<p>The Yale Glee Club, long considered one of the nation's best collegiate ensembles, is celebrating its 150th anniversary year with a series of special concerts in different venues. Last Friday it had the honor of performing at Carnegie aided by the exceptional Yale Symphony Orchestra. It sang a very difficult program of modern and contemporary music to stress that it is now looking forward to the next century and half! Some of the pieces were prizewinning works specifically composed for the Club.</p>
<p>The New York Times gave it a rave review today:</p>
<p>I attended the performance myself and was mesmerised by the group's power and precision; I am a Glee Club alumnus myself, and I really doubt we would have attempted so difficult a program in so public a venue back in my day.</p>
<p>I just bring this up to demonstrate the quality of the EC opportunities available to students at Yale -- any of you trying to make up you minds -- it ain't no joke.</p>
<p>I performed all over the US during my days in the Glee Club as well as many locations in Europe and Latin America. I also sang in the venerable Russian Chorus and had the incredible opportunity of singing for top Russian leaders in the Kremlin. We also got the chance to sing at Carnegie Hill, providing a "peasant chorus" for the US premiere of Mussorgsky's opera "Khovanshchina" by the Opera Orchestra of New York. Not bad for a kid who could barely read music.</p>
<p>Again, the range of extra-curricular activities available at Yale, even for dilettantes, is just breathtaking and I think, matched by very few schools.</p>