Black Tulip Chorale will present one of the cornerstones of choral repertoire at 4 PM on Sunday, May 17, 2026 at First Presbyterian Church of Kirkwood. The "Requiem" by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (completed after his death by Franz Xavier Süssmayr) is the biggest challenge that the Chorale has tackled to date. Our performance will combine the score with readings and narrative on grief and healing, presenting a unique perspective on this cherished musical treasure and how we in our various communities can navigate these difficult times.

BTC is honored to be joined once again by soprano Starr Kalāhiki (Hawai'i) and tenor Bradley Krueger (Maine), and is thrilled to welcome countertenor Rashaad Calaham (Texas), and baritone Keith Walker (Georgia) as our soloists. First Presbyterian's Director of Music Ministries Bill Stein will be at the Casavant organ along with talented local string musicians with wind and percussion musicians from the St. Louis Wind Symphony.

Tickets are just $15 and are available at https://events.humanitix.com/mozartrequiem .

​Black Tulip Chorale, St. Louis’ LGBTQIA+ chorus for all voices, is presenting an encore performance of its May concert at 4 pm on Saturday, June 7, 2025, at Kawaiaha‘o Church (957 Punchbowl St) in Honolulu, Hawai'i. It is a free performance and open to the public. 
 
The program consists  of music by women composers, of which the foundation of our performance features several mele of Queen Lili‘uokalani.  Several of the Queen’s mele feature Honolulu artist Starr Kalāhiki, who also performed with the Chorale in St. Louis in May. 
 
BTC will feature the debut performance of a new Honolulu-based men’s chorus, Kāhea Ka‘iahea, dedicated to Hawaiian choral music.

​FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – APRIL 12, 2025
Black Tulip Chorale, St. Louis’s LGBTQIA+ chorus for all voices announces the opening performance of its eighth season. The group opens its season with A FOND EMBRACE at 3 p.m., Sunday, May 18, at First Presbyterian Church of Kirkwood, 100 E. Adams, Kirkwood, Missouri.
     
The concert celebrates women composers from around the world. “Our program spans three centuries, five continents, and six languages,” said Robert Stumpf, Artistic Director and Executive Director of BTC. “The audience will be transported on a musical journey transcending borders and eras, bearing witness to the brilliance and artistry of women composers, who are all too often marginalized or overlooked.” At the heart of this concert are several works by Queen Liliʻuokalani, the last reigning monarch of the Hawaiian Kingdom. While she is best remembered for the timeless “Aloha ‘Oe”, she wrote over 165 pieces. 
 
A FOND EMBRACE also includes works by Lili Boulanger (France), Stefania Turkevich (Ukraine), Maria Elena Walsh (Argentina), Misuzu McManus, (Japan), Maewa Kaihau (a Maōri woman from New Zealand), Sarah Quartel (Canada), as well as a love song by St. Louis’ own Royal Robbins. BTC will present the Midwest premiere of “You Are Enough” by Melanie Stapleton, who is quickly becoming a leader in access in choral music for all, including LGBTQIA+ people. “Adoration”, by African-American composer Florence Price, features First Presbyterian Church of Kirkwood’s 76 -rank Casavant pipe organ played by their Director of Music Ministries Bill Stein.
 
“We are thrilled to return to Kirkwood for the fifth time,” said Robert Stumpf, artistic and executive director of the Chorale. “We’re excited, too, to present the St. Louis premiere of one of Hawaiʻi’s favorite artists - Starr Kalahiki. Active in many genres on stage and in the recording studio, Starr also performs as part of The Liliʻu Project, perpetuating the music and legacy of Queen Liliʻuokalani.
 
Tickets for the performance are $15 and may be purchased by visiting www.blacktulipchorale.org or https://events.humanitix.com/a-fond-embrace-btc-spring-2025-concert.

