Numa Rousseve Named Westchester Choral Society President

Westchester Choral Society announced that Numa Rousseve has been named president of the chorus, effective May 16. Rousseve, who was a board member, first joined the chorus in 1975 and previously served two stints as president. “I’m pleased to serve this wonderful and rewarding organization again,” Rousseve says.

Rousseve has had one of the longest tenures in the chorus, which is celebrating its 75th anniversary currently. He has an extensive singing background. Prior to joining WCS to sing Handel’s Messiah, he sang with the Hudson Valley Singers and the New York Choral Society at Carnegie Hall, where he performed Bach’s Mass in B minor.

Originally from New Orleans, Rousseve was the first African American in the New Orleans or Southern Province of the Jesuits when he entered the Jesuit order after completing high school. He spent ten years as a seminarian, including three years teaching English and speech at Jesuit High School in Dallas from 1963 to 1966. After leaving the Jesuits, Rousseve, recipient of a New York State Herbert Lehman fellowship, began studying toward a PhD at the Center for Human Relations in New York City. He subsequently switched to commercial banking, lending money to small and medium sized businesses.

Rousseve moved to Greenburgh in 1973 and served on the Board of Education of the Greenburgh Central School District from 1986 to 1996, while on hiatus from Westchester Choral Society. He retired in 2012.

The award-winning Westchester Choral Society was founded by Sarah Stewart Bowne in 1942 to perform Bach’s B-minor Mass with 15 singers. Today, its 60 singers support the Westchester community with a yearly program of holiday music for patients at Burke Rehabilitation Hospital. It was recognized with the Westchester Arts Council’s prestigious Year 2000 Arts Organization Award as the county’s premier choral organization. Visit www.westchesterchoralsociety.org for more information.