The Dessoff Choirs closes out the 2025/26 season with J. S. Bach’s "B Minor Mass", complete with a full orchestra and soloists (to be announced), on April 18 at Mother AME Zion Church in Harlem. Considered a cornerstone of Western music, the B Minor Mass is the perfect prism through which to view Bach’s compositional genius. No one knows why this Lutheran composer ever chose to compose a Catholic mass in the first place, and why, once composed, it was never performed in its entirety (and its final form) until several decades after Bach’s death. Perhaps the most convincing reason is that Bach compiled the B Minor Mass to stand as a catalog of all the musical styles known at that time, from the earliest Gregorian chants to the newly fashionable style galant. In creating a work that has come to be regarded as the apex of human artistic expression, Bach also left a musical catalog for future generations. Learn more here: https://www.dessoff.org/events/b-minor-mass 📸 Photo by Joshua Pyram (fb)

Join Dessoff on stage for the 2025/26 season! Audition with Music Director Malcolm J. Merriweather for The Dessoff Choirs. 🎶✨🎵 The Dessoff Choirs is one of New York City’s leading choruses and is known for pioneering performances of choral works from the pre-Baroque era through the 21st century. Rehearsals take place Monday evenings, 6:30-9:30 PM on the Upper West Side. Dessoff auditions consist of the following: vocalises, pitch memory exercise, sight reading, and text recitation (French, German, Latin). To schedule your audition, please email auditions@dessoff.org with your name, voice part, and vocal/choral experience. 📅 Dates: August 28 and September 4 📍 Location: 520 8th Ave, New York, NY 10018 ⏰ Time: 5:30pm - 7:30pm 📋 Signup: www.dessoff.org/audition (fb)