Voices of Spring: Choral Music from Classical MPR

VocalEssence

Choral music is a treasured part of Minnesota communities and Classical MPR recognizes that vital piece of our local culture. That’s why we’re excited to continue our support for our choral audiences with "Voices of Spring," our month-long April choral programming.

Vote for your favorite choral pieces!

What We're Doing

ON-AIR:

Tuesday nights, 8pm, beginning April 9: a spotlight choral concert

Including Choir of St. Thomas Church (recorded locally last fall here in MN); Choir of Clare College, Cambridge (recorded locally here in MN); Westminster Cathedral Choir, London (recorded in Collegeville); St Olaf College’s presentation of Britten’s War Requiem, a masterpiece of the 20th century choral repetoire and more.

Wednesday’s at noon: Music with Minnesotans:

Alison Young’s half-hour guest-hosted “theft of the dial” segment will draw on MN choral lovers.

Thursdays at 3pm: Regional Spotlight

Steve Staruch’s MN-based programming will spotlight MN’s resident choirs and outstanding visiting choirs.

Tuesday, April 30: Top-25 Choral Countdown

On-air hosts will have fun and count our listeners’ choral favorites down throughout the day!

Tuesday, April 30, 8pm: Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem

Arguably the greatest large-scale choral work of the 20th century, written as a declaration of peace in the years after WWII. Performance given by and recorded at St Olaf College, Northfield.

ONLINE:

Choral Stream:
An expanded playlist and additional social media and web promotion for the Stream.
Countdown:
April 8-21: Top-25 Choral piece voting and countdown, broadcast throughout the day on April 30
Choral Trivia Quiz

Test your knowledge of choral music, composers, and terminology.

Weekly:

Choral-themed online feautures and archive gems.

Energized engagement on Twitter and Facebook

Share your best #ChoralTruth on Twitter, and find more ongoing Choral music on our Choral Music Facebook page.

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The World's Finest Choirs

Classical MPR is bringing some of the world’s finest choirs to Minnesota. Upcoming concerts include:

  • Mormon Tabernacle Choir — Thursday, June 20, 2013, at 7:30 p.m.

    At Target Center
    Tickets go on sale to MPR Members Nov. 7, 2012; to the general public Nov. 23, 2012. Ticket Prices: $27, $41, $61, $81

  • Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir — Friday, November 22, 2013

    At the Cathedral of St. Paul.
    Featuring a new piece by Minnesota composer Edie Hill, commissioned by Classical MPR for the EPCC and its U.S. tour.

 On-Air

Live Concert Broadcasts

Choral Concerts produced by Classical MPR

Sound engineers from MPR will attend area choral concerts to make recordings that can reach new audiences through broadcast and online services.

Choral Stream

Music for Singing

We've created our 24/7 choral stream for one reason: we love this music. We want to share our favorites and some beautiful surprises with you. What'll you hear? A big range from Palestrina to Pärt, spirituals to Schubert, and new work by Whitacre, Lauridsen, Paulus, and more wonderful contemporaries. You'll discover great professional choirs, college choirs, amateur choirs, church choirs... anytime you want! Hit the Feedback link and tell us what you'd like to hear more of. We'll update the stream regularly, so chime in. And enjoy the music!

Listen Now

Choral features from Classical MPR

  • New Classical Tracks - Water Night
    Eric Whitacre is a choir geek and he's so proud of it he's created tee shirts that you can purchase on his web site that read "Choir geeks of the world unite!"April 17, 2012
  • Regional Spotlight: St. Olaf College Choir
    The St Olaf Choir celebrated its 100 anniversary with a mid-winter tour. The highlights of which are in this week's Regional Spotlight. Anton Armstrong leads the choir and orchestra of St Olaf College students in the Bach motet: Sing to the Lord a New Song, and the world premiere of a work written especially for the centennial celebration of the St Olaf Choir by St Olaf alumnus, Minnesota composer, Ralph M. Johnson: On Horizon's Brim.March 15, 2012
  • Regional Spotlight - South Dakota Chorale
    Johannes Brahms, like all composers, had a "day job." Brahms was the music director of several singing societies in Vienna. Pouring all of his melodic gifts into numerous works for choir, the choral pieces from his late fifties are especially filled with a kind of nostalgic golden glow. The South Dakota Chorale led by Charles Bruffy brings a slow-burning, mature passion to a performance of Brahms Four Quartets Op 92. Their performance from January 14 at Dordt College is in this week's Regional Spotlight.March 1, 2012
  • Choral Truths
    This month, as part of our Voices of Spring programming, we're having a little fun with those who make the music. What are the Universal truths you know about those involved in the choral arts?
  • Cantus' Tiny desk concert
    It's a small desk, but it's no matter -- the 9 members of Cantus ably fit around it for an outstanding performance on a recent trip to NPR's Washington, D.C. headquarters.
  • On the Air This Week
    Highlights from Dec. 11 to Dec. 18 Tuesday, 7 pm: Welcome Christmas!, with VocalEssence. Wednesday, 12 noon: Music with Minnesotans: Actor and singer Dane Stauffer. Wednesday, 7 pm: Candles Burning Brightly. Thursday, 11 am: Cantus, live at Westminster Presbyterian Church....
  • A Night in Havana!
    A MESMERIZING premiere performance by the Cuban choir, Schola Cantorum Coralina!
  • Guillaume de Machaut, a primer
    Guillaume de Machaut was born sometime in the 13th century. No birthday means no celebration.... until today.



On Now

Bill Morelock
Listen to the Stream
  • Angels' Songs 10:21 William Alwyn
    London Philharmonic Orchestra
    William Alwyn
    Osian Ellis, harp
    Buy Now
  • First Ballade 10:12 Judd Greenstein
    Michael Mizrahi, piano
    Buy Now
Playlist
Other MPR Radio Streams
Choral Stream
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