Via Nova Chorale in performance with full choir and ensemble. Provided photo.

Via Nova Chorale is not a new arts organization in Sarasota. The group, initially founded in 2008 by Dr. Robert Parrish under the name Musica Sacra, rebranded in 2024 as the Via Nova Chorale. Under the guidance of Artistic Director Steven Phillips, Via Nova—which translates to “new way”—the group, originally devoted to performing sacred masterworks, expanded its repertoire to include music from an array of cultures. This season, Via Nova is undergoing another change, this time in its merging with the Choral Artists of Sarasota. Via Nova’s 16th season, which will include four concerts, is aptly titled: “Finding a New Way Together.”

“It’s an exciting time for us because we’re getting bigger post-merger,” says Phillips of Via Nova, which has grown from around 38 singers to 50 since merging with the Choral Artists. “Really, it signals a new growth phase for us and part of that is carrying on the Choral Artists’ legacy. They saw some of what they value happening in Via Nova Chorale, in that it involves creative programming and a high touch in the community of trying to be relevant, excellent and approachable.”

Phillips says that the Choral Artists, which merged with Via Nova following the retirement of longtime leader Dr. Joseph Holt this spring, also responded to Via Nova’s mission. “Our real mission is that Via Nova inspires new ways for us to live together as humans using the power of music,” says Phillips. Via Nova’s 2025-26 season kicks off with Future Present Past, a program that draws from a wide array of musical influences from Baroque composer G.F. Handel to Bob Dylan. “It’s about time and how we relate to it as humans. It gives us a chance to honor Choral Artists and their history and in a sense, it’s asking us to be fully present, to make the best use of our time so we can shape a glorious future,” says Phillips.

The last performance of the season is an original composition by Phillips, Jazz Mass for a New Humanity. The piece, which debuted last season, uses the language of the Roman Mass in a jazz style and incorporates sacred writing and poetry from other traditions to create a musical dialogue. “The deeper question is what are all of these traditions pointing towards? What are they pointing towards for humanity?” says Phillips. “Whether you are religious or not, you can look at the deeper messages that call us together as one human race.”

Via Nova Chorale in performance with full choir and ensemble. Provided photo.

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