The Manchester Boys Choir was founded in 1981 by Adrian P. Jessett and quickly gained a reputation as one of the finest boys' choirs in the world. It prided itself on producing the finest voices without the need for auditioning. From 1996 to 2003 it held the title as the Choir in Residence at The Bridgewater Hall and performed before the Queen on the Hall's opening night.
Since its foundation, the choir has performed at venues all over the UK including the Royal Albert Hall, The Royal Concert Hall (Glasgow), The London Palladium (for the Children's Royal Variety Performance), The Barbican and the Royal Festival Hall. For many years the choir travelled to the Costwolds in the spring for a training week, performing a number of concerts across the area in the process.
The Choir has won the prestigious Llangollen International Eisteddfod (twice) and the UK National Choral Competition, and was a finalist in the Sainsbury's Choir of the Year competition.
Since its foundation, the Manchester Boys Choir has toured to countries including Australia, Finland, Russia, Canada, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Hong Kong, Singapore and Denmark.
The Choir has worked with the Hallé Orchestra, the BBC Philharmonic and the Manchester Camerata and has performed on radio and television. The Choir has also produced many high quality soloists for Opera North.
After a tour of Finland, a critic believed it to be a performance from one of the finest boys' choirs in the world. The Manchester Boys Choir has established a worldwide reputation in a short space of time, without need for auditioning boys. Anyone who wishes to sing has a place in the choir. New arrivals would usually spend some time in the Training Choir before moving on to the Junior Singers and then to the main concert choir. There was also a male voice section for boys to progress to when their voice had broken. While some boys would have left the choir by 18 years often some remained into their adulthood. The following quotation by a former head chorister embodied the choir's deep pride on producing world class performances from humble beginnings:
Individually we are ordinary, but together we are something quite special.
The Choir is now closed following a change of directorship in 2001 and the subsequent ending of funding by the local education authority due to falling membership numbers and falling standards of performance.
In Canada, classical music includes a range of musical styles rooted in the traditions of Western or European classical music that European settlers brought to the country from the 17th century and onwards. As well, it includes musical styles brought by other ethnic communities from the 19th century and onwards, such as Indian classical music and Chinese classical music. Since Canada's emergence as a nation in 1867, the country has produced its own composers, musicians and ensembles. As well, it has developed a music infrastructure that includes training institutions, conservatories, performance halls, and a public radio broadcaster, CBC, which programs a moderate amount of Classical music. There is a high level of public interest in classical music and education.
Linda Cullberg Lampenius, better known by her maiden name Linda Lampenius and international stage name Linda Brava, is a Finnish classical concert violinist. Named as one of the most versatile and accomplished players of her generation, Brava has also performed pop, rock, folk, techno, film, jazz, and world music, among others.
London Gay Men's Chorus is a gay choir that was founded in 1991 by a group of nine gay men. The group now has around 190 singing members and over 230 members in total.
The Morriston Orpheus Choir, based in Morriston, near Swansea, Wales, is a male voice choir, one of the best-known in the UK.
The Australian Children's Choir (ACC), founded in 1976, is a mixed-voice children's choir based in Melbourne, Australia, and consisting of some 200 boys and girls aged 5 to 20 in six different training ensembles. The choir has developed a strong reputation for its refined performances, varied repertoire and the production of fine young musicians, many of whom have gone on to pursue successful musical careers.
The Raleigh Boychoir is a 70-member choral group based in Raleigh, North Carolina, that trains school-aged boys in singing and performing choral music in the boychoir tradition.
The Atlanta Boy Choir is a renowned choral group for boys and men in Atlanta, Georgia. The choir, as it is known today, was founded in 1959 by Maestro Fletcher Wolfe and his wife Roberta Kahne Wolfe. The choir is an ambassador internationally, performing across North America and Europe in many of the most renowned concert halls and cathedrals in the world.
NYCOS is a youth arts organisation, dedicated to providing high-level singing opportunities for Scotland's young singers aged 0–25. Led by Artistic Director, Christopher Bell, NYCOS provides a national infrastructure for young people, teachers and choir directors to support and develop choral singing in Scotland.
