Marienchor Eupen

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Marienchor Eupen
Seat: Eupen
Founding: 1905
Genus: Male choir
Head : Paul Voncken
Voices : approx. 33
Website : Homepage

The Royal Male Choir Marienchor Eupen 1905 (abbr .: Kgl. MGV Marienchor Eupen 1905 , short form: Marienchor Eupen ) is a male choir based in Eupen in the German-speaking community of the province of Liège in the Walloon Region . It was founded in 1905 by Robert Mommer as the "Marienchor der Klosterkirche " with 23 singers and in 1955 received the honorary award as a "Royal Society". His repertoire mainly includes sacred and secular choral music as well as choral music for special occasions such as choir competitions, anniversaries, carnival events or Christmas parties. In 1926 the Marienchor became the award-winning “Men's Quartet” as a solo quartet, which later developed into an independent choir.

history

Robert Mommer, founder of the Marienchor of the monastery church
Willy Mommer, junior

At the end of the 19th century there was the “Men's Singing Association Liedertafel” in Kettenis near Eupen, in which there had been internal quarrels with resignations and resignations from 1901. At the same time, the organist Robert Mommer, who was also a member and conductor of the Liedertafel, worked at the monastery church for the Immaculate Conception in Eupen. Since no choir accompaniment was planned for the mass celebrations at the monastery church, Mommer took the opportunity and founded the "Marienchor der Klosterkirche" on August 29, 1905 together with 23 other members of the Liedertafel who had resigned from the aforementioned quarrels. whose primary task should be to cultivate and promote ecclesiastical singing in the church. At the same time, a number of vocal specialists were found who performed chamber music as a solo or double quartet.

After the First World War , the number of members in the choir rose to around 50 singers by 1920 and the Marienchor then joined the general association of Catholic associations. The highlights of the 1920s were the first major concert tour to Trier , Koblenz and Bad Godesberg in 1922, two years later the first participation in a national singing in Dülken and in 1928 the first major appearance at an open-air festival on the Grand-Place / Grote Markt in Brussels . Between 1940 and 1944, most of the public appearances were restricted or even stopped during the Second World War .

Ten years after the resumption of choir activities, the Marienchor received the appointment in 1955 to the "Royal Male Choir Eupen". In the same year the choir was accepted as an extraordinary member of the Schubertbund Siegburg, from which an intensive cooperation developed over the years. With its appearance at Expo 58 in Brussels and another in Antwerp, as well as a special evaluation concert, the Marienchor received approval in 1958 that selected concerts or concert recordings of the choir could be broadcast by the Belgian Radio (BRF). Just one year later, the "Missa Festiva" composed by Willy Mommer , junior was premiered in the St. Nikolaus Church in Eupen and broadcast directly on the BRF. Numerous other radio recordings and recordings followed over the next few decades. In 1963, the Marienchor accepted an invitation to Salzburg , where they performed a Schubert evening in the Mozarteum with the baritone Walter Raninger (1926–1996) .

By joining the Födekam Association at the end of 1977, the scope of the choir could be expanded considerably. This enabled participation in international choir festivals, including the Kerkrade Choir Festival (1980), the Bartok Kodaly Festival in Budapest (1981), the Cologne Choir Festival (1982), the Schumann Festival Düsseldorf (2006), the International Chorbiennale in Aachen (2009, 2011, 2019) and at the Open Limburgs Koren Festival in Roermond (2019).

Further invitations to guest appearances took the Marienchor to Wales (1984), to Amsterdam (1988), to the Czech Republic with performances in Prague and in Uherský Brod in the local Comenius Museum (1989, 2013), in Alsace (2017), in the Allgäu (1995), and as a supporting program for the Bregenz Festival (2001, 2007, 2013). The performances in the Liège Sports Palace in front of more than 35,000 spectators as a prisoner's choir on the occasion of the Nabucco performances in 1985 and 1991 as well as in the context of the performance of The Flying Dutchman in 1995 received the greatest attention. Another highlight in 2003 was the design of the Christmas concert in the Royal Palace in Brussels in front of the Belgian royal family and selected guests.

Since the introduction of a so-called classification singing in 1970, the Marienchor regularly took part in these regular events until 1994. These are decisive for the award of subsidies and were initially organized by the “Fédération musicale de la Province de Liège” and by the Ministry of Culture of the Ministry of Culture and, since 1982, by the Födekam. With a compulsory and freestyle program, the participating choirs were and are still assessed in the criteria of “ensemble, intonation, rhythm, diction, performance” and then divided into three performance categories and a class of excellence according to the number of points awarded. The Marienchor was accepted into the 1st category for the first time in 1974 and in the class of excellence in 1982, which it has successfully defended ever since and was also able to win in 1998 and 2010 with the additional title of "amateur art ensemble with special artistic distinction".

Choirmaster

  • 1905–1907: Robert Mommer (1844–1908), organist and singing teacher, founder of the Marienchor of the monastery church
  • 1907–1943: Willy Mommer, senior (1882–1943), organist and chamber musician
  • 1943–1946: Hubert Mommer (1896–1987), organist and choirmaster,
  • 1946–1972: Willy Mommer, junior (1921–1972), concert pianist and composer, new founder of the Kgl. Eupen men's quartet
  • 1972–1997: Ferdinand Frings (1934–1999), opera singer and vocal teacher
  • 1997–2018: Heinz Piront, religion and music teacher, church musician
  • since 2019: Paul Voncken (* 1960), organist, choir and orchestra conductor

Royal men's quartet Eupen

Men's quartet 2012, conductor Ludo Claesen

Already in the early years of the Marienchor some particularly talented singers emerged from the ranks of the choir members, who had come together as a solo or double quartet with a specially tailored program. Success quickly emerged and, for example, the double quartet won the honorary award of the city of Aachen in 1907 and the solo quartet in 1913 in Heerlen the honorary award of the Queen of the Netherlands and in 1919 in Halle, Belgium .

