No doubt virtual choirs already existed before 2020 but, as all the other virtual options, especially when it comes to artistic representations, we have had to see ourselves locked up and in need to really take advantage of them.
There has been a sudden avalanche of cultural contents throughout the internet: theatre plays, libraries and museums opened their virtual doors to let us access this cultural dose to which we have no access now.
And in this avalanche, our world, the choir world, unable to reunite, unable to rehearse and compelled to renounce to their leisure time, so needed in this times. Because when we say “sing your sorrows away”, it is for something.
In Singerhood we soon had to start looking for all the possible solutions for rehearsing virtually and to be able to reunite our choir singers around a screen, but… everything was already invented.
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The 7 best virtual choirs you can find on the internet
1. “Virtual Choirs” by Eric Whitacre
Eric Whitacre was the pioneer arranging his first virtual choir back in 2009, creating a global phenomenon whose aim was to unite singers all over the world and their love for music through technology.
The project was a success and created a new dimension in the choral world, from something that began barely as an experiment, through the social media where thousands of singers ended being part of the virtual choir performing Sleep.
His project has continued alive through these years, changing and improving. In TED 2013 Whitacre conducted a live virtual choir, with 100 people on stage accompanied by singers from 28 countries connected through Skype.
His last virtual choir was Deep field in 2019.
2. The virtual choir of the Carmelita’s nuns
Different groups have organised their virtual choirs since Whitacre’s first experience, and one of the most striking is the one by the Carmelita’s nuns of the world, who gathered in 2014 for the celebration of the 500 anniversary of the birth of St. Teresa of Jesus.
This time they performed Nada te Turbe by Claire Sokol, conducted by James Savage, and accompanied by the Teresian Orchestra of St. James Cathedral in Seattle, Washington.
3. The Virtual Choir Friends
The friends of the Virtual Choirs of Whitacre developed their own musical creations apart from the composer, but following a tendency that shows the interest that the idea of gathering to sing online had generated.
For this compilation we have brought Stars by Eriks Esenvalds that, apart from gathering all the singers, introduced a new differentiating musical element: the use of crystal glasses.
4. Stay at home Choir
One of the most interesting projects we have seen already in Covid19 times is the one formed by the Stay at home Choir, an initiative of Tori Longdon and Jamie Wright.
We have been able to see them giving their own particular answer to the Queen of England on April 5th 2020, or with their more formal proposal performing an excellent Vivaldi’s Gloria, virtual orchestra included.
Their next project will be in collaboration with The King’s Singers, it looks like they come alive and kicking.
5. Camden Voices
But not everything was going to be classical music, the boom of virtual choirs is also proliferating in pop music arrangements for vocal groups. A great example of this is this version of Here comes the sun by The Beatles.
6. Aragon choir conductors (Spain)
But not everything is happening out of our country. If there is something you can hear everywhere in Spain since this situation started is Resistiré by El Dúo Dinámico, from which we can say is the “confinement anthem”.
The first to execute a choir version of this piece have been the Aragon choir conductors, a group certainly very affected by the situation, and that are now learning to reinvent themselves very rapidly.
7. Singerhood Virtual Choir
In Singerhood we wanted to give the possibility to many people, not only from Spain, to gather and sing virtually.
For it we have already accomplished two events, very different, but very successful.
We leave you here our Luci Care by W.A. Mozart, where more than 70 performers sang including the Singerhood Choir members, that continue virtually with their activity now that the presential rehearsals have been stopped.
Our second bet was to bring back too the activity of child choirs, because the kids also miss singing in these times. We chose for them Kuku ué by Eva Ugalde, performed by all the children who wanted to take part in it, amongst whom we can find, for example, students from the Girona and Torrelavega Conservatories of Music.