Founded in 1942 as the Raleigh Oratorio Society, the North Carolina Master Chorale is committed to bringing the very finest in choral music performance to Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill audiences. Under the direction of Dr. Alfred E. Sturgis since 1993, the Chorale boasts a 170-voice symphonic chorus and a 22-voice professional chamber choir.

Hailed by critics as Raleigh's premier choral ensemble, the Chorale primarily performs choral masterworks with orchestra. The NCMC Chamber Choir had its debut during the 1996-97 season and performs works ranging in style from the Renaissance to contemporary. Singers in both ensembles, many of whom are professional singers, conductors and music educators, are selected by audition from across Wake and neighboring counties.

In recent seasons, the Chorale has performed masterworks such as Britten's War Requiem, Bach's St. Matthew Passion , Haydn's The Creation and Dvorak's Requiem, in addition to performances of Prokofiev's Alexander Nevsky and William Walton's Belshazzar's Feast with the North Carolina Symphony, and Orff's Carmina Burana with the Carolina Ballet .

Members of the Chamber Choir along with Music Director Sturgis present the educational program “Choral Music Through the Ages” in public schools each year. During the current season, the Master Chorale Chamber Choir toured the “Romance in the Air” concert program to central and eastern North Carolina venues.

In December 2006, the Master Chorale's holiday concert program, “Joy of the Season,” was filmed for broadcast on UNC-TV. Airings of the concert on the network reached approximately 1.5 million people across North Carolina . Compact disc and DVD products have been produced from the concert, joining two previously released Master Chorale holiday recordings.

The organization was awarded the 1991 Raleigh Medal of Arts in recognition of its rich heritage and numerous artistic contributions to the community.

Alfred E. Sturgis, Music Director
Alfred E. Sturgis was appointed Music Director of the North Carolina Master Chorale in 1993. Under his skilled artistic leadership the NC Master Chorale has made several appearances at state and regional conferences of the American Choral Director's Association, recorded three Christmas CDs, and been in involved in numerous successful collaborations with the Carolina Ballet and the North Carolina Symphony. In addition to his work with the Chorale, Sturgis serves as Principal Conductor of the Carolina Ballet and Music Director of the Tar River Philharmonic Orchestra, in Rocky Mount , NC.

Last season, Sturgis made his Lincoln Center conducting debut as guest conductor of the New York City Ballet. Sturgis has served as guest conductor for the North Carolina Symphony, Winston-Salem Symphony, Carolina Chamber Orchestra, Raleigh Civic Symphony, Long Leaf Opera Festival, Capital Opera, and the National Opera Company.  He has conducted orchestral and opera performances overseas in France , Bulgaria , and China . Early in his career, Sturgis performed a number of roles in musical theatre, opera, and oratorio, in addition to touring and recording in Southern France with the Robert Shaw Festival Singers. Sturgis still performs occasionally as a countertenor or baritone.

In recognition of his dynamic leadership of the NC Master Chorale, Sturgis was awarded the 1996 Raleigh Medal of Arts. Noted for his energetic, positive teaching style, Sturgis is in great demand as a conductor / clinician for Music Education workshops and festivals including All-State and Honors Choirs. Between the numerous festivals and his 11-year tenure as Director of Choral Music at North Carolina State University , he has taught thousands of North Carolina students. Dr. Sturgis holds degrees from the University of South Florida and the University of Illinois in Voice Performance, Music Education, and Conducting.