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State capital Wiesbaden

Choir of St. Boniface

The church choir of the main Catholic church of St. Boniface in Wiesbaden was founded in 1862 by Johann Schickel as a male choir. Boys' voices were added in 1887 and women's voices were added in 1899. Currently, around 110 singers and 24 children sing in the "church singing society", as the choir of St. Boniface was called in its early days. Under the direction of cantor and organist Gabriel Dessauer, who led the choir from 1981 to 2021, the choir developed into a large concert choir. Since 01.01.2022, it has now been under the direction of Dr. Johannes Schröder. In addition to works from the classical church music literature, the program includes works from the 20th century and contemporary music. The choir of St. Boniface accompanies church services, including the orchestral masses at Christmas and Easter. In addition, every year (since 1977) on October 3rd, it gives a large concert with works of church music literature. The choir is supported by the orchestra of the Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden.

The choir from St. Bonifatius is now internationally renowned thanks to its concert tours to the USA, Brazil, Spain, Italy and Belgium, among others. In 1971, it was awarded the Palestrina Medal, and in 1972 it received the Zelter Plaque, an award for choirs that have successfully performed cultural work for at least 100 years. In 2012, the city of Wiesbaden honored the choir with the Golden City Plaque to mark its 150th anniversary. An outstanding event was the "Boniface Mass" by the English composer Colin Mawby, which was commissioned by Gabriel Dessauer especially for the choir's 150th anniversary and premiered in Wiesbaden on October 3, 2012.

Gilbert, Nicole: Die Geschichte des Chores St. Bonifatius, Chronik zum 150-jährigen Bestehen (with the editorial assistance of Walter Käss and Christina Hardering). In: Commemorative publication on the 150th anniversary, Choir of St. Boniface Wiesbaden, 1862-2012, o.O. 2012 [p. 14 ff.].

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