- Boys Choir of Harlem
The Boys Choir of Harlem (also known as the Harlem Boys Choir) is a
choir located inHarlem ,New York City ,United States .Founded in
1968 by Dr.Walter Turnbull at the EphesusSeventh-day Adventist Church in Harlem, the choir grew to be more than just a performing group. The Choir Academy of Harlem also for some time ran a school overseen by theNew York City Department of Education and had at its peak a student body of over 500 boys and girls, though they were evicted from the school facility in 2006.The choir is internationally known. Performers receive rigorous voice training and perform many types of music, including classical, hip-hop, R&B, jazz, and gospel music. Over 150,000 people see the choir live each year across the United States as well as in
Canada ,France ,Japan , TheNetherlands , and theUnited Kingdom . The Boys Choir of Harlem are also the recipients of a Grammy. Unlike itsAustria n cousin, theVienna Boys Choir , the Boys Choir of Harlem does not adhere to a policy of including those young men who have not reached puberty. The range of the music performed is such that it requires natural boy sopranos whose voices have not yet changed and more mature voices of teenagers like tenor and bass voices.The choir has performed on soundtracks for films including "Glory", "Malcolm X" and many Spike Lee films and has performed for Presidents at the
White House , and dignitaries at theUnited Nations . It also performed live for the visits ofNelson Mandela andPope John Paul II . It performed onChicago rapperKanye West 's song, "Two Words" and "Jesus Walks." The choir also performed "America the Beautiful " to openWrestleMania XX . Following the9/11 attacks on theWorld Trade Center , the choir performed "God Bless America " at theCantor Fitzgerald memorial service inCentral Park , as seen in "". The boys' voices have also appeared on albums withMichael Jackson ,Kathleen Battle ,Luciano Pavarotti ,Quincy Jones , Kiss and many more.In 1995 they performed in "" a musical performance of the popular story at Lincoln Center to benefit the
Children's Defense Fund . The performance was originally broadcast on Turner Network Television (TNT), and issued on CD and video in 1996.The choir for many years enjoyed the sponsorship of the City of New York, which gave them free use of the
Arthur Schomburg School on East 127th Street inHarlem by former NYC MayorDavid Dinkins . However, the choir has lost this support through a series of scandals. First, a lack of financial controls led to the program running up a $5 million deficit. Second, in 2001, the choir's chief counselor sexually abused a student and Dr. Turnbull did not fire him or report the abuse to authorities. As a result, in early 2006 Dr. Turnbull and other choir staff were kicked out of their long-time home. The Choir has now relocated to the Metropolitan Community Methodist Church.The majority of the choir's members are
African American orHispanic .Dr. Walter Turnbull died at age 62 on March 23, 2007 in a New York City hospital. He had reportedly suffered a stroke months earlier.
References
[http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/12/29/harlem.boyschoir/] "Deal offered to save Harlem Boys Choir from eviction — choir would stay as after-school activity" CNN.com, December 29, 2005
External links
* [http://www.boyschoirofharlem.org/ Boys Choir of Harlem official website]
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