Vinroy D. Brown Jr. '15 is new conductor of the Trenton Children's Chorus

Westminster Choir College alumnus Vinroy D. Brown Jr. ’15 has been appointed artistic director for the Trenton Children’s Chorus (TCC) beginning this summer.

“On behalf of the entire board and the entire organization, we are thrilled to have Vinroy join us as our next artistic director,” says TCC board co-presidents Jill Jackson Carr and Nora Schultz. “With his outstanding music skills, his energy and enthusiasm and his strong commitment to connecting communities through music, Vinroy was a unanimous choice. We are confident that Vinroy will carry on the TCC 30-year legacy and lead the Trenton Children’s Chorus into its next era.”

Brown earned bachelor’s degrees in sacred music and music education from Westminster Choir College and a master’s in practical theology from Regent University. He is a member of Westminster’s sacred music faculty and he conducts the Westminster Jubilee Singers. A church musician, he is director of music and worship arts at Elmwood United Presbyterian Church in East Orange, N.J. He is also the founder and artistic director of the Elmwood Concert Singers and artistic director and conductor of the Capital Singers of Trenton.

“This appointment holds special meaning for me,” says Brown. “I’ve been connected to the TCC family since my undergraduate years at Westminster Choir College, as a guest conductor and soloist. Being able to serve this great organization as its artistic director is nothing but a dream realized. I look forward to the possibilities for this next chapter in the life of TCC and my own.”

Current Artistic Director Patricia Thel says, “Vinroy has an uncanny ability to inspire students, and share with them his love of music and music education. I’m proud to pass on the baton to him and look forward to seeing what the future has in store for this much-beloved organization.”

Founded in 1989 as an outreach project of Nassau Presbyterian Church by Westminster alumnae Sue Ellen Page ’71, ’82 and Marcia Wood ’88, TCC began as an entirely volunteer-run organization with 11 children in its first year. Today, in a city with a 33% drop-out rate, TCC demonstrates that teaching children and youth to make music transfers the essential tools for success in academic, social, and workplace endeavors. The most tangible impact of participation in TCC is the fact that 100% of choristers who stay with the program through high school, graduate and go on to college.

“Music is community,” Brown says. “It is creating time and space for community. For me, the communities of music that I’ve been blessed to be a part of have added much to my life. I have been transformed by the power of music and I aim to help facilitate those life changing moments for others just like others have done for me.”