Dear New Classic Singers Patron,

As you may have heard by now, New Classic Singers will be taking a hiatus for the 2012-2013 season while the Arts Center undergoes renovation. After 30 years of being the premier choral ensemble of the western suburbs this is a very good moment to pause and refresh ourselves.

When Lee arrived at the College of DuPage in 1982 the Arts Center was not even built and the arts curriculum was just getting started. But President MacAninch had a vision for what the arts could contribute to the college and, by extension, to the community. We have been fortunate indeed to have been able to participate so fully in that vision for the last three decades. New Classic Singers has commissioned, premiered, sung with an amazing variety of guests, reveled in a whole host of foreign languages(at least 13, but we lost count somewhere along the way) and enjoyed the incredible depth and pleasures to be found in the choral repertoire. We are especially proud of our many performances of the work of living composers.

For the past three years our support from the College has been substantially reduced yet we have managed to continue on thanks to you. Now we find ourselves at a turning point, both artistically and financially. We cannot afford to continue New Classic Singers as it has been and yet we are not willing to give up the quality and variety that have been our hallmark. In addition, after thirty years it is time for Lee to take a well-deserved sabbatical.

When the Arts Center is available again in the fall of 2013 we will be taking a long look at the possible shape and character of a revitalized group. Neither of us can predict what that future will be, but we know that today we are deeply grateful for your support. We simply could not have pulled through the last three years without the help of friends like you.

As always, we sing for you and we hope you have enjoyed it.

With our appreciation and many thanks,

Lee R. Kesselman, Music Director
Jean A. Follett, President