Chorus North Shore traces its history to 1931 in Rockport Massachusetts when the Sandy Bay Historical Society asked several choirs in the town to perform together for a Christmas concert as The Community Carol Choir. Aimed at uplifting the mood of the town during the depression, the concert served to pull the citizens together through music – and they have been singing ever since.

The chorus became known as The Rockport Community Chorus performing in venues throughout Cape Ann and other North Shore communities. In 1961 the chorus hired Sonja Dahlgren Pryor to serve as its choral director, and at that point the chorus made a dramatic change in its performances. Leaving popular music behind, Ms Pryor concentrated the repertoire on classical choral masterworks and began developing the chorus into the powerful arts organization it is today.

In 1995 the Chorus underwent another identity change, renaming itself Chorus North Shore to better represent the wide geography of its membership and performance venues. Today, Chorus North Shore is known as “the premiere chorus of its kind north of Boston.” It is regularly performing the challenging works of Mozart, Verdi, Mendelssohn, Handel, Stravinsky, Bernstein, and many others for appreciative North Shore audiences.

In addition, Chorus North Shore has taken its gift of music overseas with several tours throughout Europe including performances in St. Peter’s Cathedral broadcast on Vatican radio. In 1997 the chorus was invited to Puerto Rico to be a featured guest of the town of Luquillo in the celebration of their 200th anniversary.

Reaching out to our community in a tangible way, Chorus North Shore has provided many area students with scholarships allowing them to develop their talent as they pursue a higher education in music.

In response to a deep dedication to keeping the choral arts alive for future generations, Chorus North Shore created the Chorus North Shore Honors Youth Choir in 2005. This fully auditioned and fully funded youth choir performed their own concerts and was a featured performer in many Chorus North Shore concerts until 2019.

Chorus North Shore is firmly facing forward into the 21st century. with our new Artistic Director Abby Frost. Our commitment to serving the vocal arts on Boston’s North Shore continues to drive our performances and our expanded offerings to the community. Please join us to hear the glorious sound of extraordinary choral music!

You can honor our the more than 90 years of Chorus North Shore performances by giving the gift of music.  The Sonja Dahlgren Pryor Conductor’s Chair Endowment was established to fund future musical directors.

Donations can be made on our website to the Sonja Dahlgren Pryor Conductor’s Chair Endowment.

Donation can also be made to help defray Chorus North Shore operating costs