Mädchenkantorei Limburg (Limburg Girls' Choir; ), officially Mädchenkantorei am Hohen Dom zu Limburg (Girls' Choir of the High Cathedral at Limburg), is a girls' cathedral choir at

Limburg Cathedral Limburg Cathedral (, also known as ''Georgsdom'' ("George's Cathedral") after its dedication to Saint George, is located above the old town of Limburg in Hesse, Germany. It is the cathedral of the Catholic Diocese of Limburg. Its high location ...

in Limburg,

Hesse Hesse or Hessen ( ), officially the State of Hesse (), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt, which is also the country's principal financial centre. Two other major hist ...

, Germany. The choir was founded in 1971 by Hans Bernhard. The choir's main task is singing in services at the Limburg Cathedral. The choir also performs in other services and concerts. Their repertoire covers all eras of classical music, but has a focus on contemporary music.

History

The Mädchenkantorei was founded by cathedral chapel master (German: Dom

kapellmeister ( , , ), from German (chapel) and (master), literally "master of the chapel choir", designates the leader of an ensemble of musicians. Originally used to refer to somebody in charge of music in a chapel, the term has evolved considerably in i ...

) Hans Bernhard in 1971 and is one of the oldest girls' choirs in German cathedrals. The primary purpose of the choir is to sing during services at

. They perform there monthly, while other services are sung by the Limburger Domchor and the Limburger Domsingknaben. The choir also performs in services within and outside of the Diocese of Limburg as well as in concerts. Their repertoire spans eras from

Gregorian chant Gregorian chant is the central tradition of Western plainsong, plainchant, a form of monophony, monophonic, unaccompanied sacred song in Latin (and occasionally Greek language, Greek) of the Roman Catholic Church. Gregorian chant developed main ...

Baroque music Baroque music ( or ) refers to the period or dominant style of Classical music, Western classical music composed from about 1600 to 1750. The Baroque style followed the Renaissance music, Renaissance period, and was followed in turn by the Class ...

, the Classical period,

Romantic music Romantic music is a stylistic movement in Western Classical music associated with the period of the 19th century commonly referred to as the Romantic era (or Romantic period). It is closely related to the broader concept of Romanticism—the ...

and

contemporary music Contemporary music is whatever music is produced at the current time. Specifically, it could refer to: Genres or audiences * Adult contemporary music * British contemporary R&B * Christian adult contemporary * Christian contemporary hit radio * Con ...

. The conductor is the cathedral choir director (German: Domchordirektorin), Judith Kunz. Girls may join the choir from the last year of kindergarten, and receive a thorough musical education until they finish school. They rehearse at four levels. From the fifth school year, they are trained at the highest level in the A Choir, or

chamber choir A chamber choir is a small or medium-sized choir of roughly 8 to 40 singers (occasionally called "chamber singers"), typically singing classical or religious music in a concert setting.Riemann, Hugo. Dictionary of Music'. Trans. J.A. Shedlock. A ...

(''Kammerchor''). At this level, the girls perform internationally, putting on concerts in Austria, France, England, Italy, Sweden and the United States, and taking part in competitions. In 2017, they won the first prize in their category, "Mädchen und Jugendchöre, gleiche Stimmen, 12–22 Jahre" (Girls' and youth choirs, similar ighvoices, ages 12 to 22). In February 2019, the choir sang a program of sacred contemporary music together with the women's choir Carpe Diem at Limburg Cathedral. They performed works by

Ola Gjeilo Ola Gjeilo ( , ; born May 5, 1978) is a Norwegians, Norwegian composer and pianist in the United States. He writes choir, choral music, and has written for piano and concert band, wind symphony, publishing through Walton Music, Edition Peters, ...

, Thomas Jennefelt,

Arvo Pärt Arvo Pärt (; born 11 September 1935) is an Estonian composer of contemporary classical music. Since the late 1970s, Pärt has worked in a minimalist style that employs tintinnabuli, a compositional technique he invented. Pärt's music is in p ...

, Imant Raminsh,

Enjott Schneider Enjott Schneider (born Norbert Jürgen Schneider 25 May 1950 in Weil am Rhein) is a German businessman, composer, musicologist, and music educator. He is best known as the chairman of the board of the German collecting society GEMA. As a compos ...

and Joan Szymko, some of which were accompanied by cello and

marimba The marimba ( ) is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars that are struck by mallets. Below each bar is a resonator pipe that amplifies particular harmonics of its sound. Compared to the xylophone, the mari ...

. Among the former choir members is soprano

Julia Kleiter Julia Kleiter (born 5 May 1980) is a German operatic soprano and a concert singer. After her debut as Mozart's ''The Magic Flute, Pamina'' at the Opéra Bastille in Paris, she has appeared at major international opera houses, especially the Zuric ...

References

External links

* {{Authority control German choirs Musical groups established in 1971 Girls' and women's choirs Organisations based in Hesse