Inspired by Las Posadas, a Latin American tradition of traveling from home to home showing the journey of the Holy Family, singing and sharing food.

Join us for a journey including crafts, family friendly activities and live music ending in a bilingual community sing followed by a delicious fiesta with tamales, pan dulce and chocolate caliente.

This event is especially meant for families and students. All are welcome!

Friday, December 13th

Academic Cesar Chavez (1801 Lacrosse Ave, St Paul, MN 55119)

Forget the hustle and bustle—take time to experience the wonder and joy of the season as VocalEssence returns to the magnificent Northrop stage to welcome Christmas in song. Immerse yourself in new and familiar favorites featuring all four VocalEssence ensembles singing together. Mix in harp, brass, percussion, and Northrop’s spectacular Aeolian-Skinner pipe organ, plus our special ingredient—your voice—with rousing sing-alongs, creating the perfect recipe that will leave you feeling festive and full of holiday spirit.

Natalia will be performing with the Ensemble Singers.

Forget the hustle and bustle—take time to experience the wonder and joy of the season as VocalEssence returns to the magnificent Northrop stage to welcome Christmas in song. Immerse yourself in new and familiar favorites featuring all four VocalEssence ensembles singing together. Mix in harp, brass, percussion, and Northrop’s spectacular Aeolian-Skinner pipe organ, plus our special ingredient—your voice—with rousing sing-alongs, creating the perfect recipe that will leave you feeling festive and full of holiday spirit.

Natalia will be performing with the Ensemble Singers.

Border CrosSing is joining the musicians of South High School’s choir, modern band and jazz band for their Winter Concert. Choir students at South have been collaborating with Border CrosSing through our “Dale! Border CrosSing Education Outreach” program, generously funded by Chorus America.

Natalia will be directing the Border CrosSing ensemble for this performance.

Bridges: Expanding the Canon is a series of concerts designed to reimagine the canon of choral music: guest conductors of color will lead singers from the Minnesota Chorale and Border CrosSing in works by composers whose music has historically been underrepresented on the concert stage.

Bridges: Expanding the canon features Dr. Shekela Wanyama at the podium. Natalia will be performing with Border CrosSing.

My Journey Yours

Sharing immigrant stories through music

A choral collaboration between Minneapolis Choir Co-Op + Boston Choral Ensemble

Katherine Chan, Artistic Director, Boston Choral Ensemble
Natalia Romero Arbeláez, Guest Conductor, Minneapolis Choir Co-Op

Alex Rack, Artistic Director, Minneapolis Choir Co-Op

My Journey Yours weaves the experiences of immigrants into music and stories: songs they bring from their homelands and their journeys of starting anew. The multilingual program presents a rich array of pieces by immigrant composers and writers. “La Frontera'' by Judith Shatin, sets to music a poem by an undocumented immigrant youth held in an American maximum-security detention center. In “N-400 Erasure Song,” Melissa Dunphy reshapes text from the N-400, the application form to apply for US citizenship. “Finding a Home” by Sydney Guillaume blends English and Haitian Creole to express the anguish that comes from feeling out of place, while also celebrating the homes we have found and the ones we have yet to discover.

Join Minneapolis Choir Co-Op and the Boston Choral Ensemble for a collaborative performance that amplifies the voices of immigrants.

September 28th, 6 PM at Minnehaha United Methodist Church

September 29th, 2 PM at Central Presbyterian Church in St. Paul

My Journey Yours

Sharing immigrant stories through music

A choral collaboration between Minneapolis Choir Co-Op + Boston Choral Ensemble

Katherine Chan, Artistic Director, Boston Choral Ensemble
Natalia Romero Arbeláez, Guest Conductor, Minneapolis Choir Co-Op

Alex Rack, Artistic Director, Minneapolis Choir Co-Op

My Journey Yours weaves the experiences of immigrants into music and stories: songs they bring from their homelands and their journeys of starting anew. The multilingual program presents a rich array of pieces by immigrant composers and writers. “La Frontera'' by Judith Shatin, sets to music a poem by an undocumented immigrant youth held in an American maximum-security detention center. In “N-400 Erasure Song,” Melissa Dunphy reshapes text from the N-400, the application form to apply for US citizenship. “Finding a Home” by Sydney Guillaume blends English and Haitian Creole to express the anguish that comes from feeling out of place, while also celebrating the homes we have found and the ones we have yet to discover.

