Всемирный Хоровой Совет

- Holder of the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany -

It all started in 1990 when Günter Titsch, born in 1946 and a passionate choir singer, founded the association INTERKULTUR. Living in “Germany’s singing city” Pohlheim near Gießen he was convinced: “Singing in a choir creates peace through the means of enthusiasm! Offer choral singers an enthralling competition on an international level and their music will build a bridge between their nations that will cross all borders!”

His job as a consultant regarding business, IT and tax issues got him in contact with people all across Europe. These contacts built up the network of the newly established association that made its business by creating novel choral events on an international level.

The first international choral competition in Budapest in 1988 became a successful starting point. Right from the beginning Titsch was convinced of the power of his idea that choral singing was able to establish bridges between all parts of the world and to unite people from all continents together as one big family by the means of music. The connective element of enthusiasm for choral singing would be able to eliminate prejudices, enable friendships across borders and create a lively and peaceful get-together exceeding music and without any limits regarding nationalities, ideologies and religions.

Günter Titsch and his internationally experienced team developed the INTERKULTUR choir events into the largest and most successful choral event series worldwide. The most ground-breaking success however was the idea to create major events following the ancient archetype of the Olympic Games in a new way. These “Choir Olympics”, which became further on well-known as the „World Choir Games“, have become the world’s largest choir competition. This event is being held biannually and features all categories of singing and captivates thousands enthusiastic singers, choral experts and music lovers. Starting 2000 in Austria (Linz), further countries such as Korea (Busan), Germany (Bremen), Austria (Graz), China (Xiamen and Shaoxing), USA (Cincinnati), Latvia (Riga) and Sochi (Russia) became further stopovers until 2016. In 2018 the 10th edition of the World Choir Games premiered on the African continent, in Tshwane, in the Province of Gauteng (South Africa). In 2020 the event, will come back to Europe: From July 5–15, 2020 the region of Flanders in Belgium will welcome choirs from all over the world. For the first time the World Choir Games will take place in two host cities then, in Antwerp and Ghent. 

The World Choir Games 2014 held in the Latvian capital of Riga attracted 460 choirs from 74 nations and 27.000 participants and thus represent the largest Games in the history of this successful event series so far. In 2016, in times of global political challenges the 9th World Choir Games were an important platform of intercultural exchange, a unifying power between all peoples and a symbol of peace for all countries on earth. INTERKULTUR organized the World Choir Games 2016 in close cooperation with the ministry of culture of the Russian Federation, the region of Krasnodar and the city of Sochi.

With his passion for music and his unfailing commitment Günter Titsch developed INTERKULTUR within 30 years into the world’s leading organization regarding international choral events. Its competitions and festivals nowadays set worldwide standards concerning the artistic level and professional organization of such events. Until now about 9.800 choirs with roughly 425.000 singers from 106 nations participated in the competitions. This was made possible due to the comprehensive support of international choral music by cities, provinces, ministries and provincial governments as well as numerous international sponsors. To date, INTERKULTUR has organized more than 220 choral events worldwide.

Günter Titsch received numerous awards and distinctions for his long-lasting engagement which not limited to the field of music only, being e.g. member of the board of trustees of the German Sports Aid Foundation. Representing INTERKULTUR he was awarded the European Culture Award (KULTURPREIS EUROPA) in 2006. Ten years later, on the occasion of the 9th World Choir Games 2016 in Sochi, Russia he received the Medal of Honor by the Kulturforum Europa e.V. to reward INTERKULTUR’s significantly extended international work of recent years.

In July 2009 his outstanding cultural commitment for the People’s Republic of China on an international level earned him a special distinction: As one of the first Europeans Günter Titsch was awarded the HONORARY CITIZENSHIP by the South Chinese port town Xiamen (4,6 m citizens). This award is considered a very prestigious one in China and implies for Günter Titsch a notable honor especially regarding the support of German-Chinese relationships.

