The La Jolla Renaissance Singers

The La Jolla Renaissance Singers rehearse weekly on Wednesday evenings in La Jolla. Since the group rehearses without accompaniment, sight-reading ability is essential.

To schedule an audition, please contact the conductor.
We are especially seeking basses.

Since 1964, the La Jolla Renaissance Singers (formerly the UCSD Madrigal Singers) have been bringing the finest of early European choral music to the San Diego area. Based in La Jolla, California, the elite choir draws members from across the county.

The 25-member group performs a cappella vocal music written from the Middle Ages through the Renaissance, with occasional forays into the Romantic and Modern periods. In period costume, the group performs in concert halls, museums, and churches, as well as in libraries, parks, and for private parties.

Conductor William H. C. Propp has been Professor of Ancient History and Judaic Studies at the University of California, San Diego, since 1983, and director of the La Jolla Renaissance Singers since 2001. In addition to his choral activities, he is an accomplished pianist and bassoonist. His informative commentaries, and occasional instrumental performances, enliven the group’s appearances.

This season, LJRS presents

The Personality of Henry Purcell

The year 2009 marks the 350th anniversary of the birth of Henry Purcell (1659-1695), the greatest composer of the English Baroque. During his short life, Purcell produced an astonishing variety of music: keyboard sonatas, solo songs, sacred anthems, bawdy rounds, incidental music for the stage, and the first great English opera.

The La Jolla Renaissance Singers will honor Purcell’s memory by performing a selection of his compositions for voice, including a concert version of the opera Dido and Aeneas.

-- Join us!

To receive email notification of our appearances, or to hire us for performance,
please contact the concert manager.

Henry Purcell

Concert Schedule

Admission to all performances is free; donations will be gladly accepted.

* Made possible by the Carlsbad Library and Arts Foundation's
  Robert H. Gartner Cultural Endowment Fund.

Past programs