Gethsemane – 21 March 2013 - College Choir

OSNABRÜCK UNIVERSITY CHAMBER CHOIR
The Osnabrück University Chamber Choir was founded in 1985 and has
since given concerts all over Northern Germany.
The 40 singers - almost all of whom have professional vocal training -
have also toured England, Holland, France, Spain, Portugal, Austria, the
Czech Republic and Poland.
Under the direction of Joachim Siegel, the students have tackled
challenging sacred and secular music and built up a repertoire of a
cappella works dating from the Renaissance to the present day. The
emphasis is placed however on the contemporary end of this timescale,
and the choir has had the privilege of giving the premiere performances
of several modern works.
The results of diligent rehearsal were captured on CD in 1992 and 1996, followed by a recording exclusively
of English choral music in the Spring of 2008.
The Choir strives to produce a professional, homogeneous overall sound, whilst bringing out the
youthfulness of its voices to the best advantage.
JOACHIM SIEGEL
Joachim Siegel, born in 1972, started his musical life singing in choirs. His
fondness for this form of music remained with him throughout his early
career, singing in regional and national children's and young people's choirs,
and in larger ensembles such as the "Kölner Kantorei" while still at school.
He went on to study music and Romance languages at the University of
Heidelberg, before in 1993 he started to study music pedagogy at the
Academy of Music and Performing Arts in Frankfurt, majoring in choral
conducting. He graduated in Music and German in 1998. In February 2001,
he completed a postgraduate course in choral conducting under Professor
Wolfgang Schäfer and within the year, he signed a five-year contract for
teaching at the Musikhochschule in Frankfurt.
He has been conducting the Osnabrück University Choir and Chamber Choir since 2005. His focus, while
working on the musical side and voice formation, is on the lyrics and their power to express the essence of
the music, thus enhancing the experience of the music – and especially vocal music - for both singer and
listener.