Brooklyn Youth Chorus

BROOKLYN YOUTH CHORUS is a Grammy Award-winning ensemble, led by Founder & Artistic Director Dianne Berkun Menaker, recognized for stretching the artistic boundaries of youth chorus for over three decades. Our choristers perform on the world's most renowned stages, including three appearances at Carnegie Hall in a single season, Madison Square Garden with Joe Hisaishi, and the United Nations. We regularly collaborate with an impressive range of organizations and artists, such as the New York Philharmonic, the Los Angeles Philharmonic (with Gustavo Dudamel), The National, Wye Oak, Bon Iver, Sir Elton John, and Davóne Tines.

As a bold commissioner of new music, the Chorus has introduced more than 120 original works and world premieres by contemporary composers like Pulitzer Prize-winners Caroline Shaw, Tania León, David Lang, and visionary Philip Glass. The Chorus has a strong reputation as a producer of original works, including the impactful Silent Voices series and Black Mountain Songs. In May 2025, the Chorus premiered Port(al)—a new, evening-length, site-specific choral theater work co-created by Dianne Berkun Menaker, Paola Prestini, Jad Abumrad, and Jessica Grindstaff—which transformed the historic Brooklyn Navy Yard into a vibrant canvas for immersive storytelling. Founded in 1992, Brooklyn Youth Chorus has served nearly 10,000 students, with over 500 students currently enrolled in its after-school and public-school programs.