Classical German choir shares talent
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A choir of young adults from Germany that has performed throughout Europe added Utah to its list by singing at the Assembly Hall on Temple Square on Friday, April 17.
Organized as a missionary choir under priesthood leadership, including the Europe Area presidency, Kammerchor Vocalis has sung in Germany, Austria, Denmark, Hungary, Slovakia, Poland, the Czech Republic and Switzerland.
The concert in the packed Assembly Hall capped a week of touring and performing in Utah for the group of about 30 musicians headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany. Most are Germans, but Denmark, Norway and Switzerland are also represented.
The audience for a brief lunchtime concert on Wednesday, April 15, included the First Presidency, along with other General Authorities and Church employees in the Church Administration Building. At the end of that performance, President Thomas S. Monson addressed the singers for a few minutes, sharing some of the experiences he has had in Germany as a General Authority.
The choir was of particular interest to President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, second counselor in the First Presidency, who is acquainted with many of the young adults, mostly through their parents. Speaking after the Wednesday performance, he said that though some are converts, many of the singers are multi-generational members.
He called the choir "something very, very special," noting that some members travel as far as 500 miles for the once-a-month practices at the meetinghouse adjacent to the Frankfurt Germany Temple. Though the performers had to raise the money themselves to travel to Utah, President Uchtdorf credited members of the Salt Lake Monument Park North Stake for hosting them, letting them stay in their homes, feeding them and providing them with transportation.
Another highlight of the week for the choir, according to President Uchtdorf, was a fireside before a large group in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building Tuesday evening. He said the choir not only sang, but individual members also bore strong testimonies, "all in English, of course."
The concert in the Assembly Hall was almost entirely in German and was predominately classics from composers such as Mendelssohn, Mozart, Schubert and Bach. All were sung a cappella. At the end of the concert, the choir sang familiar LDS hymns including "I Believe in Christ" and "The Spirit of God" in German.
Christian Wolfert, who first had the idea for the choir, said it started in 2005. "It was upon the invitation of the area president that we formed a group that would do missionary work through their singing in the Europe Central Area (now the Europe Area)," he said.
Director Sonja Sperling reiterated, "The purpose of the choir is to do missionary work. It is a missionary tool for the area presidency." She is qualified to direct her peers in the choir as a musicology graduate of the Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts.
Besides performing, members of the group work at their jobs or attend school. Except for one recently married couple, the singers are single, according to Rolf and Gisela Metzner, who are the group's chaperones.
