36 min
Ep. 51: University of Birmingham MA Music (Choral Conducting) - interview with students and course director Simon Halsey Talking Classical Podcast
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- Society & Culture
Last week, I went to the University of Birmingham (UK) to learn about its MA Music: Choral Conducting pathway, celebrating its tenth anniversary this year. In the first part of this podcast, we'll hear from the course's director Simon Halsey. He talks about how the course was developed from his desire to pass on what he'd learnt from an extensive career as a choral conductor and director, specifically, training a choir to sing with an orchestra. This is the course's main focus - it's the only choral conducting course to be run with a major international orchestra: the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. However, students are immersed in many genres of choral conducting throughout the degree. It's an intensive course but the students should leave with plenty of ideas about how to conduct choirs in their home countries or other capacities.
Then we'll hear from four students on this year's course (2021/22), why they chose to specifically come to Birmingham, their ambitions and what attracts them to choral conducting.
Simon Halsey occupies a unique position in classical music. He is the trusted advisor on choral singing to the world’s greatest conductors, orchestras and choruses; as an ambassador for choral singing to amateurs of every age, ability and background he has led ground-breaking massed choral events, notably for New York’s Lincoln Center.
Making singing a central part of the world-class institutions with which he is associated, he has been instrumental in changing the level of symphonic singing across Europe. He holds positions across the UK and Europe as Choral Director of London Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Chorus Director of City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra Chorus, Artistic Director of Orfeó Català Choirs and Artistic Adviser of Palau de la Música, BarcelonaCreative Director for Choral Music and Projects at WDR Rundfunkchor, Conductor Laureate of Rundfunkchor Berlin and Professor and Director of Choral Activities at University of Birmingham.
He is also a highly respected teacher and academic, nurturing the next generation of choral conductors on his post-graduate course in Birmingham and through masterclasses at Princeton, Yale and elsewhere. He holds four honorary doctorates from universities in the UK, and in 2011 Schott Music published his book and DVD on choral conducting, Chorleitung: Vom Konzept zum Konzert.
Halsey's numerous awards include three Grammys for his recordings with the Rundfunkchor Berlin. He was made Commander of the British Empire in 2015, was awarded The Queen's Medal for Music in 2014, and received the Officer's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany in 2011 in recognition of his outstanding contribution to choral music in Germany.
Born in London, Simon Halsey sang in the choirs of New College, Oxford, and of King's College, Cambridge and studied conducting at the Royal College of Music in London. In 1987, he founded with Graham Vick the City of Birmingham Touring Opera. He was Chief Conductor of the Netherlands Radio Choir from 1997 to 2008 and Principal Conductor of the Northern Sinfonia's Choral Programme from 2004 to 2012. From 2001-2015 he led the Rundfunkchor Berlin (of which he is now Conductor Laureate); under his leadership the chorus gained a reputation internationally as one of the finest professional choral ensembles. Halsey also initiated innovative projects in unconventional venues and interdisciplinary formats.
MA Music (Choral Conducting) students: Jonathan Hatley, Jonathan Lucas Wood, James Bate and Daniel Tíjaro. *Interview with the MA students recorded in the foyer of Birmingham University's Music Hub - edited transcript here: https://bit.ly/3mHZzLf.
Interviews recorded on 4 October 2021; published 12 October 2021.
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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/talking-classical-podcast/message
Last week, I went to the University of Birmingham (UK) to learn about its MA Music: Choral Conducting pathway, celebrating its tenth anniversary this year. In the first part of this podcast, we'll hear from the course's director Simon Halsey. He talks about how the course was developed from his desire to pass on what he'd learnt from an extensive career as a choral conductor and director, specifically, training a choir to sing with an orchestra. This is the course's main focus - it's the only choral conducting course to be run with a major international orchestra: the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. However, students are immersed in many genres of choral conducting throughout the degree. It's an intensive course but the students should leave with plenty of ideas about how to conduct choirs in their home countries or other capacities.
Then we'll hear from four students on this year's course (2021/22), why they chose to specifically come to Birmingham, their ambitions and what attracts them to choral conducting.
Simon Halsey occupies a unique position in classical music. He is the trusted advisor on choral singing to the world’s greatest conductors, orchestras and choruses; as an ambassador for choral singing to amateurs of every age, ability and background he has led ground-breaking massed choral events, notably for New York’s Lincoln Center.
Making singing a central part of the world-class institutions with which he is associated, he has been instrumental in changing the level of symphonic singing across Europe. He holds positions across the UK and Europe as Choral Director of London Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Chorus Director of City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra Chorus, Artistic Director of Orfeó Català Choirs and Artistic Adviser of Palau de la Música, BarcelonaCreative Director for Choral Music and Projects at WDR Rundfunkchor, Conductor Laureate of Rundfunkchor Berlin and Professor and Director of Choral Activities at University of Birmingham.
He is also a highly respected teacher and academic, nurturing the next generation of choral conductors on his post-graduate course in Birmingham and through masterclasses at Princeton, Yale and elsewhere. He holds four honorary doctorates from universities in the UK, and in 2011 Schott Music published his book and DVD on choral conducting, Chorleitung: Vom Konzept zum Konzert.
Halsey's numerous awards include three Grammys for his recordings with the Rundfunkchor Berlin. He was made Commander of the British Empire in 2015, was awarded The Queen's Medal for Music in 2014, and received the Officer's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany in 2011 in recognition of his outstanding contribution to choral music in Germany.
Born in London, Simon Halsey sang in the choirs of New College, Oxford, and of King's College, Cambridge and studied conducting at the Royal College of Music in London. In 1987, he founded with Graham Vick the City of Birmingham Touring Opera. He was Chief Conductor of the Netherlands Radio Choir from 1997 to 2008 and Principal Conductor of the Northern Sinfonia's Choral Programme from 2004 to 2012. From 2001-2015 he led the Rundfunkchor Berlin (of which he is now Conductor Laureate); under his leadership the chorus gained a reputation internationally as one of the finest professional choral ensembles. Halsey also initiated innovative projects in unconventional venues and interdisciplinary formats.
MA Music (Choral Conducting) students: Jonathan Hatley, Jonathan Lucas Wood, James Bate and Daniel Tíjaro. *Interview with the MA students recorded in the foyer of Birmingham University's Music Hub - edited transcript here: https://bit.ly/3mHZzLf.
Interviews recorded on 4 October 2021; published 12 October 2021.
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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/talking-classical-podcast/message
36 min