Sirens of Gotham Announces Anna Chelak as Artistic Director

Alexander Ronneburg, Larry Bomback, and Anna Chelak with GOTHAM chorus at the 2022 Barbershop Harmony Society international competition

Sirens of Gotham is pleased to announce the selection of Anna Chelak as Artistic Director. In her new role, Anna will be responsible for defining and implementing the artistic vision behind Sirens of Gotham. 

“After meeting many talented internal and external candidates during the search process, we are thrilled to have a new Artistic Director who is both an incredibly talented musician and an inspiring artistic leader. Anna has been a driving force throughout our history as a chorus and we can’t wait to see how she will shape the future of Sirens,” said President of the Board, Meredith Rich. 

Over the past ten years as a member of Sirens of Gotham, Anna has held a wide range of leadership positions with both artistic and managerial responsibilities. Most recently, she helped to conceptualize and implement an “under their own direction” model for Sirens, in which she served as VP of Artistic Operations until July 2022. In this role, Anna prepared Sirens for their debut with the Barbershop Harmony Society (BHS) at the April 2022 M-AD Northern Division Contest and their appearance at the May 2022 Region 15 Sweet Adelines International (SAI) Convention, where they qualified as a wildcard for the 2023 SAI International Chorus Competition in Louisville, Kentucky this fall. During this time, she also co-directed the Hell’s Kitchen Chapter SATB chorus GOTHAM to an 8th place finish at the BHS International Contest in July 2022. She also sings Lead in the quartet Breakfast For Dinner, which placed 4th at SAI’s Region 15 contest in May 2022 and placed 7th overall at this year’s BHS M-AD Northern Division Quartet Contest with a 74.1.

Meredith Rich (President) and Anna Chelak holding the SAI Region 15 Division A trophy for Sirens of Gotham’s international-qualifying performance in May 2022

“I am excited to bring my fullest self to the role,” Anna said, “and I hope to encourage every Siren to do the same--to recognize and embrace the inherent value of their voice as we work together to hone our vocal coordination and explore the depths of our artistry as an ensemble.” 

With this appointment, the chorus will transition from their previous “under their own direction” structure and Interim Artistic Team led by Elizabeth Culbertson Hillinck and Stephanie Ofshinsky. The chorus’s primary focus for the next few months will be the SAI International Contest in November. 

"I am incredibly honored to take on this role and continue the momentum we’ve gained,” Anna said. “I deeply value the spirit of collaboration in this chorus, so it is important to me that my artistic vision includes championing leadership growth in others, and to do so in a way that enhances the chorus experience without compromising progress or efficiency in rehearsals. This next phase for Sirens of Gotham is all about seeking our fullest potential and setting ourselves up for sustainable success."

Anna Chelak conducting Sirens at the Barbershop Harmony Society Mid-Atlantic District Northern Division Contest in April 2023

Outside of her artistic leadership roles, Anna has also been instrumental in shaping chorus culture through her work to establish our Core Values and refresh our logo and marketing materials in 2017, expand our organizational affiliations by dual-chartering with the BHS in early 2020, and implement tangible changes to membership policies and music selection procedures in pursuit of our DEI goals.

Sirens of Gotham is also in the unique position of being chartered in both BHS and SAI. Though it has proven challenging to logistical and artistic planning, Anna is keen to embrace it.

Meredith Rich, Haley Cole, Elizabeth Culbertson Hillinck, and Anna Chelak, of Breakfast For Dinner quartet

“This chorus is extremely special, both to me and the greater barbershop community,” she says. “I am deeply committed to our inclusive choral environment first and foremost, and I am eager for the opportunity to assert that standard in multiple organizations."

