God save the "Nachwuchsarbeit": Young choir Solothurn
What originally began as a coronavirus project has been enriching the musical life of the Aare region since 2021. At Easter, around 25 young adults presented their third program under the direction of Lea Scherer and Joël Morand.
The career of his co-leadership is indicative of the new project choir: Having been infected with a passion for choral music and singing together as children themselves, they are committed to Lea Scherer and Joël Morand for years at the two large local choir schools. Almost all of the singers in the Young Choir have been trained in the Solothurn Girls' Choir or the Boys' Choir of St. Ursus Cathedral and some of them are active there - and what an asset this is could be heard at the concert in the Franciscan Church in Solothurn on April 4.
Just Good Music
A sophisticated British-Swiss a cappella program under the title God save the Queen music! was put together by Lea and Joël, and in front of a packed audience of young listeners, it quickly became clear that this was music of a high standard.
Martha von Castelbergs O bone Jesu clear high notes and an astonishingly velvety low register, good diction and clear vocal lines in I raise my eyes by Willy Burkhard. In the challenging church acoustics, two movements of the Mass pour double chœur by Frank Martin, the young ensemble mastered the task with flying colors. With a homogeneous sound (and obvious training in Renaissance vocal music), the Music divine by Thomas Tomkins, as well as the Pyramid Song by Radiohead.
The ensemble interpreted the Advance Democracy by Benjamin Britten from 1938, a work that called for the defense of democratic values in the run-up to the Second World War. It is also worth mentioning that there was no staging "frippery" (quote from the audience) and that the music was the "queen" of the evening.
Basic training pays off
The Young choir Solothurn shows in a touching way how valuable all efforts in the musical education of children and young people are. The countless hours of vocal training, rehearsals and project work form the basis for the impressive level of music-making here.
Even if the resources are perhaps not yet too plentiful and there is a lack of time for two projects per year in the future: The young singers radiate a high level of ambition and confidence to prove themselves musically in a harmonious environment. The Solothurn Young Choir can count on a supportive environment in the city and is a member of the cantonal choir association.
Between youth choir and 60+
The offer closes a gap that many young (semi-professional) singers encounter as soon as they outgrow the youth choirs: where can they continue to sing to a high standard, continue their musical training with their peers (in any case with "non-60+" singers) and present good programs? University choirs may not be at the level hoped for, and the "gap" to existing adult choirs and traditional amateur choirs sometimes seems large.
The modest and obviously dedicated leadership of the Young Choir enables the singers, only a small number of whom aspire to a professional musical career, to establish their own musical home. The possibility of an identity-forming musical activity in the supposedly depreciated "choral society", and for an enthusiastic audience to boot, is now available in Solothurn.
The next generation is preparing to further develop choral life in Switzerland and enrich regional cultural life.
