Mission Statement
Our mission is to foster and share the art of choral music, as well as serve the Brandywine Valley community, through the pursuit of musical excellence in a wide variety of repertoire and performance opportunities.
Brandywine Valley Chorale is delighted to welcome conductor, educator, and vocalist Nathan Reiff as its newly-appointed Artistic Director. He is also the Director of Choirs at Swarthmore College, teaching courses in conducting, music theory, and musicianship. Since arriving at Swarthmore in 2023, he has invigorated the choral program through collaborative projects with Roderick Williams OBE, nationally-renowned organist Dr. David von Behren, and the choirs of Haverford and Bryn Mawr Colleges. Recent and upcoming projects include the premieres of commissioned works by Williams, Arianne Abela, and Colin Britt, and the college’s first-ever international choral tour. Previously, Dr. Reiff was Resident Conductor of the Harvard Glee Club and Choral Studies Faculty and interim Head of Choral Studies at Boston Conservatory at Berklee. In these positions he regularly conducted and prepared performances in venues including Symphony Hall, Boston’s historic Old South Church, and Sanders Theatre, as well as on tour in the Dominican Republic, Minnesota, Illinois, Texas, New Jersey, and Connecticut. Major projects included the northeastern premiere of Adolphus Hailstork’s choral-orchestral cantata Crispus Attucks, recordings of works by Lewis Spratlan, and performances of Igor Stravinsky’s Oedipus Rex with Emmanuel Music, Susan Botti’s Cosmosis featuring the Boston Conservatory Wind Ensemble and the composer as soloist, Vaughan Williams’ A Sea Symphony, Verdi’s Requiem, Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, and Mahler’s Symphony No. 2. Dr. Reiff embraces the central role of exceptional repertoire in choral music-making and endeavors to create programs and projects that highlight underrepresented pieces and composers. He has prepared premieres and showcase performances of works by Karen Thomas, Brandon Waddles, Rosephanye Powell, Saunder Choi, Melissa Dunphy, Tawnie Olson, Bongani Magatyana, Molly Joyce, and many others. Dr. Reiff’s experience as a founding member and guest conductor of Cambridge Common Voices, the first neurodiverse choral ensemble in the Cambridge, Massachusetts area, and music director of the hospice choir JourneySongs has further driven his commitment to honoring and representing many different lived experiences in the choral rehearsal and performance spaces. Dr. Reiff holds Doctor of Musical Arts and Bachelor of Arts degrees from Yale University and a Master of Music degree from the University of Michigan, where he prepared choruses for the GRAMMY-nominated recording of Milhaud’s L’Orestie d’Eschyle, released by Naxos. Linda Young Lorgus retired as the music director and organist at St. Michael Lutheran Church in Unionville, Pennsylvania where she led an active choral and handbell choir program for twelve years. Prior to St. Michael, she was principal organist and handbell director at Westminster Presbyterian Church in West Chester, Pennsylvania. This extensive church and handbell experience led Ms. Lorgus to her current position as church music and handbell editor at J.W. Pepper, Inc., the world’s largest sheet music distributor. Ms. Lorgus is also a freelance accompanist, working not only with the Brandywine Valley Chorale, but with several vocal studios and regional high school choral programs. She holds a music degree from Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania, where she majored in piano and organ performance. Ashley Vogel is a teacher and soprano soloist in the area. She received her bachelor’s degree in Music Education at the University of Maryland and her Masters in Music Education from West Chester University. She is currently the high school music teacher at Pennsylvania Leadership Charter School after serving 15 years as the choral director at Great Valley High School. She has directed concert choirs, chorales, women’s choirs, men’s choir, chamber choirs, a cappella choirs, musical theater productions, and handbell choirs throughout her years of teaching. She has been the assistant director of the Valley Forge Chorale, a soloist for the Brandywine Singers and Brandywine Valley Chorale as well as a soloist and section leader for both Westminster Presbyterian Church and Cedarville Methodist Church. Most recently she was a part of Christ Church Christiana Hundred’s professional choir performing in concerts under Sir John Rutter and Philip Moore. She also enjoys singing professionally as a freelance singer in the Tri-State area and Southern New Jersey. Outside of performing and directing, she and her husband own a recording company and a private voice studio. Mrs. Vogel loves helping students develop their voice to its full potential. It is her hope that she can instill a love of music in them, as she was awarded as a young singer.
Nathan Reiff · Artistic Director
Linda Lorgus · Collaborative Accompanist
Ashley Vogel · Assistant Director
Our mission is to foster and share the art of choral music, as well as serve the Brandywine Valley community, through the pursuit of musical excellence in a wide variety of repertoire and performance opportunities.