Interview with Joe Baker, Marketing Coordinator for Choral Events Ensemble

Regina: What is the Chorale Arts Ensemble for those who may not have heard of it before?

Joe: The 40-voice Choral Arts Ensemble of Portland is a volunteer choir founded in 1969 in Portland, Oregon. The choir is a registered 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization and a performing arts ensemble that performs both sacred and secular music. See www.caeportland.com or http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choral_Arts_Ensemble_of_Portland for more information.

Regina: What is the CAE's history, how did it get started?

Joe: The Choral Arts Ensemble of Portland was founded in 1969 in Portland Oregon, and was originally named the Civic Choraliers. The group hired Donald M. Tucker, a student in conducting from Portland State, as their director. That fall, the Choraliers performed a Bach cantata with full orchestral accompaniment.

Farrold Stephens took over as the Choraliers' director in the fall of 1973. He continued to present the great works of classical music as well as lighter fare. Much of the programming was relatively adventurous for a newer ensemble, including twentieth-century works by Kodaly, Hindemith, Pinkham, Poulenc, and a tribute to Benjamin Britten shortly after the composer's death.

Current Music Director and Conductor Roger O. Doyle, PhD became the Choraliers' conductor and musical director in 1978. The following year, at Doyle's suggestion, the group changed its name to the Choral Arts Ensemble of Portland in an effort to emphasize the group's exploration of "the choral arts."

The CAE presents three to five concert programs each season, and is recognized in Portland for Doyle's varied and thematic repertoire selections. Additionally, the group has presented choral masterworks of Brahms, Handel, Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, and others.

Regina: How did you originally get involved? What is your role within the organization?