The Escolania de Montserrat, or simply the Escolania () is a

boys' choir A boys' choir is a one made up of boys who have yet to begin (or are just in the early stages of) puberty and so retain their high-pitched childhood voice. Members are known as trebles ("boy sopranos") or meanes ("boy altos"), depending on their ...

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...

s and

alto The musical term alto, meaning "high" in Italian (Latin: '' altus''), historically refers to the contrapuntal part higher than the tenor and its associated vocal range. In four-part voice leading alto is the second-highest part, sung in ch ...

s based at the Benedictine abbey

Santa Maria de Montserrat Santa Maria de Montserrat () is an abbey of the Order of Saint Benedict located on the mountain of Montserrat in Monistrol de Montserrat, Catalonia, Spain. It is notable for enshrining the image of the Virgin of Montserrat. The monastery was f ...

near

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. When the repertory requires it, they are accompanied by the Montserrat Chapel Choir, composed of old

choirboy A choirboy is a boy member of a choir, also known as a treble. As a derisive slang term, it refers to a do-gooder or someone who is morally upright, in the same sense that "Boy Scout" (also derisively) refers to someone who is considered honor ...

s and the monks of the Ministry Chapel Choir. The Escolania of Montserrat, which belongs to the Monastery of Montserrat, is one of the oldest boys choirs in Europe. Records show that the Escolania has existed as a religious and musical institution since the 14th century. It is composed of more than fifty boys, from ages nine to fourteen, originating from various towns in

, the

Balearic Islands The Balearic Islands are an archipelago in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago forms a Provinces of Spain, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain, ...

, and the

Valencian community The Valencian Community is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most populous Spanish Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community after Andalusia, Catalonia and the Community of Madrid wit ...

. During their time at the Escolania, they complete courses at the Primary, and beginning of Secondary levels, as well as corresponding musical studies. Each student must study two instruments; the piano, as well as a second orchestral instrument of their choice. Along with this, they study Musical Language, Orchestra, and participate in the choir (the distinguished focus of the school).

Musical Activities of the Choir

The school choir sings daily in the Basilica, often in front of large groups of pilgrims and visitors from around the world. The midday singing of Salve Regina has become the most attended act of the Sanctuary. They have released numerous albums, and have toured in various countries such as: Hungary, Switzerland, France, Italy, Ireland, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Russia, where they have performed three times (Moscow 2011 & 2013, and St. Petersburg 2011), United States (2014) and China (2015).''La Revista de l'Escolania''
In March 2023 they performed 3 concerts in Australia as part of the Adelaide Festival.

History

*1025: The Benedictine Community of Montserrat was founded.Albareda, Anselm: ''Història de Montserrat''. Montserrat (1931) *12th Century: Period of the

Virgin of Montserrat Our Lady of Montserrat or the Virgin of Montserrat () is a Marian title associated with a statue of the Madonna and Child venerated at the Santa Maria de Montserrat monastery on Montserrat mountain in Catalonia, Spain. She is the patroness sai ...

. Pilgrims started to climb the mountain to venerate the Virgin. *1307: First documentation showing the existence of the Escolania, which is also the first reference to the choir robes worn today.Caralt, Ambròs M.: ''L'Escolania de Montserrat''. Abadia de Montserrat (1955) *1479: The choir sang for the Catholic King Fernando during his visit to Barcelona. *1494: Abbot Garcia de Cisneros spoke of the importance of religious music in relation to the choristers of the Escolania, which was made up of about 20 boys at the time. *16th Century: Bartomeu Garriga, a chorister at the time, promised that when he was older, he would make a great temple for the Virgin. In 1560, as Abbot of the Monastery, he started to construct the current Basilica. *17th-18th Century: Period of growth, with the first appearance of Masters of the Escolania. This title was given to monks that directed the choir and cultivated a new repertoire of compositions. *1889-1909: Fr. Manuel Guzman introduced a new style to the sound of the choir, and continued on to teach future directors of the Escolania. *1909-1911: Fr.Ramir Escofet became director. *1911-1933: Fr. Anselm Ferrer, of Italy, became the director and composer. He created the first recordings of the Escolania and evolved the tone of the choir. *1933-1936: Blessed Fr. Angel Rodamilan was director as well as a martyr during the Civil War. *1936-1939: The monks and students needed to abandon Montserrat during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

. *1939-1953: Fr. David Pujol was director. *1953-1997: Fr. Ireneu Segarra, director and composer. Under his leadership, the choir grew to fifty students, and released numerous records. They also began to perform concerts outside of Montserrat for the first time in the 1960s, including international tours. *1997-2000: Fr. Jordi-Agustí Piqué was the director. *2000-2007: Joaquim Piqué was the first lay director. *2007–2014: Bernat Vivancos was the director. *2014-Present: Llorenç Castelló is the current director.''Director del Cor''
.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Escolania Choirs of children Boys' and men's choirs Spanish choirs Musical groups from Catalonia Music schools in Spain Musical groups established in the 14th century