Thursday, Feb 9, 2023
Several Westminster Choir College alumni featured on the award-winning recording
by Tatiana Sciancalepore
The Crossing, a professional chamber choir conducted by Donald Nally 鈥87, won the Grammy Award for Best Choral Performance for Born: Music of Edie Hill and Michael Gilbertson at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony on Feb. 5.
鈥淲e don't make records to try to win awards,鈥 says Nally. 鈥淏ut it sure is nice to know that many more people will hear these fantastic new works and the artistry of our singers whose nearly unimaginable artistic feats capture the ethos of our community and tell the stories of our time.鈥
The recording features several Westminster Choir College alumni including Katy Avery 鈥18, Steven Hyder 鈥12, Lauren Kelly 鈥16, Rebecca Myers 鈥02 and Daniel Spratlan 鈥05. This is the group鈥檚 third award and eighth nomination since its founding in 2007.
We don't make records to try to win awards, but it sure is nice to know that many more people will hear these fantastic new works and the artistry of our singers."
"We are extraordinarily proud of Donald and The Crossing, which includes many Westminster alumni,鈥 says Jason Vodicka 鈥03, 鈥09 associate dean of Rider's College of Arts and Sciences and associate professor of music education at Westminster Choir College. 鈥淚t's achievements like this that confirm the importance of Westminster as a hub for choral study."
Nally, who earned a master鈥檚 degree in choral conducting and an honorary Doctor of Music from Westminster Choir College, has been recognized as one of the leading commissioners of new music in the United States. In addition to his work with The Crossing, Nally is an artist in residence at Westminster Choir College, teaching graduate level conducting classes and seminars, and working with the Westminster Choir.
鈥淭he Crossing has Westminster in its DNA through its many members who studied there and through my long association with the school,鈥 says Nally.
For nearly a century, Westminster Choir College has been recognized as one of the world's leading schools of music. The school's rich legacy of musical excellence includes hundreds of performances and recordings with the principal orchestras of New York, Philadelphia, Washington, Pittsburgh, Boston and Atlanta. Westminster prepares students for thriving careers as well-rounded performers and musical leaders in schools, universities, churches and arts organizations around the world.