Why Choir Competitions Are as Exciting as Big Sporting Events
In the "Choir Games", as with any sport, the competition drives the action.
"It's a terrific example for choirs to follow, because when one choir sings that's great, when two choirs sing together that's better, but when you get as in these INTERKULTUR events with many choirs, then there is an energy which flows from it, which is not like anything else, except maybe a great sports event."
— John Rutter, composer (Great Britain)
In the summer of 2024, the world witnessed the remarkable spirit of global competition, with the Olympic Games in Paris captivating sports enthusiasts and the World Choir Games - known as the Olympics of Choral Singing - in Auckland bringing together the finest choral talent.
Building on this momentum, INTERKULTUR is elevating the world of choral music even further in 2025 with two extraordinary continental gatherings. The European Choir Games & Grand Prix of Nations in Aarhus, Denmark, and the African Asia Pacific Choir Games & Grand Prix of Nations in the stunning paradise of Mauritius will offer choirs from around the globe the opportunity to showcase their talent and experience the best in choral music both within their regions and beyond.
Both events are an exciting addition to the World Choir Games, and we’re looking forward to seeing a global community of choirs compete in these events!
This will be a fantastic way to bring singers together, and it's something we’ve been doing for a long time. Since 2000, INTERKULTUR has been organizing the World Choir Games. And every year, we see the same thing: choir competitions create a special atmosphere. That’s why we continue to innovate new ways to host singing competitions.
Choir competitions bring out a feeling that you can’t really get anywhere else, except maybe at a big sporting event like the Olympics. We started the World Choir Games in the first place to give singing its own Olympics — bringing the excitement and unity that we feel at these major events into the world of singing.
And when you start to think about the world of sports and competitive singing, you find a lot of similarities. Maybe it shouldn’t be so surprising that they deliver such a similar feeling.
The Sport of Song
Anyone who has sung in a choir knows that it is truly a unique experience. When your voice joins with others, following music that you have practiced together for a long time, magic happens. You start to lose yourself in the activity. And for a while, the group works as one.
That feeling of community is special. It’s a big part of why choral music will always be an important part of the art and culture of humanity.
And anyone who has played team sports will know that this same feeling can appear on the field (or the court, or wherever else the game is played). Playing together with a shared goal brings teams in unison. There are moments in a game when the team is completely absorbed in the act of seeking victory, working as one. Again, it’s magic.
Part of the unity in both choral singing and team sports comes from the physicality of both. Singing at a high level is a full body workout, and in a choir you have to match your performance to others. It really is physically demanding like any sport, pushing singers to treat their bodies well.
There is an even bigger kind of unity that begins to form in both competitive choral singing and sports. Because there are people in the stands who become attached to the action.
You can really feel it at the Choir Games. Spectators come to see their country’s choir succeed. It isn’t that they want anyone to lose, it’s that they feel a certain pride in their own country’s singers.
It goes without saying that the same is true of sports, where spectators can become deeply connected to a team.
Go Team, Go!
Feeling all of this connection to others is the essence of what it means to be human. We connect with an important part of ourselves that is often absent from much of our day-to-day life.
And when you add competition into the mix, the excitement that can erupt is pure joy.
In the World Choir Games, as with any sport, the competition drives the action. It gives people a goal and forces them to be better than they’ve ever been before. And it creates a framework to understand exactly what you need to do to succeed.
For spectators, a competition gives us a direct way to understand when something good happens for our team, and when something bad happens. And it let’s us all cheer as one.
It’s like a dramatic machine — instantly producing emotional highs and lows that we all feel together.
The Electricity in the Air
These features make it clear that competitive singing and sports have a lot in common. And our upcoming European Choir Games and African Asia Pacific Choir Games promise to deliver the same thrills as the next big sporting event.
At INTERKULTUR, we are proud to bring so many talented choirs together in one place. We’ve seen over more than two decades how incredible the experience can be for both the singers and the viewers.
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