When was the sixteen choir formed

The Sixteen. Click on the CD covers for details. Newsletter To receive our latest updates and news by email please subscribe to the Genesis Foundation newsletter. News About us Contact Us. My Account Items in basket. About us. Keep up to date with the latest news First Name Surname Email address:. Today, there are so many really good singers about, and you really have to be at the top of your game all the time. There can be few who would dispute that The Sixteen have long been a benchmark for choral excellence — flawless in ensemble and radiating a sound that combines the vocal strength and focus of the professional chamber choir with the tonal warmth that comes from precise tuning and a carefully honed choral blend.

The macho edge heard from some other high-powered choirs is tamed by Christophers, who favours instead smooth contours and lovingly sculpted phrases. To see them performing live, furthermore, is to be acutely aware of the technical assurance and musical commitment of every one of the singers — indeed, notable former members include Sarah Connolly, Mark Padmore, Carolyn Sampson and Christopher Purves.

But ensemble singing is an art in itself, and while the UK is not short of highly accomplished professional singers, selection is still a special skill. That principle has never changed, but what I do think has changed is that the whole quality of voices has improved so much. The thing I noticed when we made a Christmas programme a few years ago and all the sopranos had a solo was that every one of those six sopranos had a completely different voice, there was no sense of them being uniform.

But they also know how to sing with each other, support their colleagues and make it gel. So what was it that caused The Sixteen to come into being? The purpose of this project — which provides new recruits to cathedral choirs up and down the country — is to show young singers the realities they will come up against. While top soloists like Sarah Connolly and Christopher Purves a former Sixteen member give voice coaching, other tutors tell students about gritty necessities like agents and tax, while an ENT surgeon — once a singer himself — comes in to explain how the voice works, what can happen to it, and how important it is not to tear it to shreds by pushing it too soon or too hard.

Musical education in state schools now scarcely exists. Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies.