The Durham Philharmonic Choir was founded in 1993, with about forty choristers, under the direction of Robert Phillips. The DPC is an auditioned choir which has grown to consist of 70 choristers who come from across Durham Region. Choristers bring experiences from church, school, community and university choirs. The choir strives for excellence through a wide variety of musical styles. Their first CD recording ‘Here’s to Song’ was released in 1998, followed by their Christmas CD ‘Glad Tidings’ in the fall of 2001 and then, most recently, 'Wings of the Morning'. The Choir has achieved recognition throughout the province as a fine community choir, having won awards at both the local and provincial levels of music competitions.
Robert Phillips, conductor
The founding conductor of the Durham Philharmonic Choir,
Robert Phillips enjoys a varied career as an organist, music
director, accompanist and teacher. A native of Cape Breton,
NS, he graduated from Mt. Allison University (B. Mus.,
performance 1978), and the University of Toronto (M. Mus.
Performance and Literature 1987).
He has been involved with several church and community
choirs, and is currently Organist/Music Director at Simcoe
Street United Church, Oshawa. As musical director of the
DPC, he has conducted many of the standard choral works
with orchestra.
Along with operating a landscape business, he enjoys several sports, including hockey, golf and skiing, in addition to spending warm summer weekends at Burleigh Falls.
