ENSEMBLES 2009
Kinder- & Jugendsingakademie Graz
One of the oldest Austrian boarding high schools (since 1854) in Graz with its attached Singing-Academy offers its pupils a comprehensive vocal education (about 60 pupils in the highest concert level)
The main emphasis is in preparing its ensembles for classical choir and orchestra concerts (e.g. “Verdi-Requiem”, Beethoven’s “Missa Solemnis”, Haydn’s “The Creation”, Mendelssohn’s “Elias”…). The Academy also trains up-and-coming soloists for participation in competitions and opera productions (e.g. Mozart’s “Magic Flute”, “Evangelimann” …), with its singers regularly winning prizes at competitions (23 national 1st prizes and 14 international like 3 Golden Gate Globes in San Francisco 2006, European children’s choir Champion 2008, 4 Olympic Medals at World Choir Games 2008 in the categories “children’s choir”, “musica sacra”, “folklore” and “musica contemporanea”)
On their international tours (to such countries as Finland, England, Germany, Belgium, USA, Hungary, Spain, Italy, Wales, Danmark, China ..) the young singers from Graz try to build a bridge from the rich Austrian choir tradition to contemporary music. These achievements are the result of the great enthusiasm for singing of the pupils of Graz, and their intensive focus on their overarching goal: perfecting the sound of the young voice!
Maria Fürntratt
Conductor
Maria Fürntratt has been the choirmaster at the Graz Boarding High school since 1995 and is the Artistic Director of the Singing-Academy.
As a convinced music- and singing-educationalist (master of arts at the Kunstuniversität Graz) she won the national pedagogy price 2004 (“Pädagogischer Panther) for the work with “her” pupils and teaches choir-pedagogy at the university. The Japanese Television NHK produced a 20-minutes portrait about Maria Fürntratt in 1999 and she has gained international and national concert- and jury-member-experiences.
Her focus is on the cultivation of the Austrian traditional singing technique. Her personal slogan is “singing as an adventure”.
Competition Program
F. Mendelssohn-Bartholdy: “Hebe deine Augen auf”
H. Reiter: “Bitte Betti”
A. Kubizek: “Memento homo”
P. Kostiainen: “Jaakobin pojat”
M. Winges: “The Moondance”
Additional Concerts Program
Altfranz. Anonymus: „Cum luya“
Steir. Volkslied: „Erzherzog Johann Jodler“
G. Verdi: „Hexenchor“
G.P. da Palestrina: “Pueri hebraeorum”
F. Mendelssohn-Barholdy: „Hebe deine Augen auf“
J. Brahms: „Regina coeli laetare“
A. Kubizek: “Memento homo”
H. Reiter: “Dicit Dominus”
P. Kostiainen: “Jaakobin pojat”
W. Wagner: „Zauberspruch, um einen Furunkel zu bannen“
H. Reiter: „Bitte Betti“
M. Winges: „The Moondance“
F. Cerha: “Bekenntnis”
Volkslied – Satz M. Fürntratt: „Is scho still uman See“
China – Satz M. Fürntratt: “Ni wen wo ai”
P. Simon: „Bridge over troubled water“