{"id":7973,"date":"2022-05-20T08:53:18","date_gmt":"2022-05-20T13:53:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/?p=7973"},"modified":"2026-02-10T12:31:16","modified_gmt":"2026-02-10T17:31:16","slug":"university-chorus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/university-chorus\/","title":{"rendered":"The University Chorus Makes Beautiful Music"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Originally known as the Women\u2019s Glee Club, the group will celebrate its centennial at Reunion \u201922<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Beth Saulnier<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The title is as revelatory as it is cheeky: \u201cNo Whining, No Flowers.\u201d That\u2019s the name of the Cornell University Chorus<\/a>\u2019s ongoing project, launched in 2003, to commission new works by women composers, based on texts by women writers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The name pokes gentle fun at two stereotypical subjects of classical pieces for female voices: the tribulations of lost love, and the beauty of nature. And while it may be a bit of an inside joke, the project has serious aims: it underscores the Chorus\u2019s commitment not only to musical excellence, but to expanding opportunities for soprano and alto voices on the Hill and beyond.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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At Reunion 2022<\/a>, the Chorus will hold several events marking its centennial\u2014a milestone it actually reached in 2020, but was unable to celebrate until now due to the pandemic. They include<\/a> a Friday night concert in Bailey Hall (tickets are required) as well as events solely for choral alumni, such as a \u201chistory tea\u201d and singalong, a centennial luncheon, and a farewell picnic.<\/p>\n<\/div>

\"The
The Chorus at the inauguration of President Elizabeth Garrett in 2015. (Photo by Jason Koski \/ Cornell University)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt’s a clich\u00e9, but you create something greater than the sum of its parts,\u201d Marion \u201cBetsy\u201d Murphy Erickson \u201980, who served as president her senior year, says of performing with the group. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou work together, listen to each other, use your bodies as your instrument to create a sound that\u2019s beautiful and moving. Then you send it out into the audience and feel their reaction come back to you. It’s just thrilling.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Originally founded as the Women\u2019s Glee Club, the Chorus is what\u2019s known as a \u201ctreble\u201d choir, meaning it comprises sopranos and altos. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The
The Women’s Glee Club in the 1926 yearbook. (Image courtesy of the Cornellian.)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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And while those vocal parts are typically female\u2014and the Chorus is colloquially known as a women\u2019s group\u2014nowadays it\u2019s open to anyone who sings them, regardless of gender identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTreble-voiced choruses are unique,\u201d notes Scott Tucker, who served as director of the Chorus and Glee Club for 17 years (until 2012, when he became artistic director<\/a> of the prestigious Choral Arts Society of Washington, D.C.). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt takes a certain repertoire, and it’s a certain sound,” he continues. “Because of the range they sing in and the nature of the acoustics, in some ways they have to be more perfect than men’s voices do to have that ringing sound you get when something’s beautifully in tune\u2014so when that happens, it’s extraordinary. Cornell, along with a couple of other women’s choruses, really does that well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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