Phoenix Chorale
The Phoenix Chorale is a professional chamber choir based in Phoenix, Arizona, United States. The Grammy® Award-winning Phoenix Chorale, led by Artistic Director Christopher Gabbitas since 2019, is regarded as one of the finest choral ensembles in North America of the western classical tradition. All of the 24-voice ensemble’s members are professional singers who currently reside in Arizona. The ensemble formed in 1958 as the Bach and Madrigal Society. After years as an amateur ensemble, the group went fully professional (meaning all the singers are compensated) in 1994 and changed its name to the Phoenix Bach Choir under Swedish conductor Anders Öhrwall. From 1992 until 1998, their conductor was Jon Washburn and in 1999, Charles Bruffy took over as conductor and Artistic Director. In 2004, they signed a recording contract with Chandos Records. Their 2007 recording of works by Alexander Gretchaninov, made in collaboration with the Kansas City Chorale, was nominated for four Grammy Awards: Best Classical Album, Best Choral Performance, Best Surround Sound Album, and Best Engineered Classical Album—and won in the Engineering category. The group's collaborative recording with the Kansas City Chorale of works by Josef Rheinberger was nominated for two Grammy Awards: Best Choral Performance and Best Surround Sound Album. In August 2008, the name of the ensemble was changed from the Phoenix Bach Choir to the Phoenix Chorale, and shortly thereafter, the group released a SACD on Chandos Records titled Spotless Rose: Hymns to the Virgin Mary, which received nominations for two Grammy Awards: Best Classical Album and Best Small Ensemble Performance. At the Grammy pre-telecast awards ceremony on February 8, 2009, the Grammy for Best Small Ensemble Performance was awarded to the chorale and its conductor, Charles Bruffy. Their most recent collaborative recording with the Kansas City Chorale, Rachmaninoff's All-Night Vigil, was nominated for Grammy Awards for Best Choral Performance and Best Engineered Album, Classical and won the Grammy for Best Choral Performance. In October 2017, Bruffy concluded his 18-year tenure with the group and in May 2019, after a nearly two-year search, Christopher Gabbitas, a former member of The King's Singers, was announced as the next Artistic Director of the Chorale. Under Gabbitas, the Phoenix Chorale now records on the Signum Records label.
| Phoenix Chorale | |
|---|---|
| Choir | |
 Phoenix Chorale with current Artistic Director Christopher Gabbitas. Photo taken by Chris Loomis. | |
| Origin | Phoenix, Arizona |
| Founded | 1958 |
| Genre | Chorale Ensemble |
| Artistic Director | Christopher Gabbitas |
| Headquarters | Phoenix |
| Awards |
|
| Website | www.phoenixchorale.org |
The Phoenix Chorale is a professional chamber choir based in Phoenix, Arizona, United States. The Grammy® Award-winning Phoenix Chorale, led by Artistic Director Christopher Gabbitas since 2019, is regarded as one of the finest choral ensembles in North America of the western classical tradition. All of the 24-voice ensemble’s members are professional singers who currently reside in Arizona.
The ensemble formed in 1958 as the Bach and Madrigal Society. After years as an amateur ensemble, the group went fully professional (meaning all the singers are compensated) in 1994 and changed its name to the Phoenix Bach Choir under Swedish conductor Anders Öhrwall. From 1992 until 1998, their conductor was Jon Washburn and in 1999, Charles Bruffy took over as conductor and Artistic Director.
In 2004, they signed a recording contract with Chandos Records. Their 2007 recording of works by Alexander Gretchaninov, made in collaboration with the Kansas City Chorale, was nominated for four Grammy Awards: Best Classical Album, Best Choral Performance, Best Surround Sound Album, and Best Engineered Classical Album—and won in the Engineering category.[1][2] The group's collaborative recording with the Kansas City Chorale of works by Josef Rheinberger was nominated for two Grammy Awards: Best Choral Performance and Best Surround Sound Album.
In August 2008, the name of the ensemble was changed from the Phoenix Bach Choir to the Phoenix Chorale, and shortly thereafter, the group released a SACD on Chandos Records titled Spotless Rose: Hymns to the Virgin Mary, which received nominations for two Grammy Awards: Best Classical Album and Best Small Ensemble Performance. At the Grammy pre-telecast awards ceremony on February 8, 2009, the Grammy for Best Small Ensemble Performance was awarded to the chorale and its conductor, Charles Bruffy.[3][4]
Their most recent collaborative recording with the Kansas City Chorale, Rachmaninoff's All-Night Vigil, was nominated for Grammy Awards for Best Choral Performance and Best Engineered Album, Classical and won the Grammy for Best Choral Performance.[5][6][7]
In October 2017, Bruffy concluded his 18-year tenure with the group[8] and in May 2019, after a nearly two-year search, Christopher Gabbitas, a former member of The King's Singers, was announced as the next Artistic Director of the Chorale.[9] Under Gabbitas, the Phoenix Chorale now records on the Signum Records label.[10]
Discography
[edit]Phoenix Chorale
- A Southwest Christmas (Soundset Recordings, 1997)
- Shakespeare in Song (Chandos Records, 2004)
- A Spotless Rose (Chandos Records, 2008)
- Northern Lights: Choral Works by Ola Gjeilo (Chandos Records, 2012)
- The Christmas Album (Signum Records, 2023)
- Sun Moon Stars Rain (Signum Records, 2025)
Phoenix Chorale and Kansas City Chorale
- Eternal Rest (Chandos Records, 2006)
- Gretchaninov: Passion Week (Chandos Records, 2007)
- Rheinberger: Sacred Choral Works (Chandos Records, 2007)
- Rachmaninoff: All-Night Vigil (Chandos Records, 2015)
[11]==References==
- ^ Phoenix Bach Choir Nominated for Five Grammys The Arizona Republic, December 6, 2007. Accessed February 12, 2008 Archived 2009-10-02 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Five Grammy nominations for Phoenix Bach Choir. KBAQ, Accessed August 24, 2008. Archived 2010-02-01 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ The 51st Annual GRAMMY Awards Winners List Archived July 27, 2010, at the Wayback Machine The Recording Academy, Accessed February 11, 2009. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on July 27, 2010. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Complete list of 51st Grammy Award winners. Associated Press, Accessed February 11, 2009.
- ^ 58th Annual GRAMMY Awards Nominees. The Recording Academy, Accessed December 28, 2015. Archived 2015-12-28 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ 2016 Grammy Awards: Complete List of Nominations. E! Online News, Accessed December 28, 2015.
- ^ Phoenix Chorale Wins 'Best Chorale Performance' at 2016 GRAMMY Awards. BroadwayWorld.com, Accessed February 29, 2016.
- ^ Charles Bruffy takes final bow with Phoenix Chorale after 18 years (and a couple Grammys). azcentral, Accessed May 6, 2019.
- ^ Phoenix Chorale Announces Selection of New Artistic Director. Downtown Phoenix Journal, Accessed May 6, 2019.
- ^ Our Artists. SignumRecords.com, Accessed November 10, 2023.
- ^ Rhyne, Grace. "TOM PETERSON TO DIRECT BONUS CONCERT, MARKING PHOENIX CHORALE'S MIM MUSIC THEATER DEBUT: BLOOM". Retrieved February 2, 2026.
External links
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| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