​Black Tulip Chorale was established in 2018 with a mission to advocate for social consciousness through excellence in the performance of choral music, while providing an affirming environment for all regardless of expression, gender, identity or orientation.                                                                   

KDHX's Gary Scott submitted this review of BTC's December 2024 holiday concerts:

Choral Review: The Black Tulip Chorale brings the "now" to "Nowell"By Gary Liam Scott
Even in today's high-tech, contentious world, choral music continues to strive and grow ever stronger. Historically, choral music is found almost anywhere humans co-exist. From its inception seven years ago, the Black Tulip Chorale and founding director Robert Stumpf have worked tirelessly and joyfully to build an ensemble that would carry the inherent unity of choral music to a level in which all humans of any orientation, so long as they remained united in good will to all, could join together, linked by the ineffable bonds of music and choral singing.
During this seven-year period of establishment and growth, BTC brought its most recent season to a close with an ensemble group that has more than doubled in size to nearly 60 individuals and has broadened its repertoire to include nearly every genre of choral works. Their annual holiday program this year, "Nowell" (spelled according to Chaucer's borrowing from the French in the 1300s), encompassed works in honor of the 200th birthday of Anton Bruckner and the 125th birthday of Randall Thompson.


The three works by Thompson were a particular joy to hear, "Nowell," "Solstice," and "Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening." Each displayed Thompson's ability to cast a new light on familiar words and phrases in a haunting--yet sometimes scintillating--manner. One of Robert Stumpf's gifts as a conductor is his ability to blend voices into a velvety, organic whole. This effect was particularly remarkable in the Thompson works and in Bruckner's meditative setting of the "Tantum ergo" chant from 1845. As always, collaborative pianist Curtis Farrell continues to provide instrumental support to Robert and the Chorale.


Since its founding seven years ago, BTC continues to grow ever more "tight" as a well-tuned and well-oiled performing ensemble. The group's unified force is able to maneuver its focus to almost any genre and mood, ranging from comedic ("I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas" by John Rox) to the Classical war horse, "The Heavens Are Telling" from Haydn's "Creation," to a boisterous rendition of "Deck the Halls" (sung with audience participation and directed by a raffle winner) to a bold declamation of "Do You Hear the People Sing?" from Les Miz, sung as the program finale.


Personal testimonies have always played an integral part in BTC's presentations. Music never arises from a background, and sometimes that background has as much to do with the performer as with the composer. Julie Brown delivered an emotional account of a trans person's struggle for acceptance. Ken Haller relived his bewildered and harrowing days as a medical resident in New York at the very beginning of the AIDS epidemic. Some of us have heard Ken's witness before, but the immediacy and intensity of his words made it seem that we were hearing it for the very first time. Hearing spoken words woven into the fabric of a musical program underscores the realization that music both shapes the stories of our lives and is in turn shaped by our stories. Following their sharing of such dramatic and rending histories, both Julie and Ken drew on their personal strength to perform as soloists. Julie sang in Robert Stumpf's own arrangement of Percy Grainger's "Willow, Willow," and Ken performed Stephen Sondheim's "Not a Day Goes By."


In closing, a somewhat personal note. Even though the BTC concert focused on Christmas and was held in a church, it was deeply gratifying to see at least two persons wearing kippahs (yarmulkes) present at the program, and who clearly felt comfortable in so doing.


I have always noticed that the Black Tulip Chorale is able to present its message of advocacy of the LGBTQ+ community, and of humanity in general, without expressing hatred of oppressors and without mounting personal attacks on those who disagree with them. When we believe strongly in a cause, it can be difficult to hold back resentment, hatred and fear of those who believe strongly in the opposite direction. Yet BTC has magnificently resisted any sort of temptation to denigrate others. There seems to be an inherent and ingrained desire to foster communication and understanding rather than driving a wedge even further. I think I learned that lesson when a former SS officer in Germany and his wife made a snap decision to give my two young daughters--whose only living grandmother bore a tattoo from Auschwitz--children's gifts that they had originally bought for their own grandchildren.

Review can be found at: https://kdhx.org/articles/classical/3698-choral-review-the-black-tulip-chorale-brings-the-now-to-nowell
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