A Letter From the President

Dear Friends and Family,

Welcome to a new year with Ensemble Companio! We invite you to join us for our fourth season, and are profoundly grateful for your support and encouragement in seasons past.

My name is Cailin Wilke and I will be serving as Ensemble Companio’s President for the next three seasons. During the week I’m a scientific director at a medical strategy firm, and I’ve been spending my weekends singing Alto with Ensemble Companio since 2012.

I had the good fortune to sing with several present members while in college, but was without a choral home for the next five years until a happenstance conversation one New Year’s Eve introduced me to the group. I joined at the start of the second season. Since then, singing with Ensemble Companio has provided strength and comfort to me in times of sadness or frustration, and (more often) helped me celebrate life with great joy. I hope that, through our performances, we share the same nourishment with you.

The theme of this season’s program is “Love’s Faces.” We will perform music by Arcadelt, Passereau, Stainer, Duruflé, Lars-Erik Larsson, and a commission by Vince Peterson; arrangements of popular music by The Beatles, Billy Joel, and Randy Newman (yes, you read that right!), and folk music from around the globe. It’s going to be spectacular.

Introductions and sharing fun facts during the first rehearsal of the season

We kicked off rehearsals for this season last month in Brooklyn, NY, at the beautiful St. Paul’s Episcopal Church on Carroll Street. Did you know that our rehearsals are always open for listening? Please feel free to join us for an hour or two at the following rehearsal locations through the end of the year (and e-mail info@ensemblecompanio.org for more information):

October 12-13: Mount Saint Mary Academy in Watchung, NJ

November 1-2: Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, PA

December 6: Saint Matthew’s Episcopal Church in Wilton, CT
December 7: Atria Senior Living Center in Stamford, CT (we’ll present a free mini concert at 11:30am)

We’ve welcomed seven new members (and “an oldie but goodie” veteran singer) to our ranks, and are very excited to learn from and share with them. I’m sure you’ll enjoy getting to know them over the course of the next few months, especially via our redesigned website, www.ensemblecompanio.org. Please stop by for news, updates, a brand-new blog, videos, and recordings. We’ll be posting frequently here and on our Facebook page and YouTube channels this year, so visit, subscribe, and “Like” us to stay up-to-date with all things Ensemble Companio (links below).

This season, we will also be launching an annual fundraising campaign, appropriately named “Ensemble Companio’s Drive to Sing” in honor of the driving, flying, train-ing, and general travel that Ensemble Companio’s members undertake to get to rehearsal every month. An email with additional details will follow in a few weeks.

Finally, for those of you who like to plan in advance, please make note of our Spring 2015 concerts:

March 21, 2015 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church
199 Carroll Street; New York, NY 11231
as part of the Brooklyn Sounds Concert Series

April 19, 2015 at West Side Presbyterian Church
6 South Monroe Street; Ridgewood, NJ 07450
as part of the Westside Concert Series

A lucky third location is in the works for the weekend of May 16-17, 2015—stay tuned!

In closing, I want to thank you again for all you’ve done for Ensemble Companio over the past three seasons—whether it was attending a concert, buying a CD, making a donation, hosting members for a meal or an evening, babysitting, giving us an idea (or recommending a venue) for a rehearsal or performance, or simply telling us how much you enjoy what we do—it makes a huge difference in the life of the organization and that of its members. We couldn’t do this crazy, wonderful thing without your help, so thank you.

A future Companio? Jill Ward’s daughter, Esther, ponders Elena’s tuning fork.

If you have an idea, a suggestion, or a compliment, please let us know. Connect with us on our website and over social media and let your thoughts be heard! In addition, please feel free to email me at President@ensemblecompanio.org to share what’s on your mind. I look forward to hearing from you and working with you to ensure Ensemble Companio’s success well into the future.

All my best,

Cailin