Magazine / Culture / Sing! / Interview | 21/05/2008

"Singing is sexy again"

Working men's choirs, the comeback of singing and new lifestyles: British conductor Simon Halsey talks with eurotopics editor Nikola Richter about European choir traditions.

euro|topics: Is singing a declining hobby in Europe?

Certain categories have fallen out of favour. There are probably less people singing in church every Sunday. Choirs that were part of the heavy industrial scene - working men's choirs in Wales for example - have gone because the coal mining and the steel making has gone East. Some countries that sing more than others: The North probably sings more than the South.

Simon Halsey, born 1958 in London, chief conductor of the radio choir in Berlin.

Photo: Matthias Heyde

euro|topics: How does the singing tradition differ from one country to another?

There is a great oratorio tradition of very big choirs in Britain, to a lesser extend in Germany, but in Scandinavia and in most of the rest of Europe the choirs are chamber choirs. But we have new green shots: gospel choirs, jazz choirs, new youth choirs, the rise of the chamber choirs made up of a small number of good friends who knew each other from university, who continue singing together - perhaps not on Thursday every week, but they get together for a long weekend twice a year. Lifestyles have changed and singing sits in it in a different way.

euro|topics: Are European governments working against the decline of singing?

Yes. The government of Britian for example is putting 10 million pounds a year for the next three or four years into the inititative Sing up to get singing started in all primary schools again. I'm fifty years old and when I was a child, all primary school children in Britain sang and all teachers could teach choir class singing. In the 60ies and 70ies it went out of fashion. And now we are desperately trying to bring it back.

euro|topics: Why is singing so important today?

Because clearly in multicultural countries, in Germany, Holland, Britain, where you neighbour may culturally come from a different place, music is an extremely good way to get everybody cooperate with each other. The Rundfunkchor in Berlin is very active in this, working with the Turkish community. Our choir learns to sing Turkish music and Turkish choirs come to sing with us. We have projects in schools, in hospitals, we have our singalong-concerts, where amateur singers come from all over the world to sing with us in the Philharmonie.

euro|topics: If we look at the success of casting-shows for popstars and of karaoke bars singing is absolutely popular again. Why?

Britan is about to have a television choir competition at 7.30 on Saturday evenings on BBC1 on prime time: the search for the nation's favourite choir. So suddenly singing is sexy again. The point about singing is: It doesn't cost anything. All you have to do is get some people together in a room and begin. You don't need instruments, music stands, everybody in theory can do it. And we need to begin with the small children, if there is a future, then we have to begin in primary school.

euro|topics: Will you watch the European song contest?

That is also a cultural thing. In Britain it is presented by Terry Wogan makes funny comments during the songs. Yes, I am absolutely certain, I will see some of it.

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