Birmingham University Singers today announced their upcoming European tour – a three-date concert programme in Germany in June 2018.
With concerts in Berlin and Leipzig, the choir will present an eclectic programme of works from across Europe, including composers with a particular relationship to Birmingham and the university. The singers will also join forces with the Berlin-based choir Vokalsystem for one programme, led by Johannes David Wolff – a graduate of the internationally renowned MA Music in Choral Conducting at Birmingham and Professor Simon Halsey. The choir has previously travelled to the Czech Republic and Poland in recent years.
Following the announcement Professor Halsey said: ‘I am delighted that the choir are embarking on a tour to Germany. Berlin is a city close to my heart, and where I am currently Conductor Laureate of Rundfunkchor Berlin. The opportunity for the choir to travel to Europe is quite simply a testament to the quality of the choral programme here in Birmingham, and one that engages students from across all disciplines at the university every week.’
Birmingham University Singers is a mixed chamber choir of up to 40 auditioned singers run by the Music Department and led by Professor Simon Carrington. They rehearse weekly and perform varied repertoire, ranging from Weelkes and Britten to Whitacre and Jonathan Dove. The choir usually gives two concerts per year in the Elgar Concert Hall, plus a performance in Symphony Hall as part of the University of Birmingham Voices. Their annual Festival of Lessons and Carols at St Michael’s, Tenbury, is a highlight of the year.
In March 2018 the choir will, in addition to its regular activities, perform Debussy’s Trois chansons de Charles d’Orléans with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and its new Music Director, Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla.
Choirs are an important part of University Music in Birmingham, and offer unrivalled opportunities for young singers at any university in the UK. For more information, or if you would like to find out more about choirs at University of Birmingham, please contact Gavin Allsop g.m.allsop@bham.ac.uk.