About the CSB/SJU Chamber Choir

The CSB/SJU Chamber Choir has been in existence since 1969, when Axel Theimer joined the music faculty at Saint John's University and the College of Saint Benedict. Until then students of the two colleges had participated in either the Saint John's University Men's Chorus or the College of Saint Benedict Campus Singers, the Women's Choir at CSB, combining their voices for concerts occasionally. The Chamber Choir is now one of the major touring ensembles of the combined CSB/SJU Music Department.

Most performances are scheduled in the Midwest, although the choir has performed extensively throughout the United States and has toured Europe in 1980, 1985, 1992, 1997, and most recently in 2001, presenting concerts in Austria, Belgium, Germany, Holland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic. In 2005, the choir toured the Orient, performing at various venues in Tokyo, Okinawa, Seoul, Beijing, and Hong Kong.

Traditionally the artistic program covers a wide variety of sacred and secular music, ranging from Gregorian Chant and 17th century polyphony to masterworks of the 20th century. The Chamber Choir also appears regularly with the Minnesota Sinfonia and Amadeus Chamber Symphony and has participated in joined performances with the Plymouth Music Series and the University of Minnesota.

Recently the Chamber Choir participated in the American Premiere performance of Anno Domini, an oratorio by renowned Czech composer Petr Eben. The performance also featured the Saint John's University Men's Chorus and the College of Saint Benedict Campus Singers.

In summer 2008, the Chamber Choir will participate in the European Premiere performance of To Be Certain of the Dawn, a Holocaust memorial oratorio by Minnesota composer Stephen Paulus, with the CSB/SJU Orchestra, the St. Cloud State University Department of Music, the St. John's Boys' Choir and the Cantabile Girls Choir. The tour includes performances in Germany, Switerland, and France, and commemorates the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Nazi death camps in Europe.