The Stuttgarter Hymnus-Chorknaben (Stuttgart hymn choir boys) is a German

boys' choir A boys' choir is a choir primarily made up of choirboys who have yet to begin puberty or are in the early to middle stages of puberty and so retain their more highly pitched childhood voice type. Members of a boys' choir are technically known as '' ...

founded in Stuttgart in 1900 by the Swabian

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values t ...

in 1900.

History

Lechler's models were the

Thomanerchor The Thomanerchor (English: St. Thomas Choir of Leipzig) is a boys' choir in Leipzig, Germany. The choir was founded in 1212. The choir comprises about 90 boys from 9 to 18 years of age. The members, called ''Thomaner'', reside in a boarding sch ...

and the Dresdner Kreuzchor. After World War II, the choir was continued in 1946 by , who conducted the group until 1987. The boys soon reached a high artistic level, which was also recognised abroad. Eckhard Weyand succeeded Wilhelm, leading the choir until 1992. From 1992 until 2010 the choir was directed by

Kirchenmusikdirektor Kirchenmusikdirektor (KMD, director of church music) is a German title for professional church musicians (' who have responsibility for not only a parish but a larger region, in both Protestant and Catholic church music. The title is also sometimes ...

Hanns-Friedrich Kunz Hanns-Friedrich Kunz (born 21 February 1945) is a German choral conductor. Life and career Born in Ochsenhausen, Kunz first studied music at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst Stuttgart. He then moved to Freiburg where ...

, who retired in March 2010. The choir has been led by since. Even though churches and concert halls in

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...

are the centre of their public appearances, the choir was on successful concert tours through Germany and Europe. The choir has a broad repertoire of sacred vocal music, especially music by

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...

and other Baroque composers. The choir performs in church services. About 170 boys and 30 young men come together to rehearse in Stuttgart once week, because the choir has no boarding school. The boys start to learn reading easy music and dealing with musical basics at an age of seven or eight years. Later, usually after three years, the boys are introduced to the literature of the concert choir and start to fully participate in concerts. After the voice has changed, the boys can sing as

tenor A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The low extreme for tenors is wide ...

s or

basses Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass ...

. Skilled voice teachers support the singers in individual voice lessons.

External links

*
Official website, full German version

fan site (German and English)
{{Authority control German choirs Choirs of children Boys' and men's choirs Musical groups established in 1900 Musical groups established in 1946 1900 establishments in Germany Musical groups from Stuttgart