Who We Are
The Southern Nevada Musical Arts Society has been bringing beautiful music to Las Vegas since 1963. The Society a 501(c)(3) non-profit community
organization whose purpose is the promotion and performance of quality choral and orchestra masterworks, musical productions, and chamber concerts consistent with a strong community and educational outreach in Southern Nevada. SNMAS is the umbrella organization for two performing groups: the Musical Arts Chorus, a large community chorus, and the Musical Arts Orchestra, comprised of professional instrumentalists. Past performances include Bach’s Mass in B Minor, Handel’s Messiah, Brahms’ Requiem, Mozart’s Requiem, and hundreds of other various masterworks. The Society presented the American premier performance of David Fanshawe’s African Sanctus and performed Carol Barnett’s A Bluegrass Mass in Carnegie Hall. They have sung with Andrea Bocelli for the past 12 years at MGM’s Grand Garden Arena. As part of the Society’s community outreach, various choirs from local school are invited to perform their own segment and with the Musical Arts Chorus and Musical Arts Orchestra. The organization is administered by a Board of Trustees comprised of representatives from the Society’s members and is funded by ticket sales, contract performances, and advertisements in the printed program. Supporters of the Society have included Wynn Resorts, Target stores, Thomas & Mack Company, Klai-Juba Architects, Lochsa Engineering, and the Nevada Arts Council.
Randy Pagel, Conductor
Randy Pagel, conductor for the Southern Nevada Musical Arts Society since 2022, is a native of Oshkosh, Wisconsin. He embarked on his career directing the Peace Lutheran Church choir at age 13 and teaching chorus at Thurman White Middle School in Henderson, Nevada where the choirs were nationally renowned, performing several times under his direction at Carnegie Hall in New York City, the Kennedy Center in Washington, D. C., Orchestra Hall in Chicago, and at state, division, and national conventions for both the American Choral Directors Association and the National Association for Music Education.
Mr. Pagel has received numerous awards for educational excellence at local, state, and national levels. He was awarded the Oshkosh “Boy of the Year” twice, given the “Key to the City” of Oshkosh and the Las Vegas Strip, and named an “Outstanding Young Alumni” from the University of Wisconsin. “Randy Pagel Day” was proclaimed by the Mayors of Oshkosh, Henderson, and Las Vegas.
Mr. Pagel continues to conduct many honor choirs and workshops around the country (33 states so far) in the area of Middle School choral music. His book, The Choral Director’s Guide to Sanity…and Success! published by Heritage Music Press, is the Lorenz Corporation’s #1 all-time best seller.
