Conventional boundaries are also becoming increasingly blurred in vocal music

Smaller professional vocal ensembles have redefined the role of the large choirs: Audite Nova Zug and Handel Chor Lucerne in comparison with the Vokalensemble Zürich and the Ensemble Corund Lucerne.

"Professionalism", "enthusiasm", "connectedness": these three keywords can be found at the top of the homepage of the Choir Audite Nova Zug, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this season. It’s no coincidence that, from 2005 on, it has defined itself with the mission statement as a "lay choir with professional standards". During this time, more and more smaller professional vocal ensembles have appeared on the scene, and these have redefined the role of the large choirs.

Audite Nova shows its colours with Hermann Suter's “Song of the Sun”
The choir's anniversary concert shows its colours with a programme that only a major choir can really perform: Hermann Suter's oratorio "Le Laudi di San Francesco d'Assisi" (The Praises of St Francis of Assisi) and a related world premiere of “Benedizione” by the Zug composer Carl Rütti. Hermann Suter's setting of Franz von Assisi's “Sonnengesang” (Song to the Sun) from 1923 embodies like no other work the tradition of the great amateur choirs in our country that began in the 19th century.

The Zug choir Audite Nova is celebrating its 50th anniversary in the Unterägeri parish church (photo from 2018).             Photo: Maria Schmid

The music not only brings together a "hundred people from around twenty nations", as Audite Nova describes itself. In addition, there is the Zug Sinfonietta, the Concert Choir of the Zug Music School, the ladies of the Zug Chamber Choir and a soloist quartet around the soprano Gabriela Bürgler. The organ in the parish church Unterägeri will be played by Carl Rütti himself. With the use of these sounds, Suter increases the praise of God to include the radiance of the sun and the forces of nature of wind, water and fire, before the work fades into a mystical pianissimo.

Handel Choir Lucerne: Versatility also under Andrew Dunscombe
The anniversary concert of Audite Nova Zug also marks a turning point, because conductor Johannes Meister announced his retirement at retirement age. A change of conductor has already taken place at the Handel Choir Lucerne, however. The British-Swiss conductor and pianist Andrew Dunscombe took over its direction during the Corona period. The former director of studies at the Lucerne Theatre has conducted musicals for the Lake Thun Festival, and also directs the Lucerne University Choir and at the English Theatre Group of Zug.

Andrew Dunscombe is thereby continuing to promote the versatility of the Handel Choir with its almost 100 members, which was already influenced by Pirmin Lang. The inaugural concert “Exsultate!” included mysteriously unfolding works of the Renaissance, which can be encountered almost exclusively in small ensembles. But the wind instruments and percussion of the “UnglauBlech” ensemble (organ: Martin Heini) are added to the choral sound. They create an opening fanfare from "O Clap Your Hands" from Ralph Vaughan Williams' which recalls the loop in the Beatles' "Revolution 9".

The popular works by the successful English composer John Rutter, who further developed the tradition of English cathedral music with elements of jazz and pop, gather Influences from the centuries and from around the world,.

Vokalensemble Zürich: Hand-picked individuality
Individuality is already the trump card in professional vocal ensembles with almost 20 singers from the choice of the line-up. The Zurich Vocal Ensemble, led by Peter Siegwart from Lucerne, has been proving this for 30 years, with personally composed programmes. On the occasion of the Jubilee, there are even two of them, which are connected by the motif of the pilgrimage.

The first focuses on music for a theatrical celebration of the Italian Renaissance (with lutenist Eduardo Egüez and ensemble La Chimera, on 13 June). The second dives into romantic fairytale worlds with Robert Schumann's "The Rose Pilgrimage" (piano: Peter Baur, 26 June). Both programmes are combined by texts by Fernando Pessoa (recitation: Robert Hunger-Bühler) and "Schattenklänge" by Siegwart.

Ensemble Corund: Coronation with two stars
The way in which roles can be reversed is shown by the fact that it is not one of the major choirs, but the Ensemble Corund that dedicates itself to the monumental Handel style. To a certain extent, his crowning glory at the KKL concert is made up of Handel's great "Coronation Anthems" in every respect. The star status of Handel, who appeared as an organ virtuoso during the breaks of his oratorios, is commemorated by his Organ Concerto of the Cuckoo and the Nightingale, with the organist Alina Nikitina.

Stephen Smith has also engaged a star singer in Anne-Sophie von Otter. The Swedish mezzo-soprano is a soloist in opera arias by Handel (including «Cara Sposa» from «Rinaldo») and, in a contemporary work, Caroline Shaw's song cycle «Is a Rose». Written for mezzo-soprano and baroque orchestra, it is another indication of how conventional boundaries are becoming increasingly blurred in vocal music.

The concerts this weekend:

Audite Nova Zug: Sat, 11 June, 20.00; Sun, 12 June, 17.00, Parish Church Unterägeri.

Handel Choir Lucerne: Sat, 11 June, 19.30; 12 June, 17.00, Lukaskirche Luzern.

Vokalensemble Zürich: Mon, 13 June, 20.00; Sun, 26 June, 20.00, St. Matthew's Church Lucerne.

Ensemble Corund: Sun, 19 June, 18.00, Konzertsaal, KKL, Luzern.