The Nassau Music Society

The Bahamas National Youth Choir was established in 1983 and reestablished in 1990, and consists of some thirty-six people between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five years. Choir members give voluntarily of their time without remuneration as a form of national service.

The repertoire of the choir is wide-ranging; it encompasses classical music, Broadway tunes, American contemporary, spirituals, folk music of the Caribbean and the world. Its specialty is Bahamian folk and calypso music, most of which have been arranged by the founder/director. It is presented with brightly coloured costumes, energetic and creative choreography and effective lighting.

The Choir can be heard in concert annually during the week preceding Holy Week at the The College of The Bahamas Performing Arts Centre. It has produced nine recordings. To date, the Choir has sung in twenty-four languages and traveled to twenty-two countries. They have received many national and international awards, have performed for royalty, Heads of State and international celebrities on some of the world's most acclaimed stages.

Cleophas Adderley, is a pillar in the cultural development of The Bahamas. He is currently Executive Director, National Musical Heritage and Research at the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture, Government of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. He is the Founder/Director of The Bahamas National Youth Choir, one of the foremost Bahamian cultural institutions that represent The Bahamas both nationally and internationally.

Adderley is a prolific composer. He has written for piano, pipe organ, choir, and solo voice. Hal Leonard Corporation,USA, has published several of his works. He wrote the first Bahamian concert mass "Missa Caribe," and his opera "Our Boys" is the first grand opera to have been written and performed in the English speaking Caribbean. He is the recipient of many awards for his work in the arts including The Distinguished Citizen Award and an award from the International Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority.

The C Force is a chamber ensemble comprised of The College of The Bahamas music faculty. Since its formation four years ago, the group has been featured in concert not only throughout the Bahamas, but also in the Dominican Republic, Trinidad and Tobago and the island of St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands. This January they will travel to Orlando, Florida in the United States for a presentation at the Florida Flute Association Convention. Their “infocital” From Classical to Calypso: Art Music of the Caribbean features original compositions and arrangements of composers from The Bahamas, Guadeloupe, Curacao, Haiti, the US Virgin Islands, and Trinidad. Hailed by Jamaican-born pianist Paul Shaw as “Sheer Magic!” the members of C Force are unified in their desire to encourage music education in The Bahamas and throughout the Caribbean region. 

JoAnn DeVeaux-Callender, Soprano started singing at the age of three and was taught by her mother, a music teacher and church organist. She is a winner of many music competitions in The Bahamas and of contests in the USA. JoAnn attended the University of South Carolina and the Peabody Conservatory of M usic in Baltimore. She has performed for numerous heads of state under the patronages of the Governor General of The Bahamas, the United Nations and the Organization of American States. Most notably, she sang the role of Sister Josetta in the presence of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, in the October 1985 production of the Bahamian folk opera “The Legend of Sammie Swain” composed and conducted by E. Clement Bethel.

She is also a poet, lyricist, playwright, composer and author with works featured in past publications of In Tune, the weekly devotions booklet published by UMI Inc., in Chicago, Illinois. In May 2010, JoAnn produced and directed three of her original stage productions, War, (E.R.P.) Earth Restoration Patrol and The True Leader, at the Global Summit on Leadership and Prayer at The Milwaukee Theatre in Wisconsin.

I - C FORCE

Christine Gangelhoff (flute), Christian Justilien (euphonium), Christy Lee (piano)

1. Scena from Ernestine - Joseph Bologne (Chevalier de Saint-Georges)
2. Chansons Folkloriques D’Haiti - Warner A. Jaegerhuber
3. Bahama Moon- Franz Hepburn
4. Elena and Her Variations - Peter Ashbourne
5. Anacarla's Waltz - Quincy Parker
6. Despedida (Waltz, Op. 4, No. 25) - Wim Statius Muller
7. Ballymena - Arr. Clement Bethel/C Force
8. Island Suite - Christian Justilien     

 i) Da Bight (Eleuthera); ii) Blue Marlin (Bimini)

II – JoAnn Callender

(soprano) accompanied by Christy Lee (piano)

1. Nassau Harbour - Cleophas R.E. Adderley
2. Run Gal - Cleophas R.E. Adderley

 III – The Bahamas National Youth Choir

under the direction of Cleophas R.E.  Adderley

1. Exultate Deo - Alessandro Scarlatti
2. Big Bunch A Little Bunch - Bahamian folk song - Arr. Cleophas R.E.Adderley
3. My Soul's Been Anchored in the Lord - Traditional Spiritual - Arr. Moses Hogan