Barbara Pickhardt is an extraordinary musician, conductor, composer and teacher. She taught piano, first for our daughter Sofi and then later for me. I joined her choral group, Ars Choralis, in 1997. Singing in the alto section, I loved being a drop of water in a river of music. All styles and eras, woven through with themes of peace, love and understanding. Working closely with Barbara, I served as the group’s president. We traveled to Europe several times and brought Music in Desperate Times to St. John the Divine in NYC and to HeiligKruze Kirche in Berlin, Germany. Desperate Times was the holocaust story of the women’s orchestra of Birkenau. Ars Choralis performed at the 60th anniversary gathering of the survivors of Ravensbruck. It was the first time that music was included in these sad, triumphant memorials. It was eerie to stay in the camp which now provides tours and accommodations.

Beginning in 2001 with a commission from a Woodstock Church, Barbara and I composed the opera, Miracle in Bethlehem. It took us 20 years to complete and as it grew, Ars Choralis performed the work in progress three times, in 2003, 2013 and 2018. We released a recording of it in 2022. You can learn more about Miracle in Bethlehem here, and visit miracleinbethlehem.com, where you can listen to the opera in its entirety.

Helming the chorus and working so closely with Barbara was rewarding. We did three concerts each year, which required art for programs and advertisements. Two extraordinary artists, Carol Zaloom and Jenny Astwood did beautiful work for us, some is shown below.

Here are some photos and other treasures from my time with the chorus.