{"id":330128,"date":"2026-08-26T13:04:28","date_gmt":"2026-08-26T13:04:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/330128\/"},"modified":"2026-08-26T13:04:28","modified_gmt":"2026-08-26T13:04:28","slug":"youngheart-nyc-senior-choir-takes-on-olivia-rodrigo-tom-waits-and-the-art-of-defying-age","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/330128\/","title":{"rendered":"Young@Heart NYC senior choir takes on Olivia Rodrigo, Tom Waits and the art of defying age"},"content":{"rendered":"

Years ago the Beatles sang \u201cWhen I\u2019m Sixty-Four,\u201d but how about \u201cWhen I\u2019m Seventy-Five?\u201d That\u2019s the age when one is eligible to join Young@Heart NYC (Y@H)<\/a>, a wonderful choir of exuberant senior citizens whose repertoire is as diverse as their members.<\/p>\n

The Y@H choir, led by director David Nagler, rehearses weekly at the Abrons Arts Center on the Lower East Side<\/a>. They are a group of about 30 members mostly between 75 and 89 years young who experience ranging from singing onstage to singing in the shower; Nagler admits that \u201cthere are a couple of people who\u2019ve come who are a little younger, and we were too nice to turn them away.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nagler\u2019s not only had experience wrangling choirs before, such as the Jon Langford Skull Orchard Welsh Male Choir and an accompanist role with the fourth and fifth grade chorus at Saint Ann\u2019s School in Brooklyn, he\u2019s also got a resume that includes collaborations with over 200 musicians including Joan Baez, Aaron Neville, Rosanne Cash, Fred Armisen, Steve Earle, Stephin Merritt (The Magnetic Fields), Wesley Stace and Suzanne Vega.<\/p>\n

On top of that, he\u2019s a regular performer with the fabulous Loser\u2019s Lounge, has a number of his own albums out and is part of the art rock supergroup \u201cTape Hiss\u201d featuring members of The Modern Lovers and Sonic Youth.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Nagler is new to this group, and the group itself is new to New York. Y@H got its start 44 years ago in Northampton, MA, founded by a guy named Bob Cilman who has been described \u2014 by others, Cilman points out \u2014 as an \u201cimpresario.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut that\u2019s too big; I don\u2019t like that word,\u201d he explains. \u201cI create, I make shows. I used to be the head of the Northampton Arts Council. I produced a lot of events. I was an arts producer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Y@H is a full-time job now, though, with gigs taking the crew as far away as New Zealand and Japan and theatrical productions that have played in England, Berlin, Singapore and Norway, to name a few.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"David Nagler, the director of the Young@Heart NYC choirPhoto by Bob Krasner \"\"Choir members (L) Girl Frances Negron and Olivette TaylorPhoto by Bob Krasner \"\"Sonia Tovar working on her solo piece \u201cMaria la Curandera\u201d with the Young@Heart NYC choirPhoto by Bob Krasner \"\"A bit of Madness\u2026..Patrick McCarthy singing \u201cOur House\u201d in rehearsal at the Abrons Arts CenterPhoto by Bob Krasner \"\"Members of the Young@Heart NYC choir, L-R: Sonia Tovar, Wayne Brachman, Lynda Hill, Marc RedlichPhoto by Bob Krasner<\/p>\n

Although the western Massachusetts group is an unqualified success, Cilman says, \u201cI\u2019ve always wanted to start a group in New York or in a place that is bigger. In western Mass, you really have to struggle for a group to be diverse, and we\u2019ve done it with the group up here, but we had to really work at it. In New York, it happens automatically.\u201d<\/p>\n

A conversation with an administrator from the Janey Fund, whom he knew from his work with choirs in Massachusetts prisons, led him to the Henry Street Settlement.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

\u201cIt will be a year in September that we started in New York,\u201d Cilman notes. \u201cIt\u2019s worked out great. It happened right away. You know, we have a really diverse group,\u00a0 a mixture of everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

