OGCMA Presents 65th Annual Choir Festival At The Great Auditorium

As the OCEAN GROVE CAMP MEETING ASSOCIATION (OGCMA) celebrates its 150th anniversary, audiences can expect one of OGCMA's most steadfast and beloved traditions: THE ANNUAL CHOIR FESTIVAL. Now in its 65th season, this spectacular choral event features dozens of choral groups from the Eastern U.S., forming a massed choir of 800 voices accompanied by the Auditorium's magnificent Hope-Jones organ and The Festive Brass. They'll perform on Sunday July 14, 2019 at 7:00pm in The Great Auditorium. This year's theme is "On Christ The Solid Rock." The Great Auditorium is located at Pilgrim and Ocean Pathways in Ocean Grove, NJ. All facilities are handicapped-accessible. A free will offering will be accepted.

The Choir Festival will be conducted by OGCMA's Director of Music Ministries, Dr. Jason C. Tramm, as well as Special Guest Conductors: Dr. Thomas Juneau, Dr. Mark Boyle, Rider Foster, John Palatucci, Dr. Cindy Bell, Dr. J. Donald Dumpson and Sarah Michal. They will be accompanied by Organist-in-Residence Dr. Gordon Turk and The Festive Brass.

The thunderous 800 voices will perform anthems, hymns, as well as works by classical and contemporary composers in keeping with the theme "On Christ The Solid Rock":

At the Name of Jesus - Rene Clausen

God of Ages, God Eternal - Thomas Juneau

Great is Thy Faithfulness - Nathan Carter

I Believe - Mark Miller

Jacob's Ladder - Calvin Hampton

Lift Thine Eyes to the Mountains from Elijah - Felix Mendelssohn

No Time - Susan Brumfield

Pilgrim's Chorus from Tannhauser - Richard Wagner

The Ground - Ola Gjello

Upon This Rock - John Ness Beck

History of the Choir Festival

The first Choir Festival at OGCMA was held in 1955. The concept of a large scale festival of Christian music evolved when Dr. and Mrs. Walter D. Eddowes recognized a need for an experience that would inspire choristers to attain higher goals in music for their churches. At that time, the Auditorium Choir secretary, Mrs. Anna Nichols, extended an invitation to vocal groups in Philadelphia and the Jersey Shore. The first festival was a preaching service that included a hymn sermon, seven anthems, five conductors and nine choirs. About 200 singers augmented the Ocean Grove Auditorium Choir and the result was so thrilling that an annual event was established.

Through the years, many renowned composers of choral music have conducted their own works at OGCMA, performed by the huge festival choir. Among them are: John Ness Beck, Craig Courtney, Dr. Laurence Dilsner, Jester Hairston, Ross Hastings, Dr. Carl Mueller, Carl J. Nygard, Jr. and Clayton White.