Constellation Men's Ensemble

The Constellation Men's Ensemble is a small vocal group that offers thematic programs and has a strong educational component. The group released its debut album, Man Up/Man Down, in 2023. The Constellation Men's Ensemble was formed in 2013 in Chicago by Lennie Cottrell and Derek Boemler. Both had attended Northwestern University in suburban Evanston, Illinois, and wanted to continue performing with friends they had met there. The group came together for a read-through rehearsal in Evanston, and that evolved into regular Saturday morning rehearsals. Neither Cottrell nor Boemler still performs with the group; since 2015, the executive director has been tenor Ryan Townsend Strand. As of 2023, the group has 11 members and, in addition to Strand, also includes countertenor Carl Alexander; tenors Matthew Cummings, Micah Dingler, and Jack Reeder; baritones Matthew Brennan and Dorian McCall; and basses Matthew Douglass Cramer, Dominic German, and Ian Prichard. The group states that its "performances, mission, and goals revolve around the themes of Music & Brotherhood." More specifically, the Constellation Men's Ensemble has offered thematic programs of various kinds. Some are centered around the group's NOVA: New Original Vocal Art" series, which reached its sixth installment in 2022. The ensemble performs at various venues around the Chicago area; the 2022-2023 season featured the program "Glee Pug: Born & Raised," featuring pieces having to do with the origins of the performers (in concerts at the restaurants Uncommon Ground and Mrs. Murphy & Son's Irish Bistro); "Luceat eis," described as a deconstruction of the Requiem mass (at the Buchanan Chapel at Chicago's Fourth Presbyterian Church and the Epiphany Center for the Arts); and "Nova: VI," featuring music of Alex Berko and performed at Guarneri Hall. In 2023, the Constellation Men's Ensemble released its debut album, Man Up/Man Down, on the Sono Luminus label, featuring works by Jeffrey Derus, Robert Maggio, and David Lang. The group has performed in educational capacities and has partnered multiple times with Music of the Baroque as artists-in-residence for that group's "Strong Voices" program in the Chicago Public Schools.
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