The History of Singing at Stevens
Music has been a part of life at
Stevens since the school's inception. The current, co-ed Stevens Choir of 35-40 members led by director Bethany Reeves
traces its ancestry back to the first, 7-member Stevens Glee Club, formed in 1873. This all-men’s group, reflecting the
all-male student body, was dissolved and reformed on several occasions after its founding until the arrival of Professor
William F. Ondrick in 1957.
The Ondrick Era
With the arrival of “Professor,” as he came to be known, the Glee Club became firmly established as a
Stevens tradition. From 1957 to 1971, the Club was made up of seventy men, twelve of whom were selected
to perform as The Rocks. In addition to regular campus appearances, the Glee Club appeared at Rockefeller
Center, the New York World's Fair, in Philadelphia and Washington, at other colleges and at various alumni
events. The Glee Club recorded two albums at Capitol Records in New York City, Stevens Sings and Seasons
at Stevens, while the Jazz Ensemble, also under Professor Ondrick, recorded one, Stevens Swings.
In 1971 Stevens opened its doors to women, prompting the formation of a women's Glee Club to complement
the men's group. It soon became clear, however, that a merger of the two groups would provide a more versatile
alternative. Hence, for the first time, in 1973 the Stevens Glee Club included both men and women. In addition,
a smaller group of co-ed singers, the Stute-Aires, was created.
Professor Ondrick, who added academic music courses to the Stevens curriculum as well as directing the major
campus musical ensembles, retired in the mid-1990's. His memory lives on in the dedication of the music facility
on the fourth floor of the Wesley J. Howe Center as the Ondrick Music Room, and in the hearts of the many
students he inspired. Without him, the foundation would not have been laid for the now-numerous musical programs
and traditions at Stevens.
The Roger Years
Professor Ondrick was succeeded by his colleague and mentee Bruce Rogers, who took over music courses, the Glee
Club and the Jazz Band from Ondrick’s retirement until 2003-4. Rogers, an accomplished jazz pianist and arranger,
provided rigorous music theory instruction to serious-minded music students and arranged numerous jazz and po
standards for the Glee Club. Connie DeFazio, a music teacher in the public schools and a member of the Glee Club
under Professor Ondrick, conducted the Club, with Rogers at the piano and a core group of devoted alumni serving
as leaders in the ensemble.
The Center for the Performing Arts and Today's Choir
In 2000, Stevens brought in alumnus and professional musician David Zimmerman with a two-part mandate: to reverse fading arts participation among the Stevens student body, and to develop the newly-renovated DeBaun Auditorium into a fully-functioning performing arts center serving both the Stevens and local communities.. In establishing the new department, known as The Center for the Performing Arts, Zimmerman in turn eventually brought in fresh staff and perspectives, including choir director and voice teacher Bethany Reeves in 2003-4 and band director Jerry Ficeto in 2004-5. Various other changes and programs were implemented to re-invigorate the performing arts on campus, with great success.
Today’s Stevens Choir, renamed to reflect a broadening of repertoire emphasis, is composed of current students with several additions from enthusiastic faculty and staff. The Choir performs two major concerts per year at DeBaun Auditorium, in addition to regular appearances at Convocation and alumni events such as Homecoming. In 2007-8 the Stevens Choir has started to re-establish a larger presence in the community with participation in a local Black History Month celebration in February and a December concert dedicated to The Messiah, in preparation for an annual community sing-a-long Messiah event to commence in December ‘08.
Like other groups on campus, the Choir and its members navigate a challenging 21st century world of stringent course requirements and regular night classes (conflicting with long-established evening rehearsal times!) with creativity and determination. Singers in the Stevens Choir are among the most involved students on campus, taking part in Stevens Dramatic Society productions, student government, and numerous other clubs and activities, including other musical ensembles and technical staff at the now flourishing Center for the Performing Arts at DeBaun Auditorium. Two nights per week, they gather to sing music ranging from Renaissance polyphony and other classics to world music, spirituals, Broadway and newly-written scores.
Composers and Arrangers
Stevens has long had a proud tradition of premiering new music and arrangements written by in-house musicians, including students, accompanists, and faculty. The Glee Club years featured music by, or arranged by, musicians including Robert Hebble (a published choral composer), Ken Manzer, James Moran, and Bruce Rogers. Today, James Redcay, an inspiring young composer studying at NYU, accompanies the Choir and occupies the Composer-in-Residence position at Stevens. The Stevens Choir will premiere a new work by Redcay in Spring 2008; both the concert and the new piece are dedicated to Marie-Joan Dutrueil ‘07, a Choir member who lost her life in a tragic accident in July 2007. In Fall 2006, the Choir presented Redcay’s “Cantata for 9/11,” a powerful work written for the Choir’s 9/11 Memorial Concert. The piece and concert were in commemoration of the 5th anniversary of the terrorist attacks in New York City.
The Center for the Performing Arts and Music at Stevens
Operating under the Student Life division, The Center for the Performing Arts has greatly increased student participation in arts activities since 2000. The Stevens Choir’s student membership has rebounded from a low of 13 at the Spring 2003 Concert to current numbers ranging from 35-40. The Stute-Aires have been reestablished and the Jazz Band is back in full swing at nearly 40 members. In addition to these long-established groups, there is now a 45-member Concert Band, a Pep Band, a large Rock-Jazz Band, various chamber and jazz ensembles including a string quartet and brass ensemble, and numerous students taking lessons in voice, strings and piano. Recitals and large-ensemble performances are a regular feature of campus life at DeBaun, in the Ondrick Music Room (doubling as a recital space since 2006-7), and the beautiful, Petrof-piano equipped Great Hall at the Samuel C. Williams Library. Additionally, a new major in Music and Technology (M&T) has been added to the Stevens curriculum. Now under the newly-formed College of Arts and Letters, the M&T program adds to performance life on campus and is expanding academic course offerings in musical disciplines.