Voices of Birralee is a non-profit youth choral organization, based in Brisbane, Australia, which has gained a reputation for its leading choirs, that have performed in front of audiences in both Australia and across the world.
The National Youth Choirs of Great Britain (NYCGB) is the family of choirs for outstanding young singers, and those with outstanding potential, in the United Kingdom. It comprises a total of five choirs for around 750 young people between the ages of 9 and 25:
Kerry Jane Ellis is an English actress and singer who is best known for her work in musical theatre and subsequent crossover into music. Born and raised in Suffolk, Ellis began performing at an early age before training at Laine Theatre Arts from the age of 16.
St. Paul's Choir School is a Catholic choir school located at the Church of St. Paul, Harvard Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1963, by Dr. Theodore Marier (1912-2001), the middle school for boys in third through eighth grades is the only boys' choir school in the United States of America affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church. The Choir School educates and trains the choirboys who sing soprano in the choir of St. Paul's, a choir of boys and men. The choir sings for liturgical services at St. Paul's Church and performs primarily in and around the Boston area. It is located within the Archdiocese of Boston.
The Amabile Choirs of London, Canada is a nonprofit organization with the purpose of bringing together young singers from London, Ontario and surrounding areas. This family of choirs began in 1985 with John Barron and Brenda Zadorsky founding the Amabile Youth Singers, and has since grown to eight choirs under the direction of seven conductors. The Junior Amabile Singers followed in 1989, and the Amabile Boys Choirs were established in 1990.
The Maryland State Boychoir is a choir based in Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded in 1987 by Frank Cimino, and was designated by Maryland Governor William Donald Schaefer as "Maryland's Official Goodwill Ambassadors". The choir is a donor-supported 501(c)3 organization that provides talented boys an opportunity to sing at a professional level while developing their self-esteem, self-discipline, and character. The choir is composed of approximately 150 choristers, ages 7 to 20, who come from a wide range of ethnic, socioeconomic, and religious backgrounds. They perform locally, nationally, and internationally. The founder, Frank Cimino, is currently retired but still assists with the choir. Stephen Holmes is the Artistic Director, conducting and teaching the choir, along with Joseph Shortall, the Assistant Director. The Maryland State Boychoir provides an opportunity for boys of all backgrounds to come together and sing. The choir is divided into the following groupings, based on musical knowledge, voice part, and skill.
Eimear Mary Rose Quinn is an Irish singer and composer. She is best known for winning the Eurovision Song Contest 1996 with the song "The Voice". Since then she has toured and performed extensively internationally and has released four albums of her work, the most recent being Ériu, recorded with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and released in 2020.
The Phoenix Boys Choir is a Grammy Award winning boys choir based in Phoenix, Arizona and the largest boys' choir in the United States.
The San Diego Children's Choir is a nonprofit organization committed to providing high quality music education and performance experiences to a diverse range of youth from the San Diego, California area. Founded in 1990, the San Diego Children's Choir is the area's oldest and largest choral training program serving more than 500 children ages four–18 at locations throughout San Diego County. It was incorporated as a non-profit public benefit corporation in 1990. Rehearsals and performances of fine music literature form the foundation of instruction and provide the youth of San Diego opportunities for artistic and personal growth through choral music performance.
Taplow Choirs is a group of four professional youth choirs for young people which rehearse in the village of Taplow, UK near Slough. It was founded in September 2004 by Philip Viveash and Gillian Dibden MBE after both conductors split from Berkshire Maestros. They held their first concert in the Christmas of 2004. They frequently perform in venues such as Windsor Castle and other professional events around London, have been on international tours and won the BBC's choir of the year award.
The Ragazzi Boys Chorus is a boys' and young men's chorus in the San Francisco Bay Area and is known for winning a Grammy Award for Best Classical Album in 2000 for its participation in Perséphone with the San Francisco Symphony. The chorus was formed in 1987 with 6 boys, and it now includes more than 250 singers from 100 schools in 30 Bay Area communities including San Mateo, Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties. The choir has placed highly in numerous international competitions. It also auditions the most singers to either national or state American Choral Directors Association honor choirs each year.
Masterworks Chorale is a choral ensemble based in San Mateo, California.
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