Westminster Choir Opens Cape May Music Festival

The 37th Cape May Music Festival is kicking off its 37th year on Saturday, May 9, at 7 p.m., with an appearance by the Westminster Choir from Westminster Choir College. The choir will perform at the Episcopal Church of the Advent, 712 Franklin St. in Cape May, during a program titled “WCC@100: The Westminster Choir Looks Forward.”

According to a Cape May County Herald report, the program marks Westminster Choir College's 100th anniversary. Their performance will feature distinguished alumni as conductors and organists, including organist Scott Dettra. It will include works by Brahms, Howells, Arvo Pärt, and American composer Stacy Garrop, inspired by the writings of Lydia Davis.

The Westminster Choir is conducted by Dr. Donald Nally, a renowned conductor and educator who holds the John W. Beattie Chair of Music Emeritus at Northwestern University. According to the Cape May County Herald, Nally's 72-chapter series Rising w/The Crossing, produced in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, has been preserved by the National Archives of the Library of Congress.

The Westminster Choir is highly regarded in American choral music and is central to the Westminster Symphonic Choir. It maintains a history of collaborations with major orchestras and conductors.

Tickets for the festival are $35 for adults, $30 for Cape May MAC members, and $20 for students. Tickets are available online and at the door.

The Westminster Choir performance is only one part of the 37th Annual Cape May Music Festival. This program offers a seaside celebration of classical and contemporary music across 14 performances from May 9 to June 21. Cape May MAC (Museums+Arts+Culture) is orchestrating the program.

Cape May MAC is a nonprofit organization that administers sites such as the Emlen Physick Estate, the Cape May Lighthouse, and the World War II Lookout Tower, aligning its preservation goals with public cultural enrichment activities. Learn more on the organization's website or call 609-884-5404.