Join Minneapolis Choir Co-Op and the Boston Choral Ensemble for a collaborative performance that amplifies the voices of immigrants.

September 28th, 6 PM at Minnehaha United Methodist Church

September 29th, 2 PM at Central Presbyterian Church in St. Paul

Border CrosSing presents “Dance Party at La Doña”, a night of live music featuring salsa and bolero hits with a live band, choir and dance lessons.

Natalia will be performing with the octet of singers.

Join us for an interactive program of salsa, rumba, and son!

Celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month with Border CrosSing in an interactive concert of popular Latinx dance music. Border CrosSing's VOCAL SALSA BAND will perform Ahmed’s new arrangements of favorites including “Che che colé,” “Quimbara,” “Lágrimas negras,” “Prohibido olvidar,” and “Son de la Loma” and dancers Giselle Mejia and Chini Perez will lead the audience in dance.

Join us at La Doña Cervecería in Minneapolis for a family-friendly program of great music, dancing, food, and drink!

Performances are Friday, September 13th at 7pm and Sunday, September 15th at 4pm.

Natalia will be performing with Border CrosSing.

The Ordway's GreenRoom is a paid, intensive training fellowship created by BIPOC artists to center and uplift underrepresented communities within musical theater. Natalia has been a part of GreenRoom since its inception as music faculty.

The GreenRoom Closing Session is a joyous celebration of six weeks of work and will feature the 2024 fellows performing group numbers, TEDTalks and solo pieces during this performance.

Please join us!

Natalia is thrilled to be back with the Madison Choral Project as a singer and guest conductor for Iowa Choral Director’s Association Summer Conference in Pella, Iowa!

The Madison Choral Project (founded and directed by Albert Pinsonneault) will be reprising several pieces from our June concert, as well as selections by Shara Nova, David Lang and Marques L.A. Garrett.

Natalia is thrilled to be joining the Madison Choral Project for “Righteous Airs and Summer Flair”, as both a singer and a guest conductor!

This project will feature new and old favorites from the choral repertoire in a lighter concert featuring a variety of guest conductors, intended to entertain and dazzle. One performance only, at First Congregational Church.

Aquí te amo (Here I Love You) was released in June 2023, and we're excited to present this music live in concert! The title of the album comes from Modesta Bor's gorgeous setting of a poem by Pablo Neruda. Also featured on this a cappella program are two choral works from Mexico's colonial period, two zambas by Carlos Guastavino, two Cardenche songs, and Carol Barnett's magical "A Tree Telling of Orpheus."

Natalia will be performing with Border CrosSing.

You're invited! Join us for a Community Sing featuring Heritage Choir, Border CrosSing and students from Richfield Dual Language School on Saturday, May 11th! Community Sings are open to all ages, and are joyful bilingual community events meant for singing along, sharing stories and food.

Join us at 11:30am for stories and music, and stick around for delicious treats from Garcia Bakery after!

Nos vemos!

Cantare, A Cappella, Blaker’s Dozen and Blakers in Treble will have their end-of-the-semester concert on Thursday, May 9th at 7:00 pm at Westminster Presbyterian Church in downtown Minneapolis. 

This spring, we’ve been joined by Maria Coyne, a talented singer/songwriter based in the Twin Cities, who has been working with us on songwriting and composition. The spring concert will feature an original composition by each ensemble, as well as a new piece that Maria wrote for the students.

Students have been working on song lyrics for several weeks, but with the help of Maria we finished an entire original piece of music that we'll premiere at the concert.

Beloved vocal activist, soulful singer, and composer Melanie DeMore returns to Minnesota using her music as what she calls “a weapon of mass connection.” Featuring music by Damien Geter, Marques Garrett, Joel Thompson, and songs from the African diaspora, WITNESS: Leading with Love is the place to hear Melanie and VocalEssence share the world premiere performance of an extended work co-created through conversation and stick-pounding workshops with Twin Cities community members. This impassioned call for the revival of love, the rebirth of peace, and the emergence of a community where violence ceases will challenge us all to “put one foot in front of the other and lead with love.”

Natalia will be performing with the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers.

