The Director and Ensemble

Eduardo García-Novelli, a native of Argentina, is Professor of Music, Director of Choral Activities, and Chair of the Music Department at Carthage College where he conducts the Carthage Choir. Since his arrival at Carthage in the fall of 2008:

• The Carthage Choir has completed four highly successful European tours (Germany, Czech Republic, Hungary, Austria, 2009; Ireland, Northern Ireland and Scotland, 2012; Spain, 2015; Hungary, Slovenia, and Italy, 2018) and the United States (DC area, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wisconsin).
• The choir was selected to perform before the membership of the Wisconsin Music Educators Association in Madison, Wisconsin, in 2009 and again in 2012, and the Wisconsin Choral Directors Association in 2011 in Green Bay, Wisconsin, in 2014 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and in 2017, in Wausau, Wisconsin.
• Dr. García-Novelli had the honor of conducting the Carthage Choir in its debut solo concert at Carnegie Hall in May 2011.
• In October 2014 the Carthage Choir performed Beethoven’s Symphony no. 9 in D minor with the Kenosha Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Maestro Robert Hasty. The choir collaborated once again with this ensemble in April of 2016, performing Mozart’s Coronation Mass, and in April of 2018, performing Beethoven’s Mass in C, in both occasions with Tremper High School Chorale (Polly Amborn, director) as guests.
• In April of 2017 Carthage Choir performed Fauré’s Requiem Op. 48 with Carthage Philharmonic, conducted by Dr. Ed. Kawakami, with Indian Trail High School and Academy Chorale, John Choir, director. The same performing forces worked again in April 2019, this time performing the beautiful Lux aeterna by acclaimed American composer Morten Lauridsen.

Dr. García-Novelli holds undergraduate degrees in music education from the Conservatorio Manuel de Falla, and in choral conducting from the Conservatorio Juan José Castro, both in Buenos Aires, Argentina. In his homeland, Dr. García-Novelli led for eight years the award-winning, 300-member high school choral program at Belgrano Day School in Buenos Aires, which included music theatre productions, and national, South-American, and European tours. Concurrently, he served as Assistant Director of the prestigious National Young People’s Choir.

After moving to the United States to pursue graduate studies in music, he graduated with distinction with a Master of Music from Westminster Choir College in Princeton, New Jersey, and completed his Doctorate of Musical Arts degree at the University of Houston, in Houston, Texas. Dr. García-Novelli served as Assistant Director of the Houston Symphony Chorus for five seasons. In that capacity, he had the privilege of helping in the preparation of many large choral-symphonic works for several world-renowned conductors.

Dr. García-Novelli served one year as Director of Choral Activities at Lee College in Baytown, Texas (2001-2002), and completed six years as Director of Choral Activities at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas, in 2008. During his time in Beaumont, Lamar’s A Cappella Choir was selected to perform for the 2007 Texas Music Educators Association’s prestigious Annual Convention in San Antonio, Texas, an honor the University received for the first time in 40 years.

In the same year, the choir was invited to perform for the opening gala ceremony of the IV International Choral Festival: Central America and The Caribbean Sing in Panama City, Panama, in 2007. In 2008 the choir was selected to perform at the National Conference of the National Collegiate Choral Organization (NCCO) in Cincinnati, Ohio. This was the first time in the history of the Lamar University choral program that the choir was recognized at the national level.

While at Lamar, Dr. García-Novelli also developed the highly recognized LU All-State Summer Choir Camp, attracting nearly 400 high school students each year. In 2006 Lamar University honored him with the Faculty Merit Award for Excellence in Teaching. Finally, Dr. García-Novelli also served as Chorus Director for the Symphony of Southeast Texas, preparing choral-orchestral works for music director Christopher Zimmermann.

As a church musician, Dr. García-Novelli served as Director of Music Ministries in churches in his home country, in New Jersey, and in Texas. Under Dr. Garcia-Novelli’s leadership, First United Methodist Church of Beaumont Chancel Choir completed two European tours. He currently serves as choir director at Mount Pleasant Lutheran Church in Racine, Wisconsin.

In August 2010, Dr. García-Novelli was appointed Music Director of The Master Singers of Milwaukee,​ a high-level choral ensemble with a 40-year history and regular four-concert season​s.

In March of 2015 Eduardo returned to Carnegie Hall to conduct a festival choir of more than 250 singers, professional soloists, and the New England Symphonic Ensemble in Franz Schubert’s historic Mass in G. In June of 2016 he had the honor of conducting Mozart’s Missa brevis in F, K192 with a festival choir, professional soloists, and orchestra at Peterskirche in Vienna, Austria, under the auspices of MidAm International.​​ He returned once again to Carnegie Hall in March of 2017, conducting a large national festival choir, professional soloists, and the New England Symphonic Ensemble in Mozart´s iconic Coronation Mass. In July of 2017, and culminating a year of great success, Dr. García-Novelli served as Conductor-in-Residence with the professional award-winning ensemble Coro Nacional de Jóvenes (National Young People Choir) of Argentina, offering an all-American choral music program in two concerts in Buenos Aires, at the spectacular CCK (Kirchner Cultural Center), the newest concert hall in this beautiful capital city. He was delighted to return to his homeland serving as clinician and conductor for the traditional “Madryn Canta” festival in Puerto Madryn, Chubut (September 2018), and to be in residence and conduct two concerts with the award-winning choir “Tous Ensemble”, Emiliano Linares, Artistic Director (August 2019).

Dr. García-Novelli is a two-time winner of the “La Nación” choir competition (Argentina), and won the second prize at the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) Conducting Competition in Chicago in 1999. In May 2019 he was honored with the “Friend of Education Award” from the Kenosha Unified School District. In July 2019 he lead the Carthage Choir to two first prize wins (folk song category and classical category) at the prestigious Spittal International Choir Competition in Spittal, Austria.

He and his wife María Fernanda Fiocchi live in Racine, Wisconsin. They are the proud parents of Mateo (22) and Camila (18).