District News

Eight talented students from Bernardsville Middle School were selected to participate in the New Jersey American Choral Directors Association (NJ-ACDA) Summer Honors Choir. This particular ensemble boasted SSA voicing, completely memorized music, and a full two days of rehearsal preparation. They performed on August 7th in Nicholas Hall at the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University.

Their repertoire included songs such as Plena (Diana Saez), In Time of Silver Rain (B.E. Boykin), Crowded Table (Andrea Ramsey), and O Praise the Lord with Heart and Voice (Haydn/Jacob Narverund). The ensemble was conducted by Mr. Chaequan Anderson, who also conducts the Princeton Girlchoir and Glassbrook Vocal Ensemble. The concert was performed for family, friends, the surrounding community, and a wide array of choral educators from across the entire state of New Jersey.

Representing the middle school, and the Somerset Hills School District with pride, professionalism, and musical excellence throughout the event were Harper Watt, Jillian Pooler, Addison Pagel, Charlotte Mitchell, Maggie Morrison, Brielle Morrison, Olivia Hamada and Gillian Goodwin. These current 8th and 9th graders were personally recommended to the ensemble by their Choir Director, Ms. Allyssa Jurgens, and were formally accepted by the organization in June.

This is a tremendous accomplishment, as the NJ-ACDA Honors Choir is a prestigious and highly selective ensemble that brings together outstanding young vocalists from across the state. 

“Their participation not only highlights their individual talent, but also shines a spotlight on the strength of our school's music program. I am grateful for the continuous support of the arts and music here in SHSD by parents, colleagues and the administration," shared Jurgens who joined the SHSD community in 2024. She is the Bernardsville Middle School Choral Director for grades 5-8,  the BMS Drama Director for grades 5-8, and the Percussion Technician for the BHS Marching Mountaineers. She  is also proud to be the Membership Chair on the Executive Board for NJ-ACDA. 

BMS is looking forward to presenting the 7th/8th grade fall musical, “The Addams Family”, this November. The 5th/6th grade winter musical will be announced later this season, and will be performed in February.  Ms. Lindsay Barna is the K-12 Supervisor for Visual & Performing Arts in the district. More information can be found on the main page of the district’s new website under Performing Arts.