Exciting news! The Blake Upper School A Cappella Choir and Chamber Orchestra have been selected to perform at the MMEA Midwinter Convention, the highest honor an ensemble can receive in the state of Minnesota. Natalia will be sharing the podium with Brian Lukkasson, instrumental director at Blake, and together they have curated a program exploring themes of growth, journey and transformation

Join us for another performance of our cherished El Mesías concert, a Spanish-English setting of Handel’s Messiah combined with Navidad nuestra by Argentine composer Ariel Ramírez. Saturday night’s concert is at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in St. Paul

Natalia will be performing with Border CrosSing.

Join us for another performance of our cherished El Mesías concert, a Spanish-English setting of Handel’s Messiah combined with Navidad nuestra by Argentine composer Ariel Ramírez. Friday night’s concert is at Church of the Ascension in Minneapolis.

Natalia will be performing with Border CrosSing.

Um! Yah! Yah! (Need we say more?!) VocalEssence is thrilled to join forces with one of the most prestigious choirs in the country, hailing from right in our backyard. VocalEssence singers will be joined by the St. Olaf Choir under the magnificent batons of Philip Brunelle, G. Phillip Shoultz, III, and Anton Armstrong. Music will include a performance of Requiem by José Maurícío Nuñes-García and the premiere of a new commission in memory of our beloved former Associate Conductor Sigrid Johnson, composed by Minnesota composer and St. Olaf alumna Jocelyn Hagen, whose music has been described as “dramatic and deeply moving” (Star Tribune).

Natalia will be performing with the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers.

Awaken your spirit with the sounds and colors of performances by the VocalEssence Chorus, Ensemble Singers, and Singers Of This Age. Experience sounds from near and far, exploring music of Denmark, Haiti, Mexico, the United States, and more, featuring composer and guest artist, Moira Smiley, whose style has been described as genre bending “mixing Bartok with street-singing.” This inspiring music will leave you feeling the joy of singing together.

Natalia is singing with the Ensemble Singers.

Heritage Choir is back with our annual spring Community Sing, a chance to gather in community and sing together. This year, we're being joined by the middle school choir students of Achieve Language Academy!

Join us on Saturday, May 6th at the Sanctuary of University Baptist Church (1219 University Ave SE, Minneapolis, MN 55414) for an hour of music followed by delicious catering from our friends at Garcia Bakery & Cafe.

Come for the music, stay for the pan dulce. ¡Nos vemos!

Join the Upper School Choirs of the Blake School for the Spring Upper School Choral Concert.

Much of the music is by living composers, and students are also collaborating with the US Orchestra on a multi-movement work titled "Five Hebrew Love Songs". Students have been hard at work and it will be a wonderful performance.

Minneapolis-based artist, author, educator, and speaker Joe Davis joins VocalEssence choirs along with The New Renaissance, a multi-media production company that cultivates immersive experiences, and chamber orchestra in a call for the revival of love, the rebirth of peace, and the emergence of a community where violence ceases. Experience a fusion of musical styles interwoven with stories of struggle, resilience, and celebration as we honor lives lost and renew our commitment to a freedom that is wide enough in which all can thrive.

Natalia is performing with the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers.

RAMÍREZ Navidad Nuestra
HANDEL Messiah (Part I and Hallelujah chorus)

Border CrosSing, led by artistic director Ahmed Anzaldúa, joins the Minnesota Orchestra with El Mesías, a bilingual Spanish-English cross-cultural combination of the Christmas portion of George Frideric Handel’s Messiah and Navidad Nuestra, a Christmas cantata by Argentine composer Ariel Ramírez. Together with the vocal soloists and choir, the unique combination of Andean instruments and the Baroque orchestra blurs the line between Western classical and South American folk traditions.

Natalia will be performing with Border CrosSing.

RAMÍREZ Navidad Nuestra
HANDEL Messiah (Part I and Hallelujah chorus)

Border CrosSing, led by artistic director Ahmed Anzaldúa, joins the Minnesota Orchestra with El Mesías, a bilingual Spanish-English cross-cultural combination of the Christmas portion of George Frideric Handel’s Messiah and Navidad Nuestra, a Christmas cantata by Argentine composer Ariel Ramírez. Together with the vocal soloists and choir, the unique combination of Andean instruments and the Baroque orchestra blurs the line between Western classical and South American folk traditions.

Natalia will be performing with Border CrosSing.