Board Matter Oct. 27, 2026
Background: The Reston Chorale is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year.
For those who’ve never heard this beloved Reston institution perform, the Reston Chorale is a mixed-voice, auditioned chorus with a broad repertoire that spans classic rock to Broadway to great choral masterworks both old and new.
Founded in the fall of 1966, the Chorale remains a vibrant voice to Robert E. Simon, Jr.’s legacy. The vocal group was established two years after Reston’s founding. Simon, a lifelong pianist and choral musician himself, recruited James Christian Pfohl to create the chorale as part of the multi-faceted Reston Music Center — which included a summer music camp, a children’s choir and a chamber orchestra.
In October 1966, Pfohl invited singers to join the choir he was forming, and 40 musicians accepted his invitation. With these members, the Chorale debuted at its first performance billed as “Christmas in a New Town” on December 18. The ensemble, which included Bob Simon, performed from a tree-shaped platform on Lake Anne’s Washington Plaza, along with other musical groups that day. The PBS TV-station WETA also filmed the concert, airing it on Christmas Eve.
Six decades later, the Chorale continues to delight audiences, and it has performed at distinguished venues, including the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Wolf Trap, George Mason University's Center for the Arts, and the Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center.
To launch its 60th season, the Chorale will present Threads of Joy on Saturday, December 5, a festive concert of sacred and secular holiday music. Later that month, the Chorale will offer its always popular, annual Messiah singalong, and the group’s season continues into the spring with additional concerts that will include the world premieres of two choral works commissioned by the group.
Motion: Therefore, Mr. Chairman, I ask without objection that the Office of Public Affairs prepare a resolution to recognize the Chorale’s 60th anniversary to be presented out of the Board room on December 5, 2026.
