KAIROS: A Consort of Singers was founded in the fall of 1994 by Randall Dale Horton, a member of the Holy Cross Monastery in West Park, New York. In 1996 the group was reorganized under Artistic Director Dr. Edward Lundergan, who retired in May 2022 after leading the ensemble for 26 years.  Repertoire such as Britten's Hymn to St. Cecilia and Five Flower Songs, Poulenc's Un Soir de Neige, contemporary British composer Tarik O'Regan's The Ecstasies Above, Rossini's Petite Messe Solennelle, J. S. Bach's Singet dem Herrn, Handel's Dixit Dominus, the Monteverdi Vespers of 1610, Henry Purcell's King Arthur, and Heinrich Schütz' Musikalische Exequien are just some of the demanding and complex works that the group regularly performed.  The group has performed at venues from New York City to Albany, and has also performed with instrumental groups such as the Hudson Valley Philharmonic, the Bach Festival orchestra, the Esopus Chamber Orchestra, and members of the Hudson Valley Philharmonic String Quartet.  From 2005 to 2021 Kairos was artist-in-residence at Holy Cross Monastery and continues to present the annual services of Lessons & Carols and Lessons & Hymns  in the monastery chapel twice a year.

 

In the spring of 2006 Kairos expanded its mission and repertoire by creating a Bach Cantata Series, with performances of the church cantatas of J.S. Bach within the context of a choral evensong service at the Monastery. The Cantata series ran from 2006 - 2022 until Dr. Lundergan's retirement in May 2022.

 

In early 2010, Kairos further expanded its mission with its Great Baroque Choral Masterworks series, the presentation of historically-informed performances of Baroque choral works, many of which are performed infrequently due to their complexity and difficulty. In January 2010 Kairos presented Bach's Magnificat and Handel's rarely-performed Dixit Dominus, and in December 2010 Kairos presented Monteverdi's Vespers of 1610 to sold-out audiences at the Monastery. In November 2011 Kairos presented a narrated concert version of English composer Henry Purcell's 1691 semi-opera King Arthur with guest artist David Tass Rodriguez. In November 2012 Kairos presented Heinrich Schütz' Musicalische Exequien and Giacomo Carissimi's mid-17th century oratorio Historia di Jephte, and in November 2014 Kairos celebrated its 20th anniversary with a performance of Bach's magnificent Mass in B Minor. The Masterworks series was discontinued upon Dr. Lundergan's retirement in May 2022.

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KAIROS: A Consort of Singers is presently functioning as a collaborative vocal chamber ensemble. The current focus of the group is in keeping with its original core mission: providing high-quality performances of a wide range of a cappella choral works, spanning from the medieval period to the present.