Riga Cathedral Boys Choir
is a unit of young and very young talented musicians, rich in ways, popular in Latvia and abroad, that is able to express themselves in whole spectrum of music field and always the choir’s performances are of high quality.
The choir was first established in Latvia in 1950. It consists of a very well musically educated treble singers and a professional male group. Since 1994 the boys have been a part of the Riga Choir School. It consists of 45 treble singers (SA) and 15 professional male singers (TB). Concert staff minimum- 40 singers SATB.
Started from 1993 the choir has recorder 22 solo CDs and participated in several recording co-projects. The last recorded CD “ Ave Maria”, recorded in 2011, and the CD “J.S. Bach Choral Motets” (2009) were nominated to the Great Award as the best recording of a year. The CD “Odi Et Amo” (2000) in collaboration with Latvian contemporary composer Ugis Praulins got the Great Award as the best recording of a year 1999.
In 2001 the choir got the Great Music Award that is the highest award of Culture
Ministry in Latvia . In 2009 the choir was nominated again to the Great Music Award for the performance J. S. Bach “Christmas Oratorium” in December 2008. In March 2010 the musical performance - oratorio “Joan of Arc at the Stake” by A. Honegger, where the boys choir participates, also got the Great Music Award.
The President of the United States, the president of Finland, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Turkey, H. R .H. Prince Charles and HM Elizabeth II Queen of the United Kingdom, participants of NATO summit (2006) have all enjoyed performances in Riga. The choir concert tours have been highly appreciated by the public and press.
The choir regularly collaborates with the concert organization “Latvijas koncerti” and under the guidance of this organization it performs in festivals: Restart Bach (2006, 2007), Mozart Music Festival (2006), Sacral Music (Voices of Angels in 2007 together with Ensemble Pierre Robert under conducting Frederic Desenclos, L. Bernstain Mass in 2007, Easter Music (St. John’s Passion by J. S. Bach, Stabat Mater by G. B. Pergolesi in 2008 together with soloists and Baroque Orchestra “Collegium Musicum Riga”), Europe Christmas. ”Latvijas koncerti” annually organizes several concerts of the Boys Choir in Riga and other towns .
The choir’s partners also are the concert organizations “Eesti Kontsert” that has organized concerttours with various programs to Estonia in 2002 and 2007,and November 2008 – V. A. Mozart “Requiem” and “ARS Tokyo” that during the last 17 years regularly organizes concerttours to Japan.
The choir takes part in International Sacral Music festivals as well. The last were in summer 2011- the choir took part in Schwäbisch Gmünd Sacral music festival in Germanyalso in Lucerne Festival in Switzerland in 2009, where our choir was a part of the performance of “Song of Solomon 8” by A. Knaifel; but in 2006 was de La Chaise- Dieu festival in France, where together with France Orchestra d’Auvergne and Cappella Amsterdam under conducting the Dutch conductor Arie van Beek was performed “St. Mattheu Passion” by J. S. Bach; Legnano Sacral music festival in Italy in 2005.
In 2005 Riga Cathedral Boys Choir represented Latvia during the Latvian Culture days in France (sacral music concerts in Paris were organized by Phillipe Maillard productions).
Regularly the Boys Choir takes part in several performances of Latvian National Opera. Presently the choir or its soloists participates in six performances of Latvian National Opera: G. Bizet “Carmen”, P. Tchaikovsky “Queen of Spades”, V. A. Mozart “Magic Flute”, Giacomo Puccini’s opera “Toska”, G.Verdi “Otello”, Masne “Verter”, and Latvian contemporary composer’s Janis Lusen’s “Birds’ Opera” for children. The boys participated also in a drama theatre performance “Dreadnoughts”.
On the 6th of June 2010 Riga Cathedral Boys choir under conductor Martins Klishans performed in the White House in honour of renovation of Ford Theatre where the President Barack Obama and the first lady Michelle Obama organised reception.
This reception in the White House gathered many judges of art and music, philantropists and stars- South Africa Anglican archiboshop emeritus Desmond Tutu, singers Lionel Richie, Kelly Clarkson and others among them.
It was the first time for any Latvian choir to perform in the White House when the President and the first lady is at the concert. This Riga Cathedral Boys Choir’s performance confirms the tight friendship and partnership between Latvia and the U.S.A., celebrating the 20th anniversary of resumption of Latvia’s independence. At the same time it was the great present for the choir’s 60 th anniversary, celebrating this year.