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Hendrick Hudson
Disbands
Message from the President |
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In January, 2017, the Hendrick Hudson Male Chorus
suspended regular rehearsals, planning to reconvene
in September 2017. Membership in the chorus had been
dwindling owing to the departure of members to
warmer climates, illnesses, and deaths of others.
Efforts to rebuild the membership during the summer
of 2017 were not successful. On September 25, 2017,
in our 50th year, the remaining members
voted to cease operation.
The men whose voices and support brought joy to our
community wish to thank our spouses and loyal
followers for their participation. Our thanks also
to the conductors and accompanists who spent so many
hours sharing their time and talents with us. We
will miss the comradeship that male singing brings
to all who participate.
The Chorus has an extensive library of music we wish
to share. If you would like to receive a copy of the
library and perhaps obtain music for your group,
contact Peter Larson at
pflarson@nycap.rr.com. |
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About
Us |
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The Hendrick Hudson Male Chorus performs throughout
the Capital District and each December presents a holiday concert at the
Community Congregational Church of Clinton Heights, its current rehearsal site. In
addition, HHMC gives an annual spring concert in May.
The chorus performs
in a wide variety of musical genres, including sacred,
classical, spiritual, theater and film, folk, popular, and operetta.
HHMC was founded in 1968 by
Edward VanKampen as the Cordial Greens Men's Glee Club, the name referring to
the country club where the group rehearsed and often performed for the first 15
years of its existence. The name
was changed to the Hendrick Hudson Male Chorus in 1984. Previous
conductors include Donald Clair, Theodore Grab, Robert Claus, Bruce Wagner, and
David Lance.
An active member of the
Mohawk-Hudson Male Chorus Association, the Hendrick Hudson Male
Chorus has participated in each of the association's biannual
massed concerts. HHMC hosted the 56th massed concert in April 2014 at
the First United Methodist Church in East Greenbush.
Participating along with HHMC were the
Mendelssohn Club of Albany, the Catskill Glee Club, and the Mendelssohn Club of
Kingston.
HHMC is
also represented in the Yankee Male Chorus, which performs annually
in Vermont and New Hampshire in August.
Hendrick's Crew
For more than 24 years, small-group singing has been
a tradition in the HHMC, in the a cappella style of such well-known college
ensembles as the Yale Whiffenpoofs, Cornell Hangovers, and Colgate Thirteen.
At its inception, the HHMC a cappella group was
known as The Trio, which in 1989 expanded to an octet called the Hendrick’s
Two-by-Fours. The group has continued to perform in various combinations since
then -- as Hendrick’s Six in the early 1990s, Hendrick’s Ten since 2000, and now
Hendrick's Crew.
In addition to performing at each regular
HHMC concert, Hendrick’s Crew does guest appearances, having most recently
been featured at the Siena Men's basketball game, in January 2007, at the
Times Union Center, where HHMC sang the national anthem for an
audience of 5,500. Hendrick’s
Crew counts among its varied repertoire such signature pieces as the swing ballad “Perfidia,”
the barbershop selection “Lida Rose,” Billy Joel's “The Longest
Time,” and the Scottish air “Loch Lomond.” Hendrick’s Crew is available for hire as public concert guest
artists or as entertainment at private functions. Contact
dcaneen@nycap.rr.com.
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Membership |
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There are currently 19 singing members in our
group. The minimum age to join is 14. Annual dues are $30. Ability to read music
is not required. New singers may be accepted at any point during a rehearsal
period at the discretion of the conductor. |
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About the
Conductor |
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Bruce J. Wagner returned to lead the Hendrick Hudson Male
Chorus in January 2011, after having served as HHMC conductor from 1989 to 2003. Mr. Wagner
conducted the Catskill Glee Club in 2009.
He earned an A.B. degree in music at Cornell University, where he studied voice
as a principal instrument with the late Barbara Troxell and conducting with
Karel Husa and Thomas Sokol.
He is the former music director at Germania Hall, Troy, where he conducted the
Maennerchor and Damenchor from 1992 to 2003. In August 2013 he returned for his
20th season as a co-conductor of the Yankee Male Chorus, which presents four
concerts in Vermont and
New Hampshire each summer.
He is a past president of the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall Corporation and
served six years as the secretary of the Conductors Club. Mr.Wagner has served
as president of the Mohawk-Hudson Male Chorus
Association since 2008. He lives in Schodack with his wife Janet and their two
children, Brett and Sarah. |
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Contact Us
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Please contact
us for additional information or to arrange to sit in at a rehearsal.
Email: Peter Larson:
pflarson@nycap.rr.com |
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This website is
sponsored by the Conductors Club.
To learn more about the organization,
click here. |
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Copyright
2001-2017 Conductors Clubal Center |
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