One of this country's oldest choruses, Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia seeks to challenge, enrich, serve and fulfill its singing members, patrons and audiences through the excellence of its performances:

• to challenge the ear and mind with innovative programming that embraces the finest choral music of many cultures, traditions, periods and styles;
• to enrich its members by enhancing their knowledge and practice of music;
• to serve choral music through the commissioning of new works, the advocacy of new artists and the development of new audiences;
• to fulfill all who listen to and love music, through the distinctive beauty and power of its performances.

At one time, even Beethoven was considered to be avant garde. Imagine Salieri's reaction upon hearing Beethoven's 7th Symphony after being riveted by Mozart's prolificity. The importance of new ideas, fresh interpretations of traditional forms, is not only prevalent in music, but in all aspects of life. Whether it's an original perspective in economic theory or a different way to heal patients, ideas of all sorts push us to consider novel solutions. In looking forward, we invent ways to analyze and to consider the past.

Under the dynamic leadership of Alan Harler, now in his 22nd season as Artistic Director, Mendelssohn Club is known for its professional productions of choral/orchestral programs, as well as performances in guest engagements with prominent area orchestras.  Harler’s programs combine new or rarely heard works with more traditional works in order to enhance the presentation of each, and to provide the audience with a familiar context for the new experience. Maestro Harler's provocative programming vision was recognized in 2009 by Chorus America with the Michael Korn Founders Award for Development of the Professional Choral Art. Harler was also the 2009 honoree of the Musical Fund Society of Philadelphia.

Mendelssohn Club also explores interdisciplinary concert presentations, including the Philadelphia premiere of Richard Einhorn’s 1994 cantata, Voices of Light, with the 1928 silent film masterpiece by Carl Dreyer, The Passion of Joan of Arc.  A November 2006 co-production of Carmina Burana with the contemporary Leah Stein Dance Company was the first dance collaboration in Mendelssohn Club’s recent history, and was followed by two dance collaborations in our 2008-09 season, first with Urban Echo: Circle Told, as part of the Philadelphia Live Arts Festival, and later with battle hymns, as part of the Hidden City Festival.