Our History

Local interest in choral singing can trace its origins to the
early days of the Manhattan Project when Donald Flanders
invited friends into his home to participate in madrigal
singing as a diversion from hectic wartime work. When
neighbors complained of the "din produced by the
enthusiastic group," they moved to the old nursery school
and there the Los Alamos Choral Society was born,
according to the organization archives.

Since December 1944, there have been more than 125 local
performances in addition to three international concert
tours: Europe in 1991, Scandinavia in 1993, and Eastern
Europe in 1995. Over the years, the Society lists 15
directors, many of whom still reside in Los Alamos County;

Donald A. Flanders,1944,
Robert S. Dike, 1945-46,
Gaelan Felt and John Winks, 1947,
Kathleen Manley, 1948-50, 1960-62,
Robert C. Carpenter, 1951,
C. C. Robinson, 1952,
John Seagrave, 1953, 1955-58,
Avery Nagel, 1954,
Kenneth Cooper, 1963,
Herald Kruse, 1964-65,
John Ward, 1966-71, 1974-81, 1983-99,
Sheldon Kalberg, 1972-73,
Jacob Evans, 1982-84,
Steve Coggeshall, 1999-06. and currently
Dr. Mary Badarak