Wiener Singverein

The Vienna Singverein (Singverein der Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in Wien) is the concert choir of the Vienna Musikverein with around 230 members. It is regularly requested by top orchestras and conductors for large and varied projects. History : In 1812 the Handel oratorio Alexander's Feast (Timotheus) was performed in the Winter Riding School of the Vienna Imperial Palace, an event, which led to the founding of the Society of Music Friends in Vienna (Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in Wien). The first choral activities of the Musikverein go back to the initiative of Antonio Salieri, for example, taking part in the First Performance of Beethoven's Missa Solemnis and the Symphony No. 9 in 1824. The choir was founded in its present form in 1858. The first choir master was Johann von Herbeck until his transfer to the Vienna Court Opera. The Singverein has been substantially involved in many first performances from Schubert’s musical play Die Verschworenen (The Conspirators), Johannes Brahms’ A German Requiem, Anton Bruckner’s Te deum, Gustav Mahler's Symphonie No. 8 and Franz Schmidt’s Das Buch mit sieben Siegeln up to composers of the second post war period, like Gerd Kühr, Christian Muthspiel, Arvo Pärt, Wolfram Wagner and Otto Zykan. Since its foundation the Singverein has been partner of important conductors, among them Franz Schalk, Wilhelm Furtwängler, Dimitri Mitropoulos, Karl Böhm and Leonard Bernstein. From 1947 to 1989 Herbert von Karajan defined the profile of the choir and made it known world wide through recordings, concert film productions on laser disc. Concert tours took the choir to Australia, Japan and the USA; further concerts among others were in Israel, Athens, Berlin, Budapest, Frankfurt, London, Madrid, Moscow, Munich, Paris, Pisa, Rome, and Zurich. In 1959 a performance of the Bruckner Te Deum took place in the Vatican, as well as in 1985 a performance of the Mozart Coronation Mass during the High Mass with Pope John Paul II in St. Peter's Basilica under Karajan.