BIOGRAPHY

Founded in 1872, the Rutgers University Glee Club is one of the oldest tenor-bass choirs in the United States.

The ensemble has become known for its powerful performances, international tours, and innovative programming. The Glee Club has commissioned and premiered new works by major composers, helping to shape the modern repertoire for tenor-bass choirs.

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In 2000, the Rutgers Glee Club hosted the National Seminar of Intercollegiate Men’s Choruses (IMC), spotlighting the event with the world premiere of The Miracle by Pulitzer Prize–winning composer William Bolcom. The ensemble has since been featured at IMC national seminars in 2004 and 2010. Through competitive selection, the Rutgers Glee Club has also performed at the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) National Conferences in 2001, 2017, and 2021, as well as ACDA Eastern Division Conferences in 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2020.

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The Rutgers Glee Club has appeared on some of the nation’s most prominent stages. In 2000, they performed Schoenberg’s Gurrelieder under the baton of Sir Simon Rattle at Philadelphia’s historic Academy of Music. The following year, the ensemble brought the New York premiere of Bolcom’s The Miracle to Lincoln Center. In 2003, they collaborated with the Philadelphia Singers for a performance of Berlioz’s Requiem at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts.

In 2006, the Rutgers Glee Club joined forces with the Rutgers Kirkpatrick Choir and Rutgers Collegium to present Shostakovich’s Symphonies Nos. 2, 3, and 13 with conductor Valery Gergiev and both the Rotterdam Philharmonic and the Kirov Orchestra at Avery Fisher Hall.

In 2014, as part of the IMC conference hosted by Rutgers University, the ensemble performed Stravinsky’s Oedipus Rex with the Rutgers Symphony Orchestra.

Their most recent collaborative albums, Legends and Legacies and Threads of Eternity, are available on all major streaming platforms.