The enthusiasm of the group is obvious, and Nagler notes that one difference between working with Y@H versus a younger group is that \u201ceveryone really wants to be here.\u201d The only downside to the whole endeavor, Cilman admits, is \u201chow people die, on a regular basis. I\u2019m often giving eulogies. But I realize that these people were having the most fun in their life at the end of their life, and that\u2019s a cool thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no doubt about that. Surveying the singers, one hears remarks such as:\n<\/p>\n

\u201cThe community, the joy, the singing, singing, singing and singing together!\u00a0 We are learning some very arcane rock songs, lyrics and music, but what a joy when we accomplish this!\u201d \u2014 Joan Jeffri<\/p>\n

\u201cYoung@Heart NYC brings me joy because I love to perform and be introduced to new music\u201d \u2014 Francis Berman\n<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat a golden opportunity to sing with these dynamic people who also find joy in learning, living and loving through music! As I enter a new decade within the golden season of my life, I feel as if I have struck gold in becoming a member of this vibrant and vital group! \u201d \u2014 Olivette Taylor<\/p>\n

Some of those \u201carcane\u201d tunes include numbers by Richard Hell & the Voidoids, LCD Soundsystem, Tom Waits, Stevie Wonder, Leonard Cohen, Bronski Beat, Olivia Rodrigo, Gang of Four, Faye Wong, The Breeders, and Terry Allen.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was assigned a song which I had never heard of called \u2018Return of the Mack,’\u201d Taylor recounts. \u201cIn fact, it was written for a man \u2014 but David\u2019s creative genius encourages us to stretch ourselves out of our comfort zones and make any song ours. \u00a0A wonderful lesson at all ages, especially in our golden years of prime time!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Lynda Hill giving her all in rehearsalPhoto by Bob Krasner \"\"Afiya Dawson belting out \u201cQue Sera, Sera\u201dPhoto by Bob Krasner \"\"Young@Heart founder Bob Cilman comes in from Massachussetts for rehearsalsPhoto by Bob Krasner \"\"David Nagler working on a song with Lulu CheungPhoto by Bob Krasner \"\"Regina Shopkorn (L) and Yvette Mercedes used their break time wisely \"\"The Young@Heart NYC choir director David Nagler (standing, center) and choir founder Bob Cilman (seated, center) surrounded by the very enthusiastic members at the Abrons Arts CenterPhoto by Bob Krasner<\/p>\n

There are times, too, when a performer finds an unexpected connection to a previously unknown artist.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a singer named Ruth Zheng who is an operatically trained singer,\u201d Nagler says. \u201cI thought it\u2019d be really cool if she sang a Klaus Nomi song called \u201cTotal Eclipse\u201d. She knew nothing about Nomi, but she did some research on him and found out that he was really into Maria Callas, and she was like, I\u2019m really into Maria Callas!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a curiosity about the material that is very endearing,\u201d Nagler notes. \u201cThey just really want to do their best.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Wayne Brachman, despite his aversion to pop music, concedes that \u201cwe do a lot of songs that I think are awful to listen to but are actually very enjoyable to sing.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

One of the things that distinguishes this group from other choirs in their demographic is that they memorize all the lyrics, performing without the aid of phones or iPads.\n<\/p>\n

While their live shows \u2013 and they have a few coming up, so watch the website and Instagram \u2013 are the destination, the weekly rehearsals are the proverbial journey.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

\u201cThe rewarding thing is what you get in the moment of it,\u201d Nagler muses. \u201cThe rehearsal experience is just joyful. People are really excited to see each other, they\u2019re excited to sing, they\u2019re just so excited to be there. You get really swept up in the joy and the excitement and the love that everyone has for what they\u2019re doing.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

You can keep up with the Young@Heart chorus at\u00a0youngatheart.org<\/a>\u00a0and on Instagram at @youngatheartchorus<\/a>. They are open to new member inquiries and welcome donations.<\/p>\n

Upcoming shows include a collaboration with Stephen Merritt and Noah Britton at Joe\u2019s Pub<\/a> on Oct. 23, and their own show at the same venue on Jan. 24, 2027.<\/p>\n