Wednesday, October 22, 2003

By Andrew Druckenbrod, Post-Gazette Classical Music Critic

The Bach Choir of Pittsburgh named Sara Jane Lowry as its managing director yesterday, ending a period of interim management.

Lowry comes from the Pittsburgh International Children's Theater, where she served as executive director. She has worked for the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts and for the Westmoreland Museum of American Art. Fittingly, Lowry also is a soprano with a degree in voice performance from Florida State University.

"Having been a singer myself, it certainly is a mission close to my heart," Lowry said. She was a board member of the choir, resigning this summer to apply for the job as managing director.

"We were excited about someone who had a background in the vocal arts but used it for a career in arts administration," said acting board chairman Michael Kumer.

The board was particularly interested in Lowry's record as a fund-raiser. "She has been so successful in fund-raising that she can take us to the next level," he said. Lowry was the head of the choir's development committee while on the board. "Like a lot of small nonprofit organizations, the Bach Choir grew through grants but didn't develop its individual giving programs."

Another challenge concerns artistic director Brady Allred, who is conducting the chorus despite having moved to Salt Lake City to take a position at the University of Utah. "It is an experiment we are working on," she said.

The choir has shown tremendous growth in recent years, most obviously with its Summer Choral Institute, and Lowry feels it can expand further.

"We want to get more people singing, perhaps have multiple choirs even in different communities," she said. "I think everyone is publicly or secretly a singer."

The Bach Choir opens its 70th anniversary season with concerts at 8 p.m. Saturday at East Liberty Presbyterian Church and 7 p.m. Sunday at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Upper St. Clair; 412-394-3353.

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