Oratorio Society of New Jersey Elects New Board, Prepares for Fall Season

The Oratorio Society of New Jersey (OSNJ), a community-based concert choir, recently elected a new Board of Trustees. The Board consists of four officers and eight trustees who are responsible for managing all business aspects of the choir based in Montclair.

Helen Paxton of Montclair was elected president, replacing Peter Braley, also of Montclair, who had served as president for the previous four years. Paxton had previously served for many years as the trustee for programs.

In addition to Paxton, the following individuals were elected to the board: Mary-Lauri Bartola (West Orange), Grace Baumgarten (Bloomfield), Bob Bertrand (Bloomfield), Andrea Cohen (Montclair), Pat Fullilove (Orange), Susan Ladov (Montclair), Cia Siebert (Montclair), Robert Simmons (West Orange), Marcel Vaughan-Handy (Scotch Plains), Kristina Wicke (Montclair) and John Willard (West Orange).

During his four-year tenure as president, Braley helped guide the choir through many milestones, including the return to live concert performances following the Covid pandemic, as well as the return to St. James Episcopal Church in Montclair for the annual holiday “Messiah Sing,” a successful celebration of the choir’s 70th anniversary in 2022, as well as celebrating Music Director Dr. Sándor Szabó’s 20th year leading the choir, and the return of an annual “Summer Sing,” presented for the past two years at Bethany Baptist Church in Newark.

Braley noted that he was pleased with how the choir has continued to thrive following the pandemic. He noted that “the experience of having to manage the choir through such a difficult time helped the board to become more flexible and experimental in its approach. I think we built on that experience so that OSNJ has continued to grow as a key element of Essex County’s cultural fabric, as shown by our very successful spring performance of Carmina Burana.”

“I am honored to have been elected president of this great organization,“ Paxton commented. “I look forward to working with new and returning board members and other choir volunteers, as we continually focus on growing our organization and improving our artistic contributions under the inspired leadership of Dr. Szabó.”

Dr. Sándor Szabó, who has been the director of OSNJ since 2005, welcomed the new board and noted how much he appreciates their efforts to do all that is needed to ensure that OSNJ delivers first-class musical experiences to the community. Szabó noted how pleased he was with the spring concert performance, saying, “The enthusiasm and cheers from the audience were a testament to the passionate and powerful performance by everyone involved!”

Szabó remarked on how the spring concert’s success has him looking forward to the coming fall season, when OSNJ will perform works by two giants of classical music, Bach and Beethoven. The choir will be performing Bach’s Mass in A Major and Beethoven’s Mass in C Major on Saturday, November 15, at 8 pm in Montclair.

OSNJ welcomes new singers in all vocal parts. No auditions are required, but previous experience singing choral music and the ability to read music are preferred. Rehearsals begin on Tuesday, September 2, at Union Congregational Church, 176 Cooper Avenue, Montclair, from 7:30pm – 10:00pm. Subsequent rehearsals will be every Tuesday from 8:00 – 10:00 pm up through the concert week. Additional information on membership and performances can be found at www.oratoriosocietynj.org or www.facebook.com/oratoriosocietyofnj/