The NOVA Community Chorus, an eighty-voice ensemble directed by Dr. Mark Whitmire, combines singers from the NVCC Music Program and the surrounding community. The chorus has distinguished itself both locally and internationally. It performs regularly at the Schlesinger Center with the Alexandria Campus Band, the Alexandria Symphony, and the Washington Metropolitan Philharmonic. Special engagements in recent years have included Carnegie Hall, the Lincoln Center, and the National Theater. The chorus toured Spain and performed at the 1992 World's Fair in Seville. Members of the choir sang at Gloucester Cathedral in 2003 and returned to England in 2006 to sing at Westminster Abbey and Canterbury Cathedral.

Membership in the chorus requires registration for MUS 137 01A. Contact Dr. Whitmire for further information, 703 845 6097 or mwhitmire@nvcc.edu.

Mark Whitmire is Director of the NOVA Community Chorus and Professor of Music at Northern Virginia Community College . He has conducted choirs throughout the region, including performances at The National Theater, The Kennedy Center and Washington National Cathedral. In 2003 he was conductor-in-residence at Gloucester Cathedral; in 2006 he returned to England to direct choirs at Westminster Abbey and Canterbury Cathedral. Dr. Whitmire has received numerous grants and awards, including a scholarship for post-graduate studies at the Britten-Pears School in England (where he studied with Sir Peter Pears), and a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities for research and writing on the music of Benjamin Britten. In 1999 he was named “Outstanding Faculty of the Year” by the college, and in 2004 he was awarded the “President's Sabbatical,” the highest honor given by the college. Dr. Whitmire attended Abilene Christian University , the University of Texas , and the University of Maryland , where he received the Doctor of Musical Arts degree. He also serves as Adjunct Professor of Music and Liturgy at Virginia Theological Seminary and Music Director at St. James's Church, Richmond.

Biography
Profile in Gentleman's Quarterly