In subsequent years Günter Titsch was able to intensify the good relationship with China, where he has been enjoying an excellent reputation. In November 2016 he was accorded the honor of speaking at the “China International Friendship Cities Conference” in Chongqin to more than 700 Chinese and international representatives from 144 cities and 56 countries. In his speech he explained how international choral events are able to build a city’s reputation in open atmosphere and hospitality. In November 2018 he was invited to the conference once more and spoke again to participants from 60 countries. His ideas of economic promotion and cultural tourism were well received by the highly interested conference participants. 

Apart from numerous awards and honorary memberships by organizations, international choral associations and governmental institutions, Günter Titsch received in April 2012 the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany by the Joachim Gauck, the then-President of the Federal Republic of Germany for his credits as a “voluntary ambassador of culture”. In December 2012 this distinction was awarded to him by the premier of Hesse, Volker Bouffier, during a ceremony at the state chancellery in Wiesbaden.

It’s not least due to Günter Titsch’s personal commitment that in Riga (Latvia) a new milestone in the history of choral music was set on July 22, 2017: The premiere of the TV-Show “Eurovision Choir of the Year”. This Europe-wide competition for choirs was initiated by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) in cooperation with INTERKULTUR – inspired by the popular Eurovision Song Contest and the World Choir Games. The show captures the growing trend of choral singing and combines Europe’s most popular singing competition and the largest international choir competition in the world. On August 3, 2019 the show will continue in Gothenburg, Sweden and marks the opening of the European Choir Games 2019.

- in memoriam -

Christian Ljunggren was born in 1942. He studied music at the Royal Academy of Music in Stockholm as well as musicology and theology at the University of Uppsala. For many years he worked at the Music Department of the Swedish National Broadcasting Company, and was responsible for the presentation and programming regarding music.

He was the conductor of the Adolf Fredrik Madrigal Choir since their foundation (1965 and 1974). He was the first President of the Swedish Choral Directors Association (1986 – 1998) and President of KÖRSAM, the joint committee of the Swedish choral organisations (1997 – 2004). From 1997-1999  he worked for the of IFCM, the International Federation for Choral Music, as the Secretary General from 1997-1999 and as a liaison officer (until 2005).

He was one of the Artistic Directors of INTERKULTUR and the Artistic Director of the World Choir Games. Due to his engagement as a clinician for seminars and workshops around the world and having built up the INTERKULTUR series of seminars in China the Swede gained growing recognition since 2003.

Christian Ljunggren has written numerous articles in Swedish and international magazines and was also a keen arranger of choral music.

- in memoriam -

As a choral conductor and later a grammar school teacher Paul Wehrle made significant contributions to the development of the choral and musical scene in his home town Karlsruhe and later throughout Germany.

At the Helmholtz-Gymnasium in Karlsruhe he established the musical discipline and in 1979 he conducted the first Abitur examination in this subject. Wehrle also had conducted the school’s chamber choir since the end of World War II and achieved great success and high appreciation at both national and international level.

Working for music in general and choral music in particular Wehrle acted in institutions that since decades have been instrumental in shaping the international music scene. He was Secretary General of the “European Choral Association” (Europa Cantat) from 1963 to 1976 and he laid the foundations for the “International Federation for Choral Music” (IFCM) whose first President he became in 1982. Also the World Symposium on Choral Music is based on Paul Wehrle’s idea.

Paul Wehrle was a tireless visionary and motivator who was able to arrange a national choral competition in the German Music Council and to establish solo singing at “Jugend musiziert” (German music competition). Paul Wehrle received multiple awards for his wide commitment: 1983 he was awarded the Medal of Merit of the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg, in 2007 the Golden Staufer Medal and in 1989 he received the Federal Cross of Merit First Class.

For INTERKULTUR Paul Wehrle was one of the pioneers for the World Choir Games and since the year 2000 his valuable support and advice had played a part in establishing the “Olympics of the Choirs”. The idea of the World Choir Council, an advisory board consisting of representatives from more than 90 nations by now, comes from Wehrle as well.