About Sirens of Gotham

Sirens of Gotham is an a cappella chorus that specializes in barbershop harmony. Our membership is open to singers of all marginalized genders who are comfortable singing somewhere in the SSAA range. This may include cis women, trans people of all gender identities, non-binary people, and gender fluid people. It is our mission to build an encouraging, inclusive environment for singers to pursue the highest levels of artistry and musical excellence in a cappella singing; to master the art of barbershop harmony; and to cultivate meaningful artistic experiences that enrich the lives of our members, our audiences, and the local community. 

We aim to constantly educate, innovate, and raise the bar for a cappella as an active chapter of the barbershop music organization Sweet Adelines International and a dual chapter with the Barbershop Harmony Society. In October 2018, we made our international competition debut at the SAI Harmony Classic barbershop chorus competition in St. Louis, MO, where we won 1st place Division A and 1st place overall. In 2020, Sirens joined the Hell’s Kitchen chapter of the Barbershop Harmony Society alongside our companion chorus, Voices of Gotham. Competing together as GOTHAM mixed chorus, Sirens and Voices took the stage at the 2022 BHS International Competition and placed 8th in the world. 

For further information, please contact Kara Scharwath, VP of Marketing, at info@sirensofgotham.org.

SIRENS OF GOTHAM LEADERSHIP UPDATE

Mira Taferner Stepping Down as Artistic Director

In the Summer of 2018, Sirens of Gotham was thrilled to appoint Mira Taferner as our new Artistic Director. She quickly and easily developed an incredible rapport with our membership, and we all felt confident that we could achieve great things with her at the helm -- and we couldn’t have been more right! Alongside our former Associate Artistic Director Kari Francis, Mira led us to an International Gold Medal at Harmony Classic in the fall of 2018. In the spring of 2019, Mira directed Sirens on the Region 15 contest stage, where we earned 2nd place Division AA, 3rd place overall, and, our proudest achievement, Most Improved Chorus with an increase of 31 points! 

With this success in mind, it is with sadness that we share that in March of this year before the COVID-19 quarantine went into effect, Mira made the decision to step down from her position as Artistic Director to focus more deeply on other personal and professional developments. Mira’s contributions to the chorus as Director over the last year and a half have been inspiring and heartwarming to say the least. We are so grateful for all she has done and continues to do for Sirens. She has our full support, and we are eager to welcome her as a member of the Bass Section! Mira, we love you dearly and would not be the same without you!

Managerial Structure Change & 2020-2021 Board Members Announced

In anticipation of this leadership shift and our needs as a steadily growing chorus, Sirens of Gotham is pleased to announce that we have shifted our managerial structure from a Management Team to a Managing Board. Please welcome our 2020-21 Executive Officers & Operational VPs!

Meredith Rich, President
Emilia Mahaffey, Secretary
Hilary Berryman, Treasurer
Samantha Bunting, VP of Artistic Development
Anna Chelak, VP of Artistic Operations
Colleen Christi, VP of Membership 
Lizzie Culbertson, VP of Marketing
Haley Cole, VP of Events
Laura Paglione, VP of Fundraising
Erin Moore, Member at Large

At this time, Sirens of Gotham has decided not to engage in a Director Search. We will instead invest our resources and energies towards internal development, including repertoire expansion, small group skill-building, and membership-led classes. Our artistic endeavors will be led by our Artistic VPs Sam Bunting and Anna Chelak, who will cultivate an internal Artistic Team supported by a roster of external coaches. Our President Meredith Rich will oversee internal growth activities, working  in tandem with the Board and leadership of Voices of Gotham to ensure that the chorus membership’s commitment to radical harmony is realized with action. 

Questions and inquiries may be directed to us via email.

Letter From the Team Coordinator

Sirens of Gotham is joining the Barbershop Harmony Society!

Sirens of Gotham is thrilled to announce our intention to commence a trial dual-charter membership with the Barbershop Harmony Society! We’ll kick this off by competing at the Mid-Atlantic District Northern Division Contest in April representing the Hell's Kitchen Chapter, home of our friends Voices of Gotham. Not only will we perform as an SSAA chorus in the BHS “Women’s” Division, we will share the stage with Voices of Gotham in a brand new, official SATB ensemble in the “Mixed” Division. This will all be in addition to our journey to the Sweet Adelines International Greater NY/NJ Region 15 Convention in May. 

