Raquel García is now in her 28th season as Artistic Director of The Philadelphia Chorus. She is also the former Artistic Director of The Swarthmore Chorale in Swarthmore, PA, and is the former Assistant Conductor of the Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia. In May 1990, Ms. García assisted in conducting the Mendelssohn Club in Robert Moran's world premiere performance of "Chant du Cygne" for four choruses, four orchestras. She is the former director of The Chamber Singers of Harrisburg. During her tenure in Harrisburg, she participated regularly in the annual Central Pennsylvania Choral Festival and was invited by the American Choral Directors Association to conduct in the 1988 regional convention in Philadelphia. The Harrisburg Patriot News praised her as a conductor who "clearly knows music and how to bring the best of it from choral groups".
She has prepared choruses for such conductors as Tamara Brooks, Fiora Contino, Alan Harler, Robert Page and Gregg Smith. She has led the Philadelphia Chamber Chorus in such varied works as Bach's "Magnificat" and "Mass in F", Brahms' "Requiem", Rene Clausen's "Memorial", Duruflé's "Requiem", Handel's "Judas Maccabæus" and "Jephtha", Haydn's "Lord Nelson Mass" and "Creation Mass", Honneger's "King David", Mozart's "Vespers", Fauré's "Requiem" and Rutter's "Gloria". A native of Puerto Rico, Ms. García studied at the Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Music Theory and a Master's degree in Choral Conducting, both from Temple University where she studied with Elaine Brown and Alan Harler.
In association with the Narberth Community Theatre, in November 2005, she was the music director for the Philadelphia area premiere of Paul Gordon's "Jane Eyre the Musical". The Main Line Times described it "led by Music Director Raquel García's superb orchestra".
