Congressional Chorus Sponsorship Opportunities Spring 2021

Congressional
Chorus
Sponsorship
Opportunities
Spring 2021

WHO WE ARE
OUR HISTORY
The Congressional Chorus was founded in 1987 by a group of Congressional staffers who shared a love of singing.
Since then, we have grown into a multi-generational family of choruses including an 80-member auditioned adult
choir, a 24-member a cappella chamber ensemble, and the NorthEast Senior Singers (NESS), a free musical
engagement chorus for senior citizens. Our singers, who range in age from 18-96 and come from many professions,
are also drawn from this area. Through three main annual concerts and outreach concerts we reach approximately
2,000 people. For the past three decades, the Congressional Chorus has had a proud tradition of introducing to
Washington audience choral works that are inspired by and reflect the increasingly global and diverse society in
which we live. In addition to our annual public performances, our choruses have performed at the White House, the
John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Harman Center for the Arts, Atlas Performing Arts Center, the Library
of Congress, National Building Museum, National Archives, Washington Nationals’ Ballpark, the U.S. Department of
State, and the U.S. Capitol, including two Presidential inaugurations.

OUR MISSION
Our mission is to inspire people to embrace our common humanity through American choral music. Each season,
our programs center around highlighting social justice issues and underrepresented voices in American music. We
believe that coming together means celebrating the diversity of America’s musical history and our present. Since our
founding, the Congressional Chorus has proudly introduced many contemporary or rarely performed American
choral works to Washington audiences by commissioning new works and presenting Washington, DC premiers. We
partner and collaborate with local poets, dancers, musicians, and other organizations in order to expand and support
our community, and we consider these relationships foundational to our work. In addition, we understand that our
love of singing and our mission is multi-generational, which is we run a senior community choir, NorthEast Senior
Singers, one of the only programs in the District that provides musical opportunities specifically for the elderly with a
focus on providing older residents with performance-centered experiences alongside a community of younger
singers.

OUR SEASON SO FAR
Summer Concert Series
Our summer virtual concert series began with our Chamber Ensemble’s “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”
arranged by Deke Sharon, known as the "father of contemporary a cappella." Our full chorus
presented “Virtual Insanity,” an excerpt from our Vogue! cabaret and a poignant reflection as
the Covid-19 lockdown shook America. ”Ella’s Song,” initially produced as a celebration of the
57th Anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, transformed into a call for
solidarity for the Black Lives Matter movement and support of the August peaceful
demonstrations to call attention to systemic racism.

Vogue! Return to the 90’s
Vogue! Return to the 90’s, our Fall concert, celebrated the music, dance, and fashion of the
1990’s--the decade of pop--with our first full-length virtual concert on our YouTube
channel. The 30-minute virtual cabaret revisited the decade that gave us Madonna's "Vogue",
Sir Elton John's "Circle of Life", and Gloria Estefan's "I Just Want to Be Happy."

PROCLAIMING THE SEASON: PEACE, LOVE & JOY
The NorthEast Senior Singers presented a Holiday Concert to be enjoyed from the comfort of
home featuring traditional favorites “Winter Wonderland”, a jazzy “God Rest Ye Merry
Gentlemen”, a “Soulful Hallelujah”, “Silent Night”, and spoken word “He Was Just a Baby”, a
reading of “The Visit of Knecht Ruprecht, A German Christmas Story”, and liturgical dance.

OUR SEASON TO COME
This is Her Story: Celebrating Black
Women in Music
MARCH 13, 2021
Congressional Chorus will pay homage to some of the greatest black women composers,
arrangers and performers from various generations of music. The program will range from
classical, jazz, folk, and gospel selections. We are honored to be featuring guest artists:
Afro Blue from Howard University, Brandie Sutton from the Metropolitan Opera, DC-native
singer/songwriter Cecily, and Dr. Leah Claiborne from the University of the District Of
Columbia.

Viva la Música! Singing the Music of
Latin America
JUNE 5, 2021

SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
Why Sponsor Us? As a sponsor you will…
+   Be recognized for your public support of the arts and the Metropolitan community
+   Support diversity and representation in the arts
+   Connect with those who share your commitment to the arts community
+   Ensure appreciation for new and underperformed American choral works
+   Enable our continued ability to provide concerts and music education to our community
+   Help to advance and sustain arts in the Metropolitan area during one of our most
    challenging periods

Sponsor Benefits Company Name/logo placement in the
following areas:

+   Home page of the Chorus’ web site: CongressionalChorus.org
+   Sponsors Credit screen of the Concert video
+   Concert Promotional E-Blasts for 4 weeks (5,000+ subscribers) & Social Media posts
+   Ten (10) invitations to join our VIP pre-Concert Virtual Gala for a meet and greet with our
    Artist Director and a featured Guest Artist

SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
Our March 2021 concert, This is Her Story, will celebrate black female composers throughout American history. The concert will also
include four phenomenal guest artists, an all black, female band, and be produced by an all black, female audio/video production team.
To help us present this music to the best of our ability and to raise awareness of black women in music, we will also hold a series of
educational workshops hosted by our guest artists. You can help support this wonderful project by sponsoring:

Concert ($2,500)
By sponsoring our concert, you can help ensure that these composer’s music and stories continue to be heard and uplifted by our community

Musicians ($500)
By sponsoring our musicians, you can support metro-area performers in one of their most challenging times.

Production Team ($500)
By sponsoring our AV team, you not only help support diversity in the arts, but also its continued access during lockdown.

Guest Artists ($1,000)
Our concert will feature four guest artists: Singer/songwriter Cecily, opera singer Brandie Sutton, pianist Dr. Leah Claiborne, and Howard’s a cappella
ensemble Afro Blue. By sponsoring our guest artists, you can support the highest levels of artistic excellence in our community.

Educational Workshop Series ($1,500)
We understand that in order to authentically present the works of black female composers, we must understand the history of those women. Our workshops
will focus on the history of black women in classical, jazz, and contemporary music and the important role played by individual personalities and
circumstances in shaping this underappreciated category of American art.