E. Carl Freeman Concert Series at River Road Church
Sunday, March 6
7:00 p.m., Sanctuary
University of Pittsburgh
Richard Teaster, Music Director
The Glee Club’s repertoire for this concert will include works by Hummel, Mendelssohn, Pitoni and Tallis, as well as Appalachian folk song arrangements and African-American Spirituals.
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No admission charge; donations welcome
Free parking across River Road and behind the church
Glee Club History
Founded in 1890, the Pitt Men’s Glee Club just celebrated its 125th Anniversary season. It is the oldest musical ensemble at Pitt, as well as the oldest non-athletic extracurricular organization on campus. Beginning as a mere octet, the group now boasts between 70 and 80 members annually.
The Glee Club has performed throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Europe. In addition, the ensemble has sung at two World’s Fairs and has been featured in performances on public radio and television throughout Pennsylvania, particularly on WQED-FM in Pittsburgh. The Club also made a cameo appearance on the nationally syndicated CBS network soap opera, As the World Turns, in 2000
In recent years the group has traveled extensively abroad, performing in such countries as Italy, Croatia, Austria, Hungary, Czech Republic, France, Belgium, and the Netherlands. Highlights of those tours included prestigious performances at the University of Bologna, the Pantheon in Rome, Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, and St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna.
In 2014, the Glee Club was selected to sing on the renowned choral series at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, New York City, where they performed to a very large and vibrant audience.
As part of their 125th Anniversary Celebrations during the 2014-2015 academic year, the Club returned to Italy for a two-week tour performing in the Cathedrals of Assisi and Sorrento, as well as the Duomo in Florence. The tour concluded with a series of concerts in Rome, Bologna, Verona, and Venice.
Richard Teaster
Music Director, Richard Teaster holds degrees in vocal performance from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music. He completed further professional studies at Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and the Pittsburgh Opera Center. In his 17 years as Music Director, the Pitt Men’s Glee Club has seen an unprecedented Renaissance in both membership and musical caliber, placing it among the top men’s collegiate choral ensembles in the nation.
In addition to conducting the Glee Club at Pitt, Mr. Teaster is an active bass-baritone soloist in the greater Pittsburgh area and beyond, and has been featured with such local ensembles as the Pittsburgh Opera, Opera Theater of Pittsburgh, Chatham Baroque, and the Pittsburgh Symphony. He has also sung with such noted companies as the Aspen Opera Theater, Cincinnati Opera, Des Moines Metro Opera, Shreveport Opera, and the Detroit Oratorio Society.
Mr. Teaster is a Lecturer in the Department of Music at Pitt where he teaches private voice lessons and the popular Class Voice: Introduction to Singing course. In addition, Mr. Teaster is on the voice faculty of the Carnegie Mellon School of Drama’s Musical Theater Program. His previous appointments have included the Assistant Director of Choral Activities at Duquesne University’s Mary Pappert School of Music and the Assistant Director/Accompanist position with the Cincinnati Men’s Chorus.
In the fall of 2014, Mr. Teaster founded the Steel City Men’s Chorale, a community-based men’s ensemble devoted to promoting quality choral music for men’s voices throughout the greater Pittsburgh region.