Swiss Youth Choir's 30th anniversary concert

Saturday 16 November 2024 7:30 PM

Starting from CHF 15.-

Tickets available online or on site on the day of the concert

Join the party! The Swiss Youth Choir celebrates anniversaries with a rich program centered around Frank Martin’s majestic Mass for Double Choir a cappella.

PROGRAM

WILLY BURKHARD - Kleiner Psalter (Little Psalter) for mixed choir a cappella

CYRILL SCHÜRCH - Psalm 19 (creation)

SARA ⁠BUCHER - Où quelque chose se mélange (Where something mixes)

FRANK MARTIN - Mass for Double Choir a cappella

JOSEF RHEINBERGER - Abendlied

Performance running time : 1h15 without intermission

This year, the Swiss Youth Choir not only celebrates its 30th anniversary but also the 50th anniversary of Frank Martin’s death, by featuring the renowned Mass for Double Choir a cappella, one of the iconic sacred choral works of the 20th century, at the center of its program. This piece has also played a significant role in the history of the Swiss Youth Choir, which has been diligently working on and regularly performing it for several years.

To commemorate this double jubilee, the choir has recently recorded the mass along with two works by Swiss composers: Kleiner Psalter by Willy Burkhard and a new creation by Cyrill Schürch, Psalm 19. They will unveil this new album on this occasion. To complete this Swiss triptych, the entirely a cappella program is enriched with pieces of different styles that showcase the choir’s diverse repertoire and enhance this festive moment.

Starting from CHF 15.-

Tickets available online or on site on the day of the concert

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INFORMATION & ACCESSIBILITY

For any information, especially regarding individuals with reduced mobility and their companions, please contact us at:

 accueil@odysseefrankmartin.ch or by telephone at 00 41 78 754 24 77

Swiss Youth Choir

violin

For nearly 30 years, the Swiss Youth Choir has generated enthusiasm with its freshness, musicality, and precision, through the diversity of its performances and its irresistible charm. The Swiss Youth Choir builds bridges between linguistic regions. It brings together pupils, high school students, apprentices, university students, and young professionals. Music students can also gain valuable experience and make useful contacts within the Swiss Youth Choir.

Time spent in the Swiss Youth Choir has always been a significant life experience for its members: the shared pursuit of perfection, the friendships formed across linguistic barriers and professional backgrounds, lead to incredible cohesion and impressive social skills among these young adults.

The Swiss Youth Choir unites two ensembles under one roof: the Concert Choir, with about fifty choristers aged 16 to 26, and, since 2020, the Symphonic Choir, which includes up to 100 choristers aged 16 to 30.

The Swiss Youth Choir is supported by the Federal Office of Culture (FOC) and is the only choir to receive direct support from the Swiss Choir Association (USC). Since its creation, the Swiss Youth Choir has been sponsored by the Swiss Choir Association and the Swiss Federation Europa Cantat (FSEC). The Swiss Youth Choir is a non-profit association, politically and confessionally neutral.

Nicolas Fink

conductor

Choir conductor, musical mediator, provider of ideas – Nicolas Fink does not shy away from anything when it comes to developing sound and sharing a living experience of choral music. An uncompromising sonic perfection, a primacy of the fit between content and music, and a quest for the exceptional are at the heart of the Berne-born musician’s artistic work. Nicolas Fink does not confine himself to a single style of music and is eager for eclecticism.

After graduating with honors in choral conducting from the Lucerne University of Music and Performing Arts and obtaining a concert diploma as a baritone, Nicolas Fink found his vocation as a choir conductor through several stages, including a Conducting Fellowship at the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s Tanglewood Music Center (2006). Radio choirs embody the ideal of his work in its purest form. His time as assistant conductor at Rundfunkchor Berlin made a significant impression; between 2010 and 2015, Nicolas Fink was able to combine the full spectrum of radio choir work, with insights into the development of new concert formats and music mediation, which had a lasting influence on him. Since then, Nicolas Fink has appeared as a guest conductor with the WDR and MDR radio choirs, the Chœur de Radio France, Vocalconsort Berlin, Coro Casa da Música Porto, Chamber Choir Ireland, Cor del Palau de la Música in Barcelona and Edvard Grieg Kor. A much sought-after partner for choir preparation, he has worked to date with more than 25 leading conductors, including Sir Simon Rattle, Valery Gergiev, Marek Janowski and Daniele Gatti. Since September 2020, he has led the WDR Rundfunkchor as Principal Conductor.

Nicolas Fink has been collaborating with the Swiss Youth Choir since 2016, and has been its artistic director since 2018.

LEA STADELMANN AND LYDIANE DE GRAFFENRIED

assistants

The Swiss Youth Choir awards two scholarships to young Swiss choir conductors aged 19 to 24. The assistants work closely with the musical director, Nicolas Fink. They are also responsible for managing the choir members and handling internal communication. The position of assistant with the Swiss Youth Choir prepares young choir conductors for their professional careers after completing their studies. One of the conditions for applying as an assistant is to be enrolled in higher education (preferably in choir conducting).

Lea (born in 1999) grew up in Lucerne. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree “Musique à l’école ” and in choral conducting with Ulrike Grosch at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts (HSLU). Lea conducts the “inkognito” choir in Lucerne and co-directs the Appenzell Youth Choir. Additionally, she regularly sings with the “Collegium Vokale zu Franziskanern” and the vocal ensemble “The Quire.” Starting in December 2023, she will co-direct the chamber choir “Molto Cantabile” in Lucerne with Chiara Selva.

Lydiane is from the canton of Vaud and has been singing with the CSJ since 2021. After obtaining a bachelor’s degree “Musique à l’école” from the HEMU in Lausanne, she is now studying musicology at the University of Fribourg and teaches music at the school in La Tour-de-Peilz. As a choir conductor, she is enrolled in the CH2 continuing education program offered by the Swiss Choral Association, directs the children’s choir “Croc’notes” in Attalens, and leads the youth choir “Canta Riviera” based in Vevey, which she founded in 2023.