Wennerberg Chorus records, 1901-1933 | Augustana College

The Wennerberg Male Chorus was formed at a meeting called by A. S. Hamilton on October 21, 1901. Gustav Andreen, then president of Augustana College, had requested that a male chorus be organized to participate in the Gunnar Wennerberg Festival to be held the following December. At this formative meeting, officers were elected, the name was agreed upon, and rehearsals twice a week were fixed. Once formed, the group was called on to perform at receptions and meetings on campus and soon became a campus fixture. Membership of the chorus was fairly constant at around 20 growing to as many as 35 or 40 in its later years.

The Chorus was led by a variety of directors including A. S. Hamilton (1901-1905), Emil Larson (1905-1908) Peter Johnson (1908-1912), J. Victor Bergquist (1912-1918), Otto Bostrom (1918-1920), L. W. Kling (1920-1923), A. Cyril Graham (1923-1927), and finally Henry Veld (1928-1933). The Wennerberg Male Chorus began to perform jointly with the Oriole Chorus under the direction of Henry Veld in 1931. When joining forces, the men and women became known as the Augustana Choir. Each entity maintained its identity for several years, but ostensibly became known solely as Augustana Choir in the late 1930s.