Choir
Voices of the City
The Philharmonic Choir of the City of Bonn was founded in 1852 as the »Municipal Choral Society« and can look back on an eventful history.
In the 19th century, many civic choral societies were founded in German cities, shaping local musical life. In Bonn, a Municipal Choral Society (Städtischer Gesang-Verein) was established in 1852. The approximately 150 singers dedicated themselves to performing large-scale choral-symphonic works from the Classical and Romantic repertoire. After the Bonn premiere of the St. John Passion in 1855, the music of Johann Sebastian Bach grew in importance, and the choir became a permanent fixture in the city’s concert life. In 1966, the ensemble adopted the modern name Philharmonic Choir of the City of Bonn.
The choir’s current profile continues to emphasize grand symphonic works, while its repertoire has steadily expanded to include English and French choral music. Participation in municipal choral concerts in collaboration with the Beethoven Orchester Bonn and the city’s General Music Director remains a central pillar of its activities. The choir also takes part in the Bonn Beethoven Festival as well as in musical projects within Bonn’s city partnership with Oxford. Regular self-organized concerts, often held in churches in Bonn and the surrounding region, are another hallmark of the ensemble. Particularly noteworthy are the concerts and musical tours at the Old Cemetery (Alter Friedhof), whose proceeds support the preservation of this historic site.
For many years, the choir has invested in improving its quality through professional vocal training. Although it remains an amateur choir, it now sees itself as a semi-professional ensemble. This is reflected in invitations to perform at guest concerts in Germany and abroad with renowned conductors such as Esa-Pekka Salonen and Christoph von Dohnányi. The choir is also socially and politically engaged. Since 2005, it has carried out educational projects to introduce young people to classical music. On the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the promulgation of the German Basic Law in 2024, the choir organized the project “Music and Democracy” in cooperation with the Haus der Geschichte of the Federal Republic of Germany and the Tannenbusch-Gymnasium. A commissioned work by Helena Cánovas Parés, “Gleich laut, gleich leise” (Equally Loud, Equally Soft), was premiered in three concerts, including one at a historic site, the former Bundesrat building in Bonn.
Since 2016, the Philharmonic Choir of Bonn has been under the direction of Paul Krämer, who also teaches ensemble singing at the WDR Choral Academy and works as a guest conductor with various national and international vocal ensembles.