The Madrigal Choir is an extracurricular vocal performance group that meets twice a week after school to rehearse. All who would like to participate need to audition. To sing a madrigal, all voice parts are needed—soprano, alto, tenor, and bass—with ideally four to five voices per part. There are usually around 10-15 singers in the group.
Madrigals were popular in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, at the end of the Renaissance music and beginning of the Baroque periods. They started in Italy and were sung widely for a short time in England as well as in France.
The Glen Ridge choral director selects the music for the Madrigal Choir, which are usually compositions from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, but folk and contemporary madrigal music have been performed from time to time as well. All madrigals are sung a cappella, without any instrumental accompaniment.
The Madrigal Choir performs at the Middle School and High School winter and spring concerts and at the Glen Ridge Arts Festival in May. The choir also participates in regional competitions, such as Music in the Park.