Gondwana Choir

Gondwana World Choral Festival is set to be the greatest gathering of international choirs in Australia this century, as more than one thousand young singers from some of the world’s finest choirs converge on Sydney to join in song and celebrate 30 years of Gondwana Choirs and Sydney Children’s Choir on 15 – 21 July 2019.

The new festival brings together extraordinary young singers from Canada, China (including Inner Mongolia), Estonia, France, Japan, Latvia, the USA, and around Australia to perform two gala concerts at the iconic Sydney Opera House and a series of performances at Sydney Conservatorium of Music.

A group of talented local children from Annandale, Balmain, Birchgrove, Camperdown,Chiswick, Drummoyne, Dulwich Hill, Earlwood, Enmore, Erskineville, Forest Lodge, Glebe,Haberfield, Leichhardt, Lewisham, Lilyfield, Marrickville, Newtown, Petersham, Rozelle, Stanmore, St Peters, and Summer Hill will take to the stage as part of Sydney Children’s Choir to perform alongside a diverse lineup of international children’s guest choirs, including Boston Children’s Chorus, USA; Estonian Television Girls’ Choir, Estonia; La Cigale de Lyon, France; Guangdong Experimental Middle School Choir, China; Inner Mongolia Youth Choir, China; Nagoya Children’s Choir, Japan; Riga Cathedral Girls’ Choir TIARA, Latvia; and Toronto Children’s Chorus, Canada. Host choirs include Sydney Children’s Choir; Gondwana Indigenous Choir, and their big sisters, Marliya (Cairns); and Gondwana Latitude 34. Other performing Australian choirs include Hunter Singers (NSW), Luminescence Children’s Choir (ACT), Resonance of Birralee (QLD), Valla Voices (NSW), and Young Adelaide Voices (SA).

The week-long event is hosted by Gondwana Choirs to celebrate three decades of Gondwana, which began when Artistic Director Lyn Williams AM founded the Sydney Children’s Choir in 1989 and gave life to a new and distinctly Australian genre of choral music.

Gondwana World Choral Festival Artistic Director and founder of Gondwana Choirs, Lyn Williams AM, said: “We are excited to welcome a collection of the world’s finest choirs to Sydney. This will be a unique opportunity to experience sublime young voices from across the world collaborating with our wonderful Australian choirs. Audiences will be delighted by the visually and aurally astounding choral presentation.

“While our international counterparts have celebrated the tradition of song for centuries, choral music is a relatively new art form in Australia. Gondwana Choirs has been instrumental in developing the genre in Australia, commissioning hundreds of new works and forging the path for a rapidly growing and vibrant choral culture in this country.

“We know amazing things happen when young people sing together, and we won’t rest until every child sings,” said Williams.

Minister for Tourism Stuart Ayres said the festival provides a unique opportunity to witness the best young choral singers from around the world.

“From Boston to Lyon, Nagoya to Sydney, these young choirs performing at the Gondwana World Choral Festival in Sydney will represent every corner of the globe. This is reflective of our Harbour City’s reputation as a world-leading destination for major events, and the NSW Government’s commitment to driving record numbers of visitors to Sydney.

“I am delighted we are able to support this incredible initiative via the NSW Government’s tourism and major events agency Destination NSW, and in doing so, help foster the musical talents of children from so many countries and cultures,” Mr Ayres said.

The festival begins with an opening gala concert – Sounds of Australia – at Sydney Opera House Concert Hall on Monday, 15 July at 7pm, with an all Australian line-up: Sydney Children’s Choir, Cairns-based Gondwana Indigenous Children’s Choir and Gondwana Latitude 34. Tickets $35-99 plus booking fees.

Festivities culminate with the Sounds of the World closing gala concert at Sydney Opera House Concert Hall on Sunday, 21 July at 3pm, which boasts the greatest variety of choirs ever heard under one roof. For the first time, Sydney Children’s Choir will perform alongside all international guest choirs and their artistic directors. Tickets $35-99 plus booking fees.

Each choir will appear in concert multiple times across the week, performing their signature repertoire, including music from their homeland. The festival program also features a series of recitals, workshops, masterclasses and panel discussions at the festival hub at Sydney Conservatorium of Music.

The Sounds of Australia gala concert includes the world premiere of two new works: one by Australian composer Paul Stanhope, and another by leading American classical composer Nico Muhly, who will make his first Australian appearances at the festival.

Gondwana World Choral Festival is presented with support from the NSW State Government through Destination NSW, in partnership with the Sydney Opera House, the University of Sydney (Sydney Conservatorium) and the NSW Department of Education (Conservatorium High School), with Broadcast Partner ABC Classic.

For tickets and more information, please visit gondwana-wcf.org.au