blossom Festival Chorus!

About the Chorus

The Cleveland Orchestra opened Blossom Music Center in 1968 to serve as the orchestra’s summer home.  A large new volunteer chorus was assembled for the inaugural concert and included many members of The Cleveland Orchestra Chorus and members of other Northeast Ohio choral groups.  The Blossom Festival Chorus has since established itself as a permanent and beloved annual part of the Blossom Festival and has sung well over 100 concerts since its 1968 debut.

The Blossom Festival Chorus joins the Cleveland Orchestra Chorus at Severance every December for the annual Holiday Concerts with The Cleveland Orchestra. They have also performed at Chautauqua and on Cleveland's Public Square for the annual Fourth of July concerts.

Auditions

Auditions for both the Cleveland Orchestra Chorus and Blossom Festival Chorus are held each spring.  For audition dates and requirements, send an email to chorus@clevelandorchestra.com, or visit here for current audition information.

To be notified of the Chorus's next round of auditions, you can sign up here.

Blossom Festival Chorus Leadership

Jill Harbaugh

Director, Choral Operations

Lisa Wong

Director

Dr. Lisa Wong, a distinguished choral conductor and educator, serves as Director of Choruses for The Cleveland Orchestra. Her work has been described as “nuanced” (The New York Times) and “sensitive, yet powerful” (Cleveland Classical). She has prepared The Cleveland Orchestra Chorus and The Blossom Festival Chorus for acclaimed performances under conductors Franz Welser-Möst, Klaus Mäkelä, John Adams, Jane Glover, Susanna Mälkki, Eric Whitacre, and many others.

 

Lisa served for sixteen years as the Olive Williams Kettering Professor of Music at The College of Wooster. As Director of the award-winning Wooster Chorus, she elevated the ensemble to national prominence through annual domestic tours, performances at state and regional conferences, and the premiere performances of fifteen new works. Her expertise in music education is informed by thirty-two years of classroom experience and extensive work as a clinician, adjudicator, and guest conductor. She has successfully directed choirs at all levels, from elementary and secondary schools to universities and professional community organizations.

 

A sought-after leader in the field, Lisa has shared her expertise internationally through engagements in Kenya and Singapore. She has served numerous times as a grant panelist for the National Endowment for the Arts and Chorus America, and has presented at state and national conferences on varied topics including choral repertoire, rehearsal techniques, and women in leadership. She is beginning her term as President-Elect of the Ohio Choral Directors Association, and has served as the Repertoire and Resource Chair for World Music and Cultures and on the Committee for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for the Ohio Music Education Association.

 

With degrees from West Chester University and the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, Lisa’s academic foundation is complemented by a rich career dedicated to inspiring and nurturing musicians of all ages. Her contributions to both the professional and academic spheres have significantly impacted the choral landscape.

Lisa Wong

Daniel Singer

Assistant Director

Daniel Singer joined the choral conducting staff of The Cleveland Orchestra in 2012 as assistant director of The Cleveland Orchestra Youth Chorus.  He was promoted to Assistant Director of Choruses and Director of the Youth Chorus with the start of the 2018-19 season. In addition to his responsibilities in Cleveland, Mr. Singer is the Robert Page Music Director for The Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh, known as the “chorus of choice” for the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, and director of the Junior Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh.

 

Mr. Singer has taught high school and college and most recently served on the music faculty of The College of Wooster where he taught courses in music education, conducting, and music theory. From 2011-2022, Mr. Singer was the Director of Music at University School in Hunting Valley, Ohio, where he conducted orchestra and chorus, and prior to that he taught high school choral music in Northern Illinois and participated in music engagement in the Chicago Public Schools.

 

Mr. Singer has performed professionally with Quire Cleveland, Apollo’s Fire, and The Lakeside Singers (Chicago), he has sung in recitals in Toronto, Pittsburgh, and Cleveland, and he as appeared as soloist with ensembles throughout Northeast Ohio, including the Wooster Symphony Orchestra and Chorus and Choral Arts Cleveland. Mr. Singer holds degrees in music education and conducting from Northwestern University and Michigan State University.

Daniel Singer headshot

Daniel Overly

Collaborative Pianist

Daniel Overly has built an exceptionally versatile career as a pianist, chamber musician, and vocal coach, making him a sought-after artist in prominent musical circles. He is currently serving as a rehearsal pianist for The Cleveland Orchestra, collaborating closely with The Cleveland Orchestra Choruses, conductors, and guest artists. He also performs regularly as a chamber musician across the United States and Europe, working with members of The Cleveland Orchestra, the Philharmonia Orchestra, the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, the Vienna State Opera, and the Vienna Philharmonic, among others.

 As rehearsal pianist, Overly has assisted Franz Welser-Möst in preparing a wide range of operas and oratorios, including Bach’s St. John Passion, Mozart’s Requiem and The Magic Flute, Puccini’s La Fanciulla del West, Schubert’s Mass in E-flat, Stravinsky’s Threni, Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen, and Verdi’s Otello and Requiem. He is also at home in the world of contemporary music, having assisted John Adams with El Niño, Thomas Adès with America: A Prophecy, George Benjamin with Dream of the Song, and performed Eric Whitacre’s The Sacred Veil with the composer conducting. His recent and upcoming engagements include a tour with violinist Andrew Sords, the complete Brahms violin sonata cycle with Stephen Tavani, Schubert's Die schöne Müllerin with James Reese, and frequent chamber music performances
with members of The Cleveland Orchestra.

 A passionate educator, Overly has served on the collaborative piano and vocal coaching faculties of the Cleveland Institute of Music and the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University and was Collaborative Piano Fellow at the Yale School of Music. He was a three-time fellow of the Tanglewood Music Center, where he participated in numerous performances of songs, chamber music, and contemporary works. Overly was a Fulbright Scholar and studied at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna and the Cleveland Institute of Music.