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The Sixteen

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For other uses, see 16 (disambiguation).
The Sixteen
choir on stage in the Royal Albert Hall
The Sixteen at the BBC Proms in 2024
Background information
OriginUnited Kingdom
GenresClassical music
Years active1977–present
LabelsCORO
Websitethesixteen.com

The Sixteen (previously known as the Symphony of Harmony and Invention[1]) are a British choir and period instrument orchestra; founded by Harry Christophers, they started as an unnamed group of sixteen friends in 1977, giving their first billed concert in 1979.[2]

The group performs early English polyphony, works of the Renaissance, Baroque and early Classical music, and a diversity of 20th- and 21st-century music.[citation needed]

The Sixteen are "The Voices of Classic FM", TV media partner with Sky Arts and associate artists of the Southbank Centre in London and Bridgewater Hall in Manchester. The group promotes an annual series at the Queen Elizabeth Hall as well as the Choral Pilgrimage, a tour of Britain's finest cathedrals: bringing music back to the buildings for which it was written. The BBC television series Sacred Music was produced in collaboration with the Sixteen; between 2008 and 2015, two full series aired along with numerous specials.[citation needed]

The Sixteen are a registered charity under English law.[3]

Tours

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Harry Christophers, founder of the Sixteen

The Sixteen tour throughout Europe, Asia, Australia and the Americas and have given regular performances at major concert halls and festivals worldwide, including the Barbican Centre in London, the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Sydney Opera House, Tokyo Opera City and the Vienna Musikverein. They have also performed at the BBC Proms and the festivals of Granada, Lucerne, Istanbul, Prague and Salzburg.[citation needed]. In the United Kingdom, each year since 2000 (excepting pandemic years) they have toured a selection of UK cathedrals and other venues with a tour entitled "The Choral Pilgrimage".[4]

In addition, the Sixteen's period orchestra have taken part in semi-staged performances of Purcell's Fairy Queen in Tel Aviv and London, a fully-staged production of Purcell's King Arthur in Lisbon's Centro Cultural de Belém, followed by new productions of Claudio Monteverdi's Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria at the Lisbon Opera House and The Coronation of Poppea at the English National Opera.[citation needed]

Education

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The Sixteen have an education programme and projects have included a series of school matinées for hundreds of primary school children in Bury St Edmunds, Liverpool and Southwell under the national Sing Up initiative. The Sixteen also have close ties with the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and Trinity College of Music, offering opportunities for young people about to embark on careers as professional musicians.

The group leads a training programme for 18-23 year olds, Genesis Sixteen, which aims to nurture the next generation of young singers through an annual series of vocal courses, mentoring and masterclasses.[5]

Discography

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Over 90 recordings reflect the Sixteen's range of work, spanning the music of 500 years and winning many awards including the Grand Prix du Disque, numerous Schallplattenkritik, a Gramophone Award (Early Music, 1992), the Classical Brit Award in 2005 for Renaissance and IKON, which was nominated for a Grammy Award and two Classical Brits. These latter two discs were recorded as part of the group's contract with Universal Classics and Jazz.[citation needed]

Since 2001, the Sixteen have had their own record label, CORO, which has released over 90 titles to date. More recent recordings include Handel's oratorio Messiah, with soloists Carolyn Sampson, Catherine Wyn-Rogers, Mark Padmore and Christopher Purves (winner of a MIDEM Classical Award 2009), Dixit Dominus featuring Handel's eponymous early work and Steffani's Stabat Mater, Ceremony and Devotion: Music for the Tudors, which accompanied the 2010 Choral Pilgrimage, and Hail, Mother of the Redeemer which accompanied the 2011 Choral Pilgrimage.[citation needed]

A selection of recordings by The Sixteen
Year Album Label Detail
1985 Handel: The Messiah Erato With the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra and Ton Koopman
1987 Christmas Music from Medieval and Renaissance Europe Hyperion Conductor: Harry Christophers
1990 The Rose and The Ostrich Feather: Eton Choirbook Volume 1 CORO Conductor: Harry Christophers
1993 The Flower of all Virginity: Eton Choirbook Volume IV CORO Conductor: Harry Christophers
1995 Esther (1718 version) CORO Conductor: Harry Christophers
2006 Philip & Mary: A Marriage of England & Spain CORO Conductor: Harry Christophers
2007 A Mother’s Love - Music for Mary Universal Classics Conductor: Harry Christophers
2009 Sounds Sublime CORO Conductor: Harry Christophers
2011 James MacMillan: Miserere CORO Conductor: Harry Christophers
2012 The Earth Resounds Classic FM Conductors: Harry Christophers, Eamonn Dougan
2012 Selva Morale e Spirituale Vol II: Monteverdi CORO Conductor: Harry Christophers
2012 Allegri: Miserere Classic FM Conductor: Harry Christophers
2012 Pärt: De Profundis Decca With Gabrieli Consort and Paul McCreesh
2013 Bartlomiej Pekiel CORO Conductor: Eamonn Dougan
2014 The Blossoming Vine: Italian Maestri in Poland CORO Conductor: Eamonn Dougan
2015 Flight of the Angels CORO Conductor: Harry Christophers
2016 Helper and Protector: Italian Maestri in Poland CORO Conductor: Eamonn Dougan
2017 Marcin Mielczewski CORO Conductor: Eamonn Dougan
2017 James MacMillan: Stabat Mater CORO With Britten Sinfonia
2021 Good Night, Beloved CORO Conductor: Harry Christophers
2022 An Old Belief CORO Conductor: Harry Christophers
2022 Byrd: Psalmes, Songs and Sonnets (1611) CORO With Fretwork
2022 A Meditation CORO Conductor: Harry Christophers
2023 Sirens’ Song CORO Conductor: Harry Christophers
2023 Coronation: Music for Royal Occasions CORO Conductor: Harry Christophers
2023 A Watchful Gaze CORO Conductor: Harry Christophers

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Symphony of Harmony and Invention". The Sixteen. Archived from the original on 5 January 2007.
  2. ^ "History". The Sixteen. Archived from the original on 4 July 2013. Retrieved 7 October 2013.
  3. ^ "The Sixteen, registered charity no. 326917". Charity Commission for England and Wales.
  4. ^ "The Sixteen Celebrate 10th Choral Pilgrimage". Classic FM. 2010. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  5. ^ "Genesis Sixteen". The Sixteen. Archived from the original on 24 May 2024. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
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