It is important to us that we emphasize that we have no intention of leaving our home in Sweet Adelines International, an organization focused on empowerment and learning, and one that has officially been our home for seven years. It is with the skills and confidence we have learned from our fellow Sweet Adelines, along with the support of Voices of Gotham, that we are excited to explore a new arena and join the Hell’s Kitchen Chapter of the BHS in a dual-charter capacity. We are so excited for the future of barbershop and hope our efforts across both of these organizations demonstrate what inclusion can really look like. 

It has been a long journey to get to this point. While the decision by Sirens of Gotham to pursue a dual-charter may be the most recent step, the vision of a Gotham community of barbershop singers has been on the horizon for more than a decade. When the Barbershop Harmony Society announced that the next stage of the Everyone in Harmony initiative would open competition to more than just male members, Gotham leadership could not overlook the impact and opportunity this opened to our choruses and community. 

The Voices and Sirens leadership teams have been critical in navigating this next stage of history, working diligently to ensure membership across both ensembles felt informed and encouraged to engage in dialogue with their fellow community members. The leadership has curated numerous documents and resources detailing each of the organizations, mediated round-table discussions, and even hosted a webinar to walk members through various detailed proposals put forth by the collective Gotham leadership. Following many rounds of revision, chorus discussion, and a formal motion to membership, both leadership teams are confident as we commence this first stage of Sirens’ trial-membership with the BHS in the Hell’s Kitchen chapter.  

This kind of rigorous ambition is nothing new to the Gotham family. In fact, it’s one of the Sirens’ three core values: joy, authenticity, and ambition. The first is part of our essence and always plentiful, because we find joy in singing with each other and sharing our music with the world. That is made possible by the joyous community of supportive, loving individuals, which includes our sibling chorus Voices of Gotham. Our second core value of authenticity is ever-present. For Sirens, authenticity means representing ourselves with honesty and depth so we can make and contribute to choices that resonate with who we are. It also describes the grace and courage necessary to not only bring our truest selves to the table, but to grow and change with our chorus and the world around us. Lastly is ambition, because Sirens of Gotham never ceases in the pursuit of growth and improvement. We embrace the journey more than the reward, constantly seeking deeper meaning and value from our music-making and community building. We do this all by finding joy in the work and in challenging ourselves to offer our most authentic selves while we seek to expand our horizons as artists and musicians.

This decision is definitely ambitious, but it also feels incredibly joyful and authentic to who we are. We can think of nothing more thrilling than to perform at even more barbershop events and be represented on multiple platforms! For more information on how you can see us this season, please keep an eye on our website. 

Thank you for the continued love and support that has allowed us to grow and thrive. We cannot wait to share this exciting future with you!

In Harmony,

Anna Chelak
Team Coordinator, Sirens of Gotham

Please direct any questions to info@sirensofgotham.org.

SIRENS OF GOTHAM ASSOCIATE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR KARI FRANCIS ACCEPTS MUSIC FACULTY POSITION AT THE COLLEGE OF SAINT ROSE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PRESS CONTACT 
Meredith Rich
info@sirensofgotham.org

Sirens of Gotham has a saying: “once a Siren, always a Siren.” With that in mind, it is with much joy and love that we share the bittersweet news that our Associate Artistic Director Kari Francis will be leaving the chorus at the end of June to begin a music faculty position at The College of Saint Rose in Albany this fall.

Kari has been a valuable member of the chorus since joining in the fall of 2017 as an incredibly talented musician and singer in the bass section. Her extensive academic background and pedagogical experience made her a strong leader driven by keen musical diligence. She served as the Associate Interim Director in the spring of 2018 and accepted the position of Associate Artistic Director in the summer of 2018.

