St. Bart's Adult Choir
Chuck Kessell
Director of Music/Choir Director
773-286-7871 x119
Sopranos
Barbara Jean Ancheta, Kathy Ott, Sr. Mary Kevin Ryan, Juditha Seghers, Mercedes Suarez
Altos
Caroline Braas, Karen Grant, Carole Hays, Sylvia Maino, Denise Peroni, Kathy Samp
Tenors
Dominick Maino
Bass
Don Elza, Gary Pigoni
About our Music Director…
Chuck Kessell, a local man born and bred in what is lovingly called Wrigleyville now, comes to us with 36 years experience as a Music and Liturgical Director. He served in our Archdiocese at the following places: St. Sebastian-Chicago-Lakeview, Our Lady of Perpetual Help-Glenview, St. Clare of Montefalco Chicago-Gages Park, St. Ita-Chicago-Edgewater/Uptown, St. Isaac Jogues-Niles, Office for Divine Worship-(Director of Liturgical Music) Archdiocese, and Old St. Mary’s-South Loop before landing at St. Bartholomew’s.
Chuck plays Organ, Piano, electronic keyboard, Percussion Instruments, Guitar, Mandolin, Tin Whistle (yes—that’s right), and all sorts of other interesting folk type instrumentation. Vocally he is a tenor.
When not working for the Church, Chuck is the Music Director of the Normennenes Singing Society of Chicago-one of the most tenured choruses in the U.S., celebrating their 140th anniversary in October. Normennenes is a Norwegian Male chorus, and the name literally translated means “North Men.” He is the Music Director for the Milwaukee Irish Fest Choir, a group of auditioned secondary and collegiate choristers who sing each day at the Milwaukee Irish Fest…truly the world’s largest festival of this kind. He jobs out (takes gigs) as a secular musician when called upon, and teaches music privately as well.
Chuck’s education was local as well, spending some time within the Vincentian Religious Community in seminary, (Congregation of the Mission) and taking a Music Education Degree from DePaul University.
