Jeffrey R. Smith probably was destined to become artistic director of the Philadelphia Boys Choir and Chorale.

Although he initially resisted becoming the hand-picked successor to founder Robert Hamilton a few years ago, he eventually felt "called" to lead the Philadelphia institution.

Smith, a Delran High graduate, sang for Hamilton as a boy growing up in Delran, one in a long line of South Jersey boys whose voices helped form the choir's reputation as a world-class vocal group.

After studying music composition at Ithaca College in New York and a stint in New York City in which he found steady work - if not soul satisfaction - off Broadway and on, Smith returned to the choir as a fill-in accompanist in 2001.

By then, Hamilton, who had started the choir in 1968, was making noises about retiring.

"For him, this was his entire life," Smith said. "I couldn't spend 24 hours a day with it. I had a family. I just didn't see how it would work."

So Smith left the group. But he and his wife, Carla, "continued to talk about it, pray about it," Smith said. "We felt we were being led."

In 2002, he rejoined the choir as assistant director, and when Hamilton retired two years later, Smith took over.

Now, at 30, he's in charge of molding about 150 boys ages 7 to 12 - 90 in the performing choir, the rest in cadet programs - into a cohesive group that hits just the right note and makes just the right harmony - at just the right moment.

The choir is preparing for a busy couple of months. On May 17, the boys will perform at a private gala honoring Drexel University president Constantine Papadakis. On June 1, the choir will celebrate its 40th anniversary with music performed throughout its history. Then in late June, the group will travel to Spain and Germany.

The music isn't the only place Smith must strive for harmony. It's not easy to grab the attention of boys on weekday afternoon - many of whom have rushed from school, climbed immediately into a car, and been driven long distances to get to the rehearsal hall in West Philadelphia.

But listen to the parents, and they'll tell you Smith manages quite well.

"He's very good at what he does," said Jeannie Weber of Logan Township in Gloucester County. Her 12-year-old Sean is in his third year in the performing choir.

That choir has six boys from Logan and a total of 12 from Gloucester County. A dozen come from Camden County towns, and three are from Burlington County.

"The boys can get antsy," Weber said. Smith "knows the boys well enough that he handles them individually, which to me is amazing. He requires a lot, but he gives them some slack. He knows that boys need to be boys. He lets them have fun when they need to, but when it's time, it's like, snap, now it's down to business."

Smith says he enjoys interacting with the boys.

"It's so rewarding being a mentor to them," he said. "It's a great feeling knowing I can be a good role model for them and help them."

Setting an example is important to Smith, a man of strong faith, who attends Calvary Chapel in Bellmawr. His sons bear Old Testament names: Elijah, 3 1/2, and Isaac, 9 months. Smith left New York City, in part, because he found that his beliefs clashed with the behavior he saw in show business.

"I found the actors - they were very liberal, not so much politically but in other ways," he said. "It's frustrating because I'm not."

But he is romantic. Above the fireplace in his Haddon Township home hangs framed sheet music for a song called "Marriage Proposal," which he wrote and performed when he proposed to his wife.

Through all, music, which has been part of Smith's life since he began "banging on the piano" at age 2, is what drives him.

"We get to make some great music," he said. The boys' "concerts are just unbelievable. They all know the music. They all feel it. And it's like, 'Wow!' "

In Concert

The Philadelphia Boys Choir and Chorale will present its 40th anniversary concert at 2 p.m. June 1 at Irvine Auditorium of the University of Pennsylvania, 3401 Spruce St., Philadelphia. Tickets are $25 to $45.

The choir will perform at 7 p.m. June 8 at the First United Methodist Church, 446 E. Camden Ave., Moorestown. A freewill offering will be taken.

For more information or to buy tickets, call 215-222-3500, Ext. 1

or visit www.phillyboyschoir.org.