Kari offered a unique and nuanced perspective to our creative leadership team as an accomplished contemporary a cappella singer, arranger, and vocal percussionist that helped to further expand our horizons as an ensemble. Her passionate directing of “Everybody Says Don’t” and inspiring arrangement of “This is Me” performed at our SAI Harmony Classic appearance in St. Louis, MO are just some of the memorable creations we made with her, but her spirited personality and musical fascination are what we learned to love and cherish most.

There is no doubt that Kari’s warm and intelligent presence will be missed by our membership. Yet, as previously stated: once a Siren, always a Siren. She was a leader in the chorus for a relatively short time, but she has certainly left her mark on Sirens of Gotham. We are so thankful for all she has given us and look forward to our paths crossing again in the future.

Please join us as we congratulate Kari on this incredible opportunity and send her the warmest of well wishes!

Sirens of Gotham Announces Mira Taferner as Artistic Director, Kari Francis as Associate Artistic Director

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PRESS CONTACT 
Meredith Rich
info@sirensofgotham.org

Sirens of Gotham is pleased to announce the selection of Mira Taferner as Artistic Director and Kari Francis as Associate Artistic Director. The announcement comes a few short weeks before Sirens of Gotham makes their international competition debut at the Sweet Adelines International (SAI) Harmony Classic barbershop chorus contest next month in St. Louis, MO.

Mira Taferner, Artistic Director, Sirens of Gotham

Taferner is a widely successful performance artist and designer with over 15 years of experience in a cappella, barbershop, and dance. Most recently, she served on the Visual and Music Teams for the Harmunichs, a three-time champion of Barbershop in Germany (“BinG!”). In March 2016, she took home the bronze medal with her quartet Kickstart at the BinG! National Convention and was invited to join the Heavy Medal chorus, a mixed Barbershop ensemble from Germany consisting of BinG! quartet medalists. She is a recurring faculty member at BinG! Harmony College and continues to be an ambassador for expansion and celebration of barbershop music everywhere.

As Artistic Director, Taferner will be tasked with leading all creative endeavors, refining the musical and performance approach of the ensemble, and supporting and expanding creative leadership from within the chorus. Over the next year, the chorus will focus on growth and outreach within the New York and a cappella community at large.

“It is truly an honor to be a part of the Sirens of Gotham journey,” said Taferner. “The creative foundation that’s been built by the directors before me is astounding. It still feels unreal to me that I have the opportunity to work with such amazing musicians and people, and I am so grateful to be part of such a diverse, open-minded, and warm community.”

Taferner succeeds Founding Director Sarah Clay Lindvall, who parted from the chorus last August in order to move to Atlanta, GA with her husband Brian. Despite a nearly 10-month search process, Sirens of Gotham remained successful and productive under the thoughtful leadership of Stephanie Ofshinsky, who was appointed Interim Director in September 2017 and helped the chorus achieve another Division A victory at the SAI Greater NY/NJ Region 15 contest in May 2018.

Supporting Taferner will be Kari Francis, an experienced contemporary a cappella coach, arranger, and singer with extensive performance and academic experience in choral music and vocal pedagogy. Francis holds masters degrees in Music Education from the Eastman School of Music and Columbia University Teachers College, where she is pursuing doctoral study to explore ways of fostering generative and collaborative practices in choral settings. She has directed a number of community choruses, teaches music in New York City K-12 public schools, and taught a course on “The Art of A Cappella” as a music lecturer at CUNY Hunter College. She is a recurring faculty member at Camp A Cappella and a frequent judge at Varsity Vocal competitions across the country. Recently, she was a featured vocal percussionist at Total Vocal, a large-scale a cappella event led by The Sing-Off and Pitch Perfect music producer Deke Sharon at Lincoln Center involving local and international choruses, including Sirens of Gotham’s sibling chorus Voices of Gotham.

