Message from the president

Hello everyone! My name is CJ Wrightson, and I am the Pitt Men’s Glee Club President for the 2024-2025 school year. This is my third year in the club and I am very excited to tell you about what we have in store coming up!

First, we have two concerts planned this year, one in December and one in April. Our winter concert is planned for December 7th, in conjunction with The University of Pittsburgh Treble Choral Ensemble! Keep an eye out on our Instagram, @pittmensglee, for more updates!

Throughout the semesters we also like to hold different social events. These events allow us to get to know each other better. Whether it’s through competing against one another, or spending an evening playing games together, we always have a fun time! I’m really excited for our upcoming fall retreat, which will be held at Ohiopyle State Park in late September!

Lastly, I wanted to talk about our upcoming tour! In the years I’ve been in the club we’ve sung in California, and just recently we sang in the DC-Baltimore area. This year is going to be even cooler since we will be singing internationally in Europe for the first time post-COVID!

If any of this sounds exciting to you, I highly encourage you to sign up for our auditions! You can either sign up at our table at the Activities Fair on August 25th, or with the link on our homepage. If you have any questions you can email our director, Richard Teaster, at rteaster@pitt.edu.

Hail to Pitt!

CJ Wrightson

Club Leaders

Director

Richard Teaster

Student Board

President: CJ Wrightson

Vice President: Aries Cepeda

Business Manager: Presley Gerena

Secretary: Donovan Hoffman

Social & Outreach Chair: Rory Kaplan

Officers

Fundraising Chair: Xavier Ramírez

Merchandise Chair: Luke Sandusky

Librarian: Yodahe Fasil

Historian: Carter Sabin

Tour Manager: Zach Zinderman

Social Media Chair: Henry Leavitt

Greenhorn Chair: Nolan Blaze

We are the oldest extra-curricular organization at the University of Pittsburgh, as well as its first collegiate musical ensemble.

The Club was founded in 1890 by Mr. John L. High. He was a graduate of Amherst College, MA. The group began as a mere octet, consisting of 2 first tenors, 2 second tenors, 2 baritones, and 2 basses. At the time, the school was known as the Western University of Pennsylvania.

In 1891, the University's name was changed to the present one, and the Glee Club Association was merged with the Banjo and Mandolin Clubs. Records show that in 1901, the Club was listed as "purely a student organization, consisting of members of the Glee Club and Mandolin Clubs-It's objective was to stimulate the musical interest among the undergraduates, to promote sociability, to develop the college spirit, and to promote the fair name of 'Old Uni.'" In 1922, the organization was still operating under the combined titles of musical clubs, but in 1923, the group's name was changed to the Glee Club and Ensemble.

In 1926, after performing for a short time with the Dental Chorus (comprised of students from Pitt's Dental School), the Glee Club evolved into the organization it is today. 

We faced some difficulties around the turn of the millennium, with the group almost being dissolved completely, but in 1999 our current director, Richard Teaster, took over, guiding the club back to greatness. Today, the Pitt Men’s Glee Club is respected both in the United States and internationally, with multiple concerts each year in Pittsburgh and tours in Atlanta, NYC, LA, Italy, Austria, and many more cities across the United States and Europe.