The 18th Street Singers

The 18th Street Singers is a mixed choral ensemble of 40 voices based in Washington, DC. The group was founded in 2004 and performs several times per year in the Washington, DC area. The group is made up of young professionals and is named after a street in Washington, DC where its members often socialize. The group has been noted for the quality of its musicianship and has recently been invited to perform at a number of Washington, DC's most prominent venues.
The 18th Street Singers is under the direction of Benjamin Olinsky, who received his training in choral conducting at Yale University and Westminster Choir College.
The 18th Street Singers is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation.
Music
The 18th Street Singers sing a broad repertoire of a cappella choral music. Their music selection varies by season, depending on the theme of each concert the group presents.
In the past, the groups has presented programs entitled Reflections on War and Peace, Dream with Me, Crosscurrents, Music of Love: Sacred and Profane, Season of the Spirit, and Haunted: Music that Lingers in the Soul.
The 18th Street Singers frequently perform American choral compositions and spirituals and exciting new arrangements of folksongs from around the world. But the group is perhaps most well-known for its performance of challenging and complex 20th century works. Examples include:
*Agnues Dei · Samuel Barber
*Ave Dulcissima Maria · Morton Lauridsen
*Complete This Work (Choir Concerto No. 4) · Alfred Schnittke
*Distant Song · Timothy Snyder
*Dusk to Dawn · Vijay Singh
*I Am Not Yours · Z. Randall Stroope
*Ich bin das Brot des Lebens · Wolfram Buchenberg
*Past Life Melodies · Sarah Hopkins
*Sleep · Eric Whitacre
*There Will be Rest · Frank Ticheli
*To Be Sung on the Water · Samual Barber
*Unicornis Captivatur · Ola Gjeilo
*When David Heard · Eric Whitacre
*With a Lily in Your Hand · Eric Whitacre
*Words · Anders Edenroth
The group has also performed two major works:
*Requiem · Gabriel Faure (with NIH Philharmonia)
*Mass for Double Choir · Frank Martin
Notable performances
In addition to the group's biannual season concerts, the 18th Street Singers has been engaged to perform in notable venues in Washington, DC.
*Holiday performances at the National Gallery of Art, December 22, 2007
*Discover Strathmore, Music Center at Strathmore February 17, 2008
*Evensong prelude, Washington National Cathedral, November 23, 2008
*A selection of carols at the Willard Hotel in Washington, DC, December 13, 2008.
*Special performance of Frank Martin's Mass for Double Choir at the Swiss Embassy, February 20, 2009
*Solo concert at the National Gallery of Art, April 18, 2009
*Solo concert at the Strathmore Mansion, May 20, 2009
*Solo concert at the Kennedy Center, June 20, 2009
*Special performance with Celtic Woman and Ray LaMontagne at the National Christmas Tree Lighting in front of the White House, December 4, 2009
Albums
The group released its first album, 18th & U, in 2008. The album features live performances of the group spanning 2006-2008, and presents a collection of classic American choral compositions and folk songs from around the world.
Membership
In keeping with the high musical standards of the group, membership has increasingly been selective. The group includes alumni of many prominent undergraduate vocal and choral ensembles from across the country.

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