Escolania’s historic choir, which has been open to men only for over 700 years, will now be open to women as well. It is a true landmark for the formation of the Benedictine monastery of Santa Maria de Montserrat in Catalonia, Spain, whose roots date back to 1300 making it one of the oldest in Europe. Its peculiarity is precisely that it has always been exclusively composed of children, the so-called escolani (meaning scholars in Catalan), and combined with an academic preparation based on the Christian faith within the monastery. “The pope gives women a role they never had before, and we wanted to open ourselves up in a concrete and bold step,” said Efrem de Montellà, governor of Escolania.
In 1479, Catholic King of Aragon II. This historical choir, which also sings for Ferdinand, has always performed in the monastery of Montserrat, which was founded in the 11th century and is famous for hosting the statue of the Virgin of Catalonia, the symbol of the Catalan identity. . To date, the monastery’s children from Catalonia and other Catalan-speaking regions number more than 50 and range in age from nine to 14.
New mixed choirs will now join their daily performance, the Catalan newspaper La Vanguardia reported. There will be a so-called “chamber choir” (a small-medium-sized group) of male and female choirs, aged between 17 and 24, who will wear typical tunics and perform underneath, like the singers of Escolania. one weekend a month directed by Pau Jorquera (current assistant music director). According to the monastery’s sources, given that the boys are mostly residents of the monastery and are invited to perform on weekends, this will also serve to rest young choirs who can “spend more time with their families”. and holidays.
However, there are some requirements to become part of the future Catalan “cor de cambra”. First of all, an audition-based selection will be made, which will serve to assess the candidates’ level of experience in singing and their ability to read music. Also, to pass the monastery’s test, not only “sensitivity to the Christian religion” is required, but also a certain level of academic training, which is required for Escolania choirmasters doing scholastic preparation at the monastery of Montserrat.
The creation of this mixed choir, scheduled for the first time in September 2023, will mark a historic initiative that will also give young women a voice. Governor Montellà explained that the idea arose from the need to “respond to the demand for female voices while continuing the more than 700-year-old tradition of Escolania,” and then underlined that this was a “historic step” for a choir. It has existed continuously since the Middle Ages.
Source: Today IT
Karen Clayton is a seasoned journalist and author at The Nation Update, with a focus on world news and current events. She has a background in international relations, which gives her a deep understanding of the political, economic and social factors that shape the global landscape. She writes about a wide range of topics, including conflicts, political upheavals, and economic trends, as well as humanitarian crisis and human rights issues.