Francis has been a member of Sirens of Gotham since September 2017. “It has been thrilling to glimpse the chorus' passions and abilities this past year,” Francis said. “I can’t exclaim enough just how special Sirens of Gotham is, and I'm excited to introduce a few of my own a cappella-inspired flavors to such a musically curious, delightful, and loving ensemble.”

“We are thrilled to have Mira and Kari on board,” said Sam Bunting, Team Coordinator of Sirens of Gotham. “We were lucky enough to have had so many wonderful candidates apply for this position, but the powerful combination of Kari, an a cappella expert who knows our chorus so well, and Mira, who brings a wealth of diverse musical experience from around the globe and is steeped in barbershop, means we have an artistic team that is ready to raise the bar. They are poised to reflect our core values of joy, ambition, and authenticity very well.”

Taferner and Francis have already begun working closely together, collaborating with the Interim Music Team to prepare for the SAI Harmony Classic as well as a show with Voices of Gotham this December.

“I’m so excited to have this partnership with Kari,” said Taferner. “Her extensive academic, directorial, and performance background offers such a fresh perspective to the chorus and the world of barbershop at large, and I absolutely love her energy and progressive thinking.”

“Collaborating with Mira has been energizing and incredibly fun,” Francis said. “Her calming presence in rehearsal bespeaks an assurance that lets everyone know she's going to make sure we give our best performance.”

While they are hard at work preparing for their international performance, the chorus and its leaders are eager to begin planning for the future. “I want our performances to reflect every individual of this chorus,” said Taferner.

Some of the work will include finding repertoire that inspires the chorus and some will be finding a connection to every story. “The level of musicality in Sirens of Gotham is outstanding,” Taferner said, “so what I would like to see is a bit more surrender, allowing the emotion from honest story-telling to come through even more. I want our audience to connect with us deeply and walk away saying: I am so thankful for that experience.”

Sirens of Gotham is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit a cappella chorus whose mission is to constantly educate, innovate, and raise the bar as an active chapter of the barbershop music organization SAI and across all genres of vocal entertainment. The ensemble was established November of 2011, but chartering as a chapter of SAI in February 2013 kicked off a period of exponential growth. Since then, the Sirens took 3rd place in the 2015 New York Harmony Sweepstakes and have claimed the title of SAI Region 15 Division A Champion three times (2015, April 2017, May 2018). The ensemble has appeared on multiple televised broadcasts, starred in a reality show, and performed in a variety of world-renowned venues. Their performance at the SAI Harmony Classic chorus contest will be the ensemble’s first international competition appearance.

For further information, please contact Meredith Rich, Communications Coordinator, info@sirensofgotham.org.

Sirens to compete at the 2018 Sweet Adelines International convention

Sirens of Gotham has accepted the invitation to compete in the Harmony Competition at the 2018 Sweet Adelines International (SAI) Convention in St. Louis! The Harmony Classic is designed to showcase the top 5 small to mid-size SAI choruses across the globe. It is a huge honor and accomplishment to have qualified for this contest with our score from our regional contest this past April! This is a huge milestone for the chorus as we celebrate our 5th anniversary this year, and we could not be more excited. We are so proud to be a part of and represent our SAI Region Greater NY/NJ Region #15 -- thank you to our friends, family, coaches, and sisters in song for your continuous support and love.

Sirens brings home multiple medals at regional competition

Sirens of Gotham takes 1st Place Division A and 5th Place Overall at the Sweet Adelines International Greater NY/NJ Region 15 Barbershop Chorus Competition in Albany, NY.

The set performed included "Second Fiddle," arr. Matt Gallagher, Music & Lyrics by Perry Bradford and "Their Hearts Were Full of Spring," arr. Aaron Dale, Music & Lyrics by Bobby Troup.

Sirens Featured in W42ST Magazine

Sirens has been featured in W42ST Magazine. Check out the article in the  January 2017 issue! (download)

"Why Sing?" (words by Sandra Mangan, photography by Phil O'Brien)