U.S. Naval Academy Glee Club
March 12, 2026 | 8pm
FREE CONCERT - NO TICKETS NEEDED!
Celebrating the 250th Anniversary of the U.S. Navy, the internationally acclaimed UNITED STATES NAVAL ACADEMY GLEE CLUB embarks on a special concert tour throughout the original U.S. Colonies! Featuring an eclectic mix of Sea Shanties, Broadway favorites, patriotic, sublime classical gems, and, of course, a few surprises! - it is a special concert for the entire family!
THE UNITED STATES NAVAL ACADEMY GLEE CLUB is comprised of the MEN’S GLEE CLUB, which has achieved national prominence as one of America’s premier men’s choral ensembles, and the WOMEN’S GLEE CLUB, which is the only all-female military choral ensemble in the world. Appearances on network television include The Kennedy Center Honors (CBS), The Today Show (NBC), The Early Show (CBS), Christmas in Washington (NBC and TNT), Good Morning, America (ABC), and countless regional and local television stations.
The Glee Club often performs masterpieces of choral-orchestral literature combining with the nation’s leading orchestras. In addition to the Academy’s annual presentation of Handel’s Messiah (often broadcast on P.B.S.), recent performances have included “A Night at the Opera,” Orff’s Carmina Burana, Requiems by Brahms, Duruflé, Dvorak, Faure, Mozart and Verdi, Haydn’s Creation, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, Vaughan-Williams’ A Sea Symphony, Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms, Mahler’s Symphony No. 2, and Britten’s WAR REQUIEM, among many others. Recent orchestral collaborations away from USNA include performances with the Dallas Symphony, Boston Pops Orchestra, Charlotte Symphony, Phoenix Symphony, Columbus Symphony, Nashville Symphony, Portland Symphony, Winston-Salem Symphony, Memphis Symphony, Rochester Philharmonic, Richmond Symphony, and Minnesota Orchestra.
The Glee Club has performed extensively throughout the US and abroad including Japan, Chile, Argentina, Brazil, and several European Tours with performances at the Vatican, Brussels, Wells, Winchester, Salisbury, and London. Recent domestic tours have taken them to Arizona, California, D.C., Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Washington. Ensembles have been seen performing in Copley Symphony Hall, Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center, and Meyerson Symphony Center and many more of our nation’s great concert halls.
Additional notable appearances include the dedication ceremony and anniversary of the Pentagon Memorial (9/11), the Ronald Reagan Freedom Award, the Commissioning Ceremony for the George H. W. Bush Aircraft Carrier (CVN-77), the Inaugural Concert “We Are One” performed on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial for a live audience of over half a million and an internationally televised audience, the nationally televised JFK 50th Commemorations in Dallas and Boston, participation in Kennedy Center Honors, the State Funeral of President Carter, the 2025 Presidential Inauguration, the opening of the National Medal of Honor Museum, among many others.
The ability to perform in such a variety of public venues undoubtedly assists in the recruitment of potential candidates who otherwise would not be exposed to the incredible opportunities offered by attending the Naval Academy and presents our midshipmen to the public at the highest level of professionalism to audiences around the globe as ambassadors for the United States and its Armed Forces.
It is with honor, pride, and distinction that the Glee Clubs represent the United States, the Navy and Marine Corps, and the United States Naval Academy.
DR. AARON SMITH, Director of Musical Activities at the United States Naval Academy, accepted his appointment in 2006 following a long series of impressive accomplishments as a choral conductor in New York City and now leads one of the most visible music programs in the country. A nationally acclaimed conductor, he has been seen in a wide variety of performances and performing venues from Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and Strathmore Music Center, to many other prominent concert halls and churches throughout the nation and around the world. Highlight musical collaborations include performances with the New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Dallas Symphony, New Jersey Symphony, Nashville Symphony, Portland Symphony, Jacksonville Symphony, Memphis Symphony, Rochester Philharmonic, Indianapolis Symphony, Richmond Symphony, Arizona Musicfest, Kronos Quartet, Chanticleer, American Boychoir, Baltimore Choral Arts Society, Mark Morris Dance Group, Great Performers Series, Mostly Mozart Festival, Kurt Masur, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Sir Colin Davis, Zdenek Macal, Joseph Flummerfelt, John Rutter, and soloists such as Renee Fleming, Stephanie Blythe, Gregory Kunde, and Beyoncé, among many others. He has collaborated extensively with nationally-televised broadcast performances such as Kennedy Center Honors, Christmas in Washington, and an Emmy Award nominated presentation of “Live from Lincoln Center” to internationally-significant and historic events such as Presidential State Funerals, inaugurations, official observances, dedications, commissionings, memorials, and celebrations. He received his undergraduate degree in Choral Music from the University of Texas at Austin, a Masters degree with Honors and Distinction in Choral Conducting from Westminster Choir College in Princeton, New Jersey, and a Doctorate in Choral Conducting from SUNY Stony Brook, New York.
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