The boys at the foot of J. S. Bach's statue outside the cathedral in Liepzig, Germany where Bach once served as Choirmaster of a boychoir. |
The Florida Boychoir,
originally founded by Choirmaster Brian L. Collar, in July of 1986,
was incorporated in March of 1987 as the Florida Boychoir, Inc., a
non-profit, non-sectarian, cultural youth organization. The first
rehearsal was held in Seminole, Florida in January of 1987 with an
original membership of only eight Choirboys. Since that time the Choirboys have made recordings and appeared on radio and television in the United States and Canada. They have toured throughout Florida, to sixteen other states and internationally to Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Germany, Iceland and Poland. The Florida Boychoir has to its credit performances of hundreds of folk, spiritual and classical. Works such as Benjamin Britten's "A Ceremony of Carols" and "Missa Brevis in D Major", the "Christmas Oratorio" of Johann Sebastian Bach, the "Mass in G Major" of Franz Schubert and "Fantasia on Carols of the Nativity" commissioned of American composer William G. Wade. Operas performed include George Bizet's "Carmen", Gian-Carlo Menotti's "Amahl and the Night Visitors", Malcolm Williamson's "The Happy Prince", and a one act adaptation of Gilbert and Sullivan's "Mikado". Our Choirboys were selected to perform in the Broadway touring production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat" and were featured in a Nostalgia Network Christmas Special which was broadcast nationally. In addition to concerts, recordings and tours, the Florida Boychoir has sponsored three long-term projects; the Florida Boychoir School, the Girl Choir Of Florida, and the Florida International Boychoir Festival. In the fall of 1992, the Florida Boychoir offered the Florida Boychoir School as a cooperative school-within-a-school jointly with Saint Paul's School of Clearwater. Similar to the famous choir schools of Europe, the Florida Boychoir School was a complete academic day school. The Boychoir School continued for three seasons and was one of only three nonsectarian Boychoir Schools in the United States. In response to several requests for a quality choral experience for the girls of the Tampa Bay area, the Girl Choir Of Florida was formed in the fall of 1994 and continued for four seasons. In 1992 and 1994, the Florida International Boychoir Festival brought together hundreds of Choirs and Choirboys from throughout the world. World renowned Sir David Willcocks served as Guest Conductor for both festivals. See: Florida International Boychoir Festival In 1997 through 1998 the organization undertook a major fundraising endeavor which, frankly, proved to be disastrous. As a result, all Choral Activities ceased in October of 1998. Born again . . . Following a six season "intermission" the Florida Boychoir was reborn as the Florida Boychoir School, Inc., a non-profit, non-denominational, cultural youth Christian organization. Choral activities resumed in September of 2005 with a choir room located in Riverview, Florida. It is the goal to one day open the Florida Boychoir School in the Tampa Bay Area. The Florida Boychoir remains under the direction of its Choirmaster and Founder, Brian L. Collar. Proudly, the Florida Boychoir
tradition now continues. |
