The 12th Incheon International Choral Festival, hosted by the Incheon City Chorale (artistic director Yoon Eui-jung), will run from Sept. 8 to 12 with about 2,500 participants from 54 choirs at home and abroad, its largest scale to date. By joining forces for the first time with the Korea Choral Festival, the country’s most prestigious event of its kind, the festival has taken on even greater weight.
 [코리안투데이] Poster for the 12th Incheon International Choral Festival © 장형임 기자 |
This year’s festival takes the stage each day at 7:30 p.m. from Sept. 8 to 11 at the Concert Hall of Art Center Incheon, and on the closing day, the 12th, at 5:30 p.m. in the Grand Theater of the Incheon Culture and Arts Center.
The Incheon International Choral Festival began in 2012 under the name ‘Our Neighborhood Choral Festival.’ It has since grown from a small stage centered on local residents, and last year it stepped up to become an international festival by inviting choirs from abroad. This year, outstanding choirs from Korea and overseas take part in large numbers, putting a total of 54 teams and some 2,500 singers on stage. It is the largest choral event ever held in Incheon in terms of participation.
In particular, this festival is being carried out in collaboration with the Korea Choral Festival, organized by the Korea Choral Directors Association. Nineteen domestic choirs, including municipal choirs from across the country such as those of Guri, Suncheon, incheonganghwa, Andong and Yangju, are taking part, offering a single occasion on which to survey the present standard of Korean choral music and its future direction.
The stage does not stop at domestic groups. The Philippines’ Los Cantantes de Manila, Indonesia’s The Medan Community Choir, and Burundi’s Umuco Youth Choir will take part, conveying each country’s musical colors to the audience.
The participation of Incheon’s local choirs also stands out. A total of 32 choirs in various forms — including children’s, citizens’, women’s, men’s, senior and choirs for people with disabilities — will take the stage. It is a passage that shows in full the breadth of a local choral culture spanning generations and walks of life.
This festival is organized not as a ranked competition but around exchange, with participants sharing and encouraging one another’s music. The aim is for choirs gathered from different cultures, generations and regions to communicate through music and share the meaning of ‘a song sung together.’ The festival closes with a combined chorus in which all participants join under the baton of artistic director Yoon Eui-jung.
Artistic director Yoon Eui-jung said, ‘The Incheon International Choral Festival is growing beyond a local festival into a cultural platform that connects Korea with the world,’ adding, ‘Through the joint staging with the Korea Choral Festival, we will present performances of even higher quality and international exchange, and I hope it becomes an occasion for Incheon to establish itself as a global choral city.’
The 12th Incheon International Choral Festival is run with all seats free and is open to anyone in elementary school or older. The low threshold — free admission and an age requirement of elementary school or above — is significant in that it gives Incheon citizens a chance to enjoy an international-level choral stage up close. Detailed schedules and viewing information can be found on the website of the Incheon Culture and Arts Center.
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