New Princeton Boychoir program to be launched this fall

The Princeton Girlchoir will fill a void left by the closure of the American Boychoir School by launching a boychoir division for the 2017-2018 season.

The announcement comes just a few weeks after the leaders of the American Boychoir School said the school would not re-open for the 2017-18 academic year due to financial struggles.

Fred Meads, the former director of vocal studies at the American Boychoir School, will conduct the ensembles in the new division, which will serve boys in grades four through twelve. Meads has worked with the Princeton Girlchoir for seven seasons.

“We are delighted to have him joining us in a full time capacity to lead this new initiative,” said Hilary Butler, executive director of the Princeton Girlchoir. “In this new role, he will also continue to develop the choir’s music education offerings to serve the broader community.”

Meads has served as the director of choirs in public and private schools, colleges and churches for the past twenty-five years. From 1999–2009, he was the artistic director of the Fort Wayne Children’s Choir in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He has conducted various honor choirs and all-state
choirs in several states, and has presented workshops for Westminster Choir College and other organizations. He also has served on the boards of both the Indiana Choral Directors Association and the New Jersey Choral Directors Association. Meads received a bachelor’s degree in music education from Ithaca College and a master’s degree in choral conducting from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

This idea to create a boychoir had been discussed for a while, but Butler said the organization never wanted to take any steps while the American Boychoir was in place. “When they announced the closure, we knew that we need to do something to provide a musical home for boys in our community, so we moved quickly to put something together,” she said. “Once we knew that Fred Meads was willing to partner with us on this initiative, we knew that we would be able to put the rest of the pieces in place.”

The Princeton Girlchoir is the area’s premier training and performance choir for girls, with more than 290 students participating each year. Founded in 1989 as an after-school activity for girls interested in choral music, the organization has six choirs for girls in grades three through twelve. The choirs have performed at Avery Fisher Hall in Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, and top choral conferences.

Auditions for the boychoir will be held during the month of September, with rehearsals beginning in October. Email boychoir@princetongirlchoir.org or call (609) 688-1888 for more information.

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