Due to deaths and the First World War, the solo quartet was re-established in 1926 by Willy Mommer, senior, as the “Eupener Men's Quartet” and in the same year won the medal of the Republic of France at the competition for solo and men's quartets in Paris. In 1958, 1959 and 1963 the men's quartet under Willy Mommer, junior, which was also honored with the title "royally" in 1951 for the 25th anniversary, was three times among the first prizewinners at the international choir competition "Concorso Polifonico Internazionale 'Guido d'Arezzo" “In Arezzo / Italy. In the 1960s and 1970s, the men's quartet made several recordings, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1976, now as the “National Vocal Ensemble Willy Mommer - Royal Men's Quartet Eupen”.

Although the men's quartet was still classified in the class of excellence in the classification singing in 1998 and 2010, this level could no longer be maintained in the long term due to the lack of young talent. After the activities were scaled back from 2014 and in 2015 no participation in the valuation singing took place, the choir stopped its singing activities.

Conductors (after the re-establishment)

  • 1926–1943: Willy Mommer, senior
  • 1945–1972: Willy Mommer, junior
  • 1972: Erwin Bodem (ad interim)
  • 1972–1974: Jože Fürst
  • 1974–1992: Hubert Schoonbroodt
  • 1992–1999: Jean-Marie Cremer
  • 1999-2016: Ludo Claesen

Discography

Marienchor (selection)

  • Choral music from time and world , Kgl. MGV Marienchor Eupen, headed by Willy Mommer, 1968
  • Christmas in the city , Kgl. MGV Marienchor Eupen, soloists: Jacqueline Jacobs (mezzo-soprano), Hans-Georg Reinertz (organ), Miel Delnoye (flute), led by Ferdinand Frings, 1978
  • A capella , Kgl. MGV Marienchor Eupen, headed by Ferdinand Frings, 1993
  • The Eupen composer family Mommer , Kgl. MGV Marienchor Eupen, headed by Ferdinand Frings, 1997
  • O magnum mysterium , Kgl. MGV Marienchor Eupen, soloists: Sabine Conzen (soprano), headed by Heinz Piront, 2004
  • Appellation Controllée , Kgl. MGV Marienchor Eupen, soloists: Hilde Coppé (soprano) and Florian Prey (baritone), led by Heinz Piront, 2005

Men's quartet (selection)

  • Kgl. Eupen men's quartet , DNB / NDB (Belgian National Discotheque) 30.001, Studio FONIOR, Brussels, June 13, 1964
  • Kgl. Eupen men's quartet , DNB / NDB (Belgian National Discotheque) 30.005, Studio FONIOR, Brussels, January 22, 1966
  • Kgl. Eupen men's quartet , KME 503, Studio FONIOR Brussels, 10 February 1968
  • Christmas all over the world , Kgl. Men's quartet Eupen and his soloists, KME 504, without location and date.
  • Musical treasures of the Renaissance and choral music from all over the world - From the treasure chest of folk songs , KME 505, Studio FONIOR Brussels June 27, 1970 (in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture)
  • Choral works from 4 centuries , page 1: From the motet to the romantic choral song , page 2: Folk songs all over the world , KME 507, recording: Eupen, November 1971 (in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture, Cultural Office for the German-speaking region)
  • Choral works from 4 centuries , page 1: From madrigal to choral song , page 2: Songs of the peoples and nations , KME 508, recording: Eupen, November 1971 (in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture, Culture Office for the German-speaking region)
  • European hunting music (alternating with Rallye Trompes de l'Hertogenwald) , under Jean-Marie Cremer, CD 1989
  • The gift of the heart under Jean-Marie Cremer, CD 1990
  • Heavenly songs sound soft under Jean-Marie Cremer, CD 1993
  • Serious and cheerful festival songs under Ludo Claesen, CD 2001

literature

  • Kgl. MGV Marienchor Eupen 1905 VoG (Hrsg.): 75 years Marienchor Eupen , Grenz-Echo-Verlag, Eupen, 1980, ( PDF )
  • Kgl. MGV Marienchor Eupen 1905 VoG (Hrsg.): 100 years Marienchor: A reading book , Grenz-Echo Verlag, Eupen 2005. ISBN 978-3-00021056-3
  • Georges André and Leo Wintgens: Fifty Years of the Royal Men's Quartet Eupen , self-published in 1976

Web links

Commons : Marienchor Eupen  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Elli Brand: Majestic applause for the Marienchor from Eupen , in Grenz-Echo from December 20, 2003
  2. ↑ There from the beginning , overview of performance singing with press reports
  3. ↑ J. Ge .: Eupen concert balance still very positive , in: Grenz-Echo from December 31, 1959
  4. ^ High distinction for the Eupen men's quartet , in: Grenz-Echo of October 18, 1951
  5. ↑ Jochen Mettlen: The choirs were rated at a very high level , in: Grenz-Echo from November 9, 2010
  6. ↑ Kgl. Eupen men's quartet stops choirs , in: Ostbelgien direkt from June 9, 2016