Berlin Radio Choir

Founded in 1925, the Radio Choir Berlin made a name for itself early on under such conductors as George Szell, Otto Klemperer, Hermann Scherchen, and Erich Kleiber, as well as through significant world premieres, including those of works by Arthur Honegger, Ernst Krenek, Darius Milhaud, and Kurt Weill. The choir, which has been directed by Gijs Leenaars since 2015, today performs around 60 concerts a year: at its home base together with the Berliner Philharmoniker, the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, and the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, as well as in international guest performances. Through such community projects as the annual sing-along concert and a song exchange for schoolchildren, the Radio Choir aims to get as many people as possible singing. It is dedicated to promoting young professional singers through a training program and an academy. The Choir’s recordings have won numerous accolades, including no fewer than three Grammy Awards.

Lucerne Festival debut on 29 August 2006 in works by Weill, Schoenberg, and Bernstein conducted by John Axelrod.

August 2024