Stephan Stoeckl has served as the Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale’s marketing director since 2009, but he knew his duties would expand with his new position.
“It’s an organization with a big history and it’s a job with a lot of responsibilities,” Stoeckl said about taking on the role of the organization’s executive director. “There are 400 kids and their parents and you don’t want to disappoint them. And you want to make sure that this institution is here for another 50 years. The climate in the arts and education fields is tough so being responsible for that on a day-to-day basis is a big job.”
The Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale — which also includes the Philadelphia Girls Choir and the Philadelphia Vocal Conservatory — selected Stoeckl, 54, as its executive director in August. Since then, his role has expanded to include efforts relating to fundraising, budgeting, board relations and other high-level administrative work.
“If it had been another organization, I would’ve probably taken a lot of time to think about it and did more due diligence and research,” Stoeckl said. “But since I know and love this organization, I was very flattered that the board decided to pick me.”
Jeffrey R. Smith, the organization’s artistic director and conductor, has known Stoeckl since he began working as the marketing director. Smith said he “couldn’t ask for a better coworker.”
“He understands the vision of the organization and is able to help push that forward and take us to places where we haven’t even thought of yet,” Smith said.
After moving to the United States from Austria, Stoeckl worked for a market research company in Horsham. However, issues with his green card required him to relocate to Canada. He ultimately moved back to the states with his husband, David M. Rosenblum — an executive at Mazzoni Center who died of a heart attack in 2014 — around the time he learned Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale was looking for a marketing professional.
Growing up in Austria, Stoeckl said he could not come out.
“It was not an option in an environment that was 20 miles from the Iron Curtain and still had visible wounds from World War II,” Stoeckl said. “I don’t think I knew a gay person as a kid. My parents didn’t have gay friends. None of the kids self-identified as LGBT. There was just nobody to compare with. It was a very different time.”
However, Stoeckl said this attitude did not follow him into his current work life.
“The nice thing is that in my work environment, including this job, it’s never an issue and I think I’m lucky with that,” Stoeckl said. “Particularly, I think somebody from my generation who hasn’t had any problems because they self-identify as gay [is] lucky and in this organization, it has been really nice and very positive.”
Stoeckl recognizes that there are some youth in the choir “who either identify already or will identify eventually as LGBT.” He said he brings this level of awareness to show “there are people who we have to take care of.” However, he also noted how times have changed.
“One thing that I see every day in this organization is that for the LGBT kids in our choir, it is so much easier to come out,” Stoeckl said. “There are no issues and just to see how these kids grow up these days is such a joy.”
Stoeckl refers to the choir as a “family-driven” and “inclusive” organization.
“One of the things that we’re very proud of is that this is a safe space for everybody and we have all sorts of kids here,” Stoeckl said. “That’s really cool to see.”
While Stoeckl said he does not work directly with the kids very often due to his leadership role behind the scenes, he is impressed with their accomplishments. He refers to them as “a professional choir at a very high level.”
“One of the things that fascinates me about the kids — whether it’s the boys or the girls — is that they have no fear,” Stoeckl said. “When they’re performing, they are completely fearless and they will step up and sing a solo and not think about it. That’s great.”
The Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale’s new CD can be purchased at store.phillyboyschoir.org/content/winter-wonderland.