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The Pennsylvania Consort
P.O. Box 535
Bedford, PA 15522-0535
(814)733-2920
E-mail: paconsort@artsinbedfordpa.org
History

The Pennsylvania Consort is a music presenting organization based in Bedford County, Pennsylvania.  Its core activity, the six-concert Guest Artist Series, was founded as a follow-on to the Bedford Springs Festival for the Performing Arts, which took place every summer from 1982 to 1989 on the grounds of the Bedford Springs Hotel and occasionally in nearby venues.  When it ended because the hotel closed, Ken Carper, an Eastman School graduate and founder of the Pennsylvania Consort Society, expanded the Society’s scope to keep musical interest alive in Bedford County.  The Pennsylvania Consort Society was initially a community chorus and orchestral chamber group whose ambitious repertoire had over the years included choral works such as Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass.  It now performs only the annual community chorus Messiah, a Christmas tradition that saw its 16th performance in December 2003 and that has grown steadily in professional quality over the years.  Mr. Carper created the Guest Artist Series in 1990.  Our organization is now called simply The Pennsylvania Consort.

Guest Artist Series Bookings, Past and Present
Since the first season in 1992-93, the Pennsylvania Consort has sponsored a wide variety of groups, from as close as Altoona to as far away as Connecticut.  Pittsburgh has proven to be a rich resource for soloists and ensembles.  A selection of the Pittsburgh-based groups we have presented in concert are below; some of them have appeared more than once.

·    The Sartory Trio
·    The Bellefield Singers
·    Bach Choir of Pittsburgh
·    David Allen Wehr, piano
·    The Duquesne University Chamber Singers
·    Glorious Rebirth
·    Richard Syracuse, piano
·    The Pittsburgh Camerata
·    The Pittsburgh Boy Choir
·    The Carnegie Brass
·    The Renaissance City Winds

 We have also drawn groups from the Baltimore-Washington area, Altoona, State College, Philadelphia, New York, and other locales.
·    The Borealis Wind Quintet
·    Makoto Nakura, marimbist, and David Fedele, flutist
·    The Bay Street Brassworks
 ·    Joe Negri, jazz artist
·    Pierce Getz, organist
·    The Altoona Symphony
·    Tom Chapin, folk singer
·    Louise Wohlafka, soprano and Mark Pakman, piano
·    Appalachian Wind Quintet
·    Gray and Pearl, guitar duo
·    Le Trio Gershwin
·    Joe Utterback, jazz pianist
·    The Audubon Quartet
·    The Mendelssohn Piano Trio
·    Michael Avagliano, violin, and Marja Kaisla, piano
·    Liesl Odenweller, soprano
·    The Lyric Consort, a capella ensemble
·    Will Taylor Jazz Group
·    The Fred Shannon Smith Orchestra
·    Terry Smith, Metropolitan Opera bass-baritone
·    Emi Ohi Resnick, violinist

Other Activities
We have also been proud to present each year several concerts and workshops in the public schools of Bedford County.

In order to broaden its community appeal, the Pennsylvania Consort has also expanded its activities to include free concerts and workshops in the schools and outdoor summer concerts in the Square downtown.  We have to date sponsored young people’s concerts and workshops by The Borealis Wind Quintet, the Lyric Consort, the Air Force Band’s Contemporary Clarinet Quartet, the Dave Leonhardt Jazz Group, folksong group Simple Gifts, the Renaissance City Winds, The Hildebrands, a colonial music duo, and the Eaken Piano Trio.  A conducting workshop for area school music and choir directors was held May 1, 2004.   For our 2005-2006 season, we will have two guitar workshop in May 2006, one by Simple Gifts and the other by the Ferla-Marcinizyn Guitar Duo.  Our popular outdoor Summer Music on the Square series in its seventh season and, thanks to generous audience donations, has expanded to six concerts.

Sustained by a strong and active Board of Directors and a Guild, the Pennsylvania Consort continues to contribute to the cultural life of Bedford County and the surrounding region.