Welcome to the 2024-2025 Season!

History
The Bach Society was formed in 1984 with a small group who got together to sing quality, serious music. The constitution of the Bach Society states that “the purpose of the group is to sing for our own pleasure and the pleasure of others, to contribute culturally to the community and to promote the art of choral music.” The group performed for three years under the direction of John Moser of Grove City College.

For several years the group was inactive until Marg Bovard asked Dr. Richard Konzen to direct the group. Erich Lascek, Karen Campman Emmett, and Frank Stearns also directed the group. David Mruk began directing the choir in the spring of 2009 and resigned as our director in the spring of 2020. We welcomed our new director, Leo Sayles, in the fall of 2021 for the first time, due to our suspension of activities during the Pandemic.

Membership in the choir is open to qualified, enthusiastic area vocalists of all ages. There are no auditions, but usually someone learns quickly whether they can handle the music or not. The group often performs songs that are more difficult than those of the average community or church choir. The pieces range from sacred to secular and from classical to contemporary. There is usually a little Bach in each concert. The group is usually accompanied by piano, but sometimes other instruments are used.

Officers
Director: Leo Sayles, [email protected] 724 967 2025
Pianist: Kristy Thrasher, [email protected], 724 458 4084
President: Dianne Gordon, [email protected], 724 372 1192
Treasurer: Sarah Mitchell, [email protected], 517 607 1549
Website Manager: Cindy Marsch, [email protected], 724 421 9937
Music Librarian: Rachel Ralston, [email protected], 724 421-5422
Publicity and Recruitment: Dianne Gordon, [email protected], 724 372 1192 Mike Montgomery, [email protected], 724 738 9788

Please feel free to contact any of us with your comments and questions.

Rehearsals and Attendance
We practice every Monday from 7:00 to 9:00 in the Fellowship Hall at Tower Presbyterian Church in Grove City. Practice begins on Monday, September 9th . The Christmas concerts will be at 7:30 p.m. on December 6th at Center Church in Slippery Rock and December 7th at Tower Church in Grove City. There will be an extra “Dress Rehearsal” on Thursday, December 5th at Center Church in Slippery Rock. We will begin practices for the Spring program on Monday, January 27th . The Spring concerts will be May 2nd at Center Church in Slippery Rock and May 3rd at Tower Church in Grove City. The extra rehearsal will be on Thursday, May 1st at Center Church in Slippery Rock. There are no attendance requirements; however, we expect everyone to attend the vast majority of the sessions as it is vital to the success of our programs. We do ask that, if you are not able to attend a rehearsal, you notify a fellow member or Board member.

Dues
We will collect dues of $20 each fall and spring. This is to be paid at the time you pick up your music. Please try to remember to bring the dues to your first rehearsal.

Music
We rent or borrow much of our music, and we must return it to be able to borrow music in the future. Music is expensive, so we don’t want to have to replace the pieces that we own. Thus, you will sign out for your music and it must be returned. Music will be numbered and checked off upon its return after the last concert in the season. If you are unable to continue with the group, or unable to attend the last concert, please give your music to a friend or contact one of the officers who will make arrangements to get the music from you. Return all music in the folder. We encourage you to make notes in your music to remind yourself of instructions from the director, but please do so only in pencil.

Rosters
We will be collecting information on names, addresses, phone numbers and emails of members. Help us get the information complete and correct. We will be handing out or emailing completed rosters after the first few rehearsals so everyone can have one.

Email/Facebook /Website
Our email address for the Bach Society is [email protected].
Our Facebook page is “Bach Society Community Choir.”
Our new website address is www.bachsocietycommunitychoir.com.

Recruitment
Recruitment is everyone’s responsibility. Our best recruitment comes when members ask others who might be interested to join us, so please do so! We have a good time, sing beautiful music, improve our own musical skills, and present musical performances to the community.

Patrons
We encourage members to become patrons, making a contribution over and above their dues. In addition, encouraging others to become patrons is everyone’s responsibility. The levels of giving for patrons are: Members - Up to $99; Sustainers - $100 to $199; and Maestri - $200 and up. Make checks payable to “The Bach Society” and mail or hand to Sarah Mitchell, 527 S Center St, Grove City 16127. You can also make donations via our PayPal account linked on the website.

Honorarium Donations
Another way we ask members to help with the financial needs of the organization is to contribute to the honoraria of our musicians and director. This is entirely voluntary. If you would like to contribute something towards the honoraria, we will be collecting in the rehearsals right before the concerts. Our musicians are vital to our success. They work hard to choose music, practice music, and attend rehearsals faithfully. We like to be able to reward them for their efforts on our behalf.

Budget
Although we are a volunteer group, and we have no paid staff and do not own property, we still have a number of expenses. Chief among these are music and honoraria. Our budget has increased this year due to hiring a new director and increased publicity. We encourage all of you to give generously as patrons and to seek others who might be interested in supporting us. We thank everyone for their generosity.

Enjoy!

Revised 8/2024