Montreal Oratorio Society

Montreal Oratorio Society

Montreal Oratorio Society. Mixed choir of more than 200 voices founded by Horace Reyner in 1902 after the disbandment of the Montreal Philharmonic Society (1875-99) and the Motet Choir (1897-1901). Conducted by Reyner 1902-6, J.E.F. Martin 1906-7, and Frederick H. Blair 1907-8, the society generally performed at Windsor Hall, the Montreal Arena, or the Dominion Douglas Church. It gave the first complete performances in Canada of Coleridge-Taylor's Hiawatha (27 Jan 1904) and Elgar's The Dream of Gerontius (12 Apr 1906) and supplied the chorus for such special events of the day as the Duss-Nordica concert, the Cycle of Musical Festivals' Montreal presentation (24 Apr 1903) under visiting RAM principal Sir Alexander Mackenzie, and the Ottawa performance (1904) of C.A.E. Harriss' Pan. The society performed with the Goulet MSO, 11 Mar 1908 at the New Lyric Hall. It presented the last of its several performances of Messiah 17 Apr 1908 at St James Methodist Church and disbanded that year.