Cover art detail: To the End in Songs

Our History

The Southern Oregon Repertory Singers 70+ member ensemble celebrates its 40th season of bringing choral excellence to the Rogue Valley. Under the direction of Dr. Paul French, Professor Emeritus of Choral Studies at Southern Oregon University, the semi-professional ensemble captivates audiences by presenting the best of classical choral literature from around the world throughout the ages, as well as newly composed works by world-renowned composers, such as Gabriel Jackson, Eric Whitacre, and Ēriks Ešenvalds. Southern Oregon Repertory Singers have also had the honor to premiere new works by Composer-in-Residence Jodi French and Craig Kingsbury.

Southern Oregon Repertory Singers offers opportunities to local and regional musicians, including professionals and music educators, as well as access to a wide variety of repertoire, while providing cultural enrichment to the Rogue Valley through presentations of a series of unique concerts.

Southern Oregon Repertory Singers proudly presents at least one choral masterwork every year in their season. Recent masterworks include Fauré’s Requiem, Bach’s St. Matthew Passion and Mass in B Minor, Haydn’s Creation, and Handel’s Messiah, performed with the Rogue Valley Symphony.

Southern Oregon Repertory Singers performing on stage at SOU music hall in Ashland, Oregon

Meet Our Ensemble

Auditions

40 Years in Harmony

A Rep Singers Timeline

1986:

Founded by Ellison Glattly and Brian Tingle at Southern Oregon State College.
April 1986:

First concert performance.
1989–1990:

Glattly departs to pursue a career in golf instruction. Following a national search, Paul French is appointed Music Director; he conducts his first concert in December 1990.
1994 & 2002:

Invited performances at the regional conference of the American Choral Directors Association in Tacoma, Washington.
1996:
A landmark year:
- Launch of the first Mozart’s Birthday Bash with the Northwest Bach Ensemble, conducted by Philip Bayles and Paul French, featuring John Stadelman as Mozart.
- Glattly returns to Ashland and rejoins the ensemble as a bass singer.
- First theatrical collaboration with Rogue Music Theatre on Sweeney Todd.
- First commissioned premiere: a new choral work by Craig Kingsbury.
- Jodi French (then Jodi O’Connell) appears in her first performance with the ensemble.
2000:

Release of debut CD, In Time of Softest Snow.
2003:
- National broadcast debut on National Public Radio’s West Coast Live, featuring music by Todd Barton.
- Premiere of the first Songs of Shakespeare concert at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.
2006:

West Coast premiere of Robert Levin’s completion of Great Mass in C minor.
2011:

25th Anniversary Season: acclaimed performances of Mass in B minor by Johann Sebastian Bach with period instruments and internationally recognized soloists.
2014:

Presentation of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion with period orchestra and distinguished soloists.
2016:

Performances of The Creation by Joseph Haydn.
2017:

Launch of the James M. Collier New Works Festival, made possible by a transformative $250,000 endowment gift.
2020:

Final performances before the global shutdown caused by COVID; the ensemble pauses for 21 months.
2021:

Return to the stage with premieres by Alvin Trotman (Winter) and Jodi French (Auld Lang Syne).
2022:

Oregon premiere of John Rutter’s A Ukrainian Prayer, supporting Ashland’s sister city in Ukraine.
2023:

World premieres of commissioned works by Will Todd (m = pV) and Jodi French (The Kiss of Peace).
2024:
- Concert in memoriam honoring co-founder Ellison Glattly.
- Return to Medford performances after a decade (at the Craterian)
2025 :
- Featured performance of Requiem by Gabriel Fauré with soloist Dan Gibbs.
- World premiere of Jodi French’s Cannons Into Bells.
- Holiday concert to a sold-out audience at the historic Holly Theatre.
2026:
- World premiere of Jodi French’s The Stranger Among You: Songs of Exile & Home, and commissioned work To the End in Songs by British composer Peter Relph.
- Holiday concert planned for Holly Theater (December 2026)
- Commissioned work by British composer Lucy Walker (May 2027 premiere)
Looking Ahead:

With a rich legacy behind us and new music on the horizon, Rep Singers continues to inspire, innovate, and bring the power of choral music to our community—one unforgettable performance at a time.