To the last Paul Wehrle was available as a tireless contact person and idea contributor for INTERKULTUR and enthusiastically observed our progression.

conductor, lecturer, juror

• Chairman of the Children's Chorus Committee of China
• Vice-Board Chairman of China Chorus Association
• Director of China Broadcasting Children's Chorus (China National Radio) from 1983
• jury member of the World Choir Games since 2008

conductor, professor, composer

• Advisor of Vice-President of ALACC (Latin American Association of Choral Singing), founder of OFADAC (Argentine Federation for Choral Activities Organizations) and ADICORA (Argentine Choral Conductors Association)
• CIC Foundation President and organizer of Trelew International Coral Contest (1993-2013), artistic committee member of the POLYFOLLIA Festival (France, 2003-2014)
• conductor of "ESTUDIO CORAL TRELEW" chamber choir and many other choirs in Patagonia, Argentina
• adjudicator, lecturer and clinician at many festivals and competitions around the world

Choral conductor, music pedagogue

• Professor Emeritus at Georgia State University, served as choral conductor and Director of the School of Music
• Former national president of the American Choral Directors Association
• Judged numerous international juries
• Writer of two choral books and publisher of over 50 choral octavo editions

choral and orchestral conductor, music director

• choral and orchestral conductor, church music director, organist
• gives master classes and workshops all over the world
• guest conductor of several European radio choirs and festivals
• Artistic Director of the Copenhagen Concert Society
• jury member at eight editions of the World Choir Games

Branko Stark (1954), composer, choral director and voice teacher, is a teacher at the Arts Academy (University of Split-Croatia) where he teaches vocal technique, singing and acting voice. He has written over two hundred compositions for which he is the recipient of numerous awards.

His speciality is voice theory and its scientific-pedagogic research and works published on this subject. He holds seminars, masterclasses, lectures and workshops for choral conductors and singers worldwide (Argentina, China, Slovenia, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Malta, USA, Korea, South Africa, Iran, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, India, Hong Kong, Philippines, Singapur, Brunei, Latvia, Russia, Czech Republic, Spain).

Mr. Stark is also a prominent adjudicator for many international choral competitions (Germany, Austria, Croatia, China, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Latvia, Italy, Czech Republic, Sri Lanka, Korea,).

He is President of the Croatian Choral Directors Association, leader of the Vocal Academy, and a member of the International Council of the World Choir Games.

Aida Swenson is one of Indonesia‘s strongest forces of choral music development. A founder and conductor of the Indonesian Children‘s & Youth Choirs- Cordana, who have gathered international recognitions and awards, and have been invited to perform in major cities worldwide.

As a graduate of the Westminster Choir College, Princeton, USA and as a sought after clinician, Aida Swenson conducts numerous workshops and adjudicates national and international events. Her activities as a juror includes in: USA, England, Germany, Vietnam and Singapore.

Aida Swenson has spent many years traveling throughout Indonesia creating and leading choirs, giving masters classes, and training choral conductors. However, her professional endeavors are largely but not limited to her choral clinician activities. Her professional activities include: Council Member of the World Choir Games for Indonesia; Member of the Advisory to INTERKULTUR‘s World Choir Games; Chairman of the Foundation for the Development of Choral Music in Indonesia; Member of Advisory of the Foundation of Church Music; Member of Artistic team of Polyfollia World Showcase; Member of the committee APCS-IFCM; Artistic Director of National Christian Universities Choir Competition in Indonesia.

Aida Swenson is featured in the “World Who is Who in Choral Music”. Her personal commitment to her musical endeavors in Indonesia is not only centered on her vision in furthering the quality of children‘s choral development. Aida is a pillar of change, of progression, and of energy to achieve unassailable quality in choral music in Indonesia and internationally.

conductor, adjudicator, arranger, author

• studied music at the University of Zululand, majoring in Choral Conducting and Music History
• founder and director of "Kwa Thema Youth Choir" (since 1979) and co-founder and director of "Bonisudumo Choristers" (since 1985)
• director of "Kwa Thema Central Methodist Church Choir"
• Music Director of the "Sowetan Massed Choir Festival" (2002-2009)