Charlestown’s Chapel Concert Series unites community with music

By Julia Boyle
THE ERICKSON TRIBUNE

When Charlestown held its first Chapel Concert Series 18 years ago for members of the community, no one realized it would grow into the popular local event it is today.

The concerts feature classical or religious music by professional musicians in the historic Our Lady of the Angels Chapel on Charlestown’s campus. The free, public performances draw about 175 people from Charlestown and the surrounding community from September to May. The campus TV station also broadcasts each performance throughout Charlestown.

“The founder of the group, Virginia Moore, and her successor, Corrine Wheeler, wanted to get the best musicians available—people who are well-known in the area,” says Gale Jenkins, the current concert coordinator. “They come to us mostly by word of mouth. Some return year after year or every few years, and we try to have two to three new performers each year,” she says.

Some of the most popular include the Baltimore Choral Arts Society (www.baltimorechoralarts.org) and the Handel Choir of Baltimore (www.handelchoir.org) at Christmastime.