Together in one voice of thousands of young people from Slovenia and abroad

Celje will be marked by a youthful song this week. The youth singing festival, which will celebrate the eightieth anniversary next year, after 2017 again receives international sound, and is joined for the first time by all -Slovenian Choral boomwhen more than 5,000 children from 160 elementary schools will sing together. From the beginning, the idea of ​​the festival was socializing, the community. It is no coincidence that entry will be free to all events, and the song will also echo through the city streets.

The princely town was first hosted by a crowd of young singers in 1946. In doing so, he realized the idea that during the horrors of the sea he could change this world for the better with a special program, said director of the City Municipality of Celje and a member of the organizing committee before the start of this festival and a member of the organizing committee. Gregor Delea. “They sang a song about freedom. Not so much about the end of the war, but about the freedom of thought and spirit and an optimistic view of the future. « 

Initially, it was a local festival, in 1960 the choirs from the cities of the former Yugoslav republics performed for the first time, three years later from abroad, and the festival became biennial and competitive. The last international version of the festival was in 2017, then the epidemic was hit, and last year the festival was revived and gave it new, strong foundations. The youth singing festival was joined by the national youth choir competition, which moved from Zagorje to Celje and will now be under the auspices of the Youth Singing Festival every two years. When there is no national competition, every two years it will be an international festival again this year. « A total of more than 6,000 choirs from Slovenia and abroad will walk our streets in five festival days in Celje, » Deleja said.

Rivalry

Although there has not been an international competition for eight years, the Celje Youth Festival had such a reputation that there was a lot of interest from different countries to qualify for the competition. The music commission (Sebastjan Vrhovnik, David Preložnik and Nenad Firšt) selected twelve choirs from six countries. But as the artistic director of the festival said Nenad Firštis a festival primarily a celebration of youth singing and energy. “The competition is the result of all this energy. In history, the festival has always compared domestic choral performance and placed it among the world’s trends. It was also always one of the important centers where youth singing was valorized. The achievements of foreign choirs, with many of us, have remained in contact, are still considered an important reference in their operation. « 

The Celje Center High School Choir, led by David Preložnik, will perform at an introductory concert. Photo: MPF

The choirs will compete in three competition categories. Six are children coming from Slovenia, followed by two categories, namely mixed youth and girls’ choirs. They come from Serbia, Italy, Hungary, Czech Republic, Germany and Slovenia, namely the mixed youth choir of the first grammar school in Celje. They will be evaluated by an international music jury consisting of Sebastjan Vrhovnik, Maja Cilenšek and Karmina Šilec from Slovenia, Stefan Kaltenböck from Austria and Christian Klucker from Switzerland. According to Firšt, the jury will also participate in the workshops, which are being prepared on Thursday for music educators, choirs, students and interested public. The competition will be intended for the entire Friday.

The choirs were the least limited when choosing a competition program, Firšt said. “Competition concerts programs are really ambitious. In the preparation of compositions for this festival, we gave the choirs some more programmatic freedom and limited the compulsory songs only to songs written after 2005. The choirs opted for weighty, diverse schedules, so that all style periods are presented in the programs of all choirs. « 

The International Youth Singing Festival in Celje is organized by the Celeia Celje Institute in cooperation with the Institute of Education of the Republic of Slovenia and the Public Fund of the Republic of Slovenia for Cultural Activities. Photo: MPF

From Bitenec to Joker Out

Competition performances that will be on the working day at a time when children are at school and adults are at work, probably most will not be able to hear. However, all the choirs who will compete will also perform at a concert at the Celje House. Children’s choirs on Friday at 3pm, and mixed youth and girls’ choirs three hours later. “This is a magazine part of the program prepared by the competition. This is an opportunity for choirs to show what they most characterize and interest. For example, the choir from Serbian Ćuprije mostly performs spiritual music, including older Serbian spiritual music. The Italian choir presents itself with a slightly more relaxed program, « said Firšt.

The festival will start on Wednesday with the traditional regional magazine of children’s and youth choirs Songthe introductory concert of the festival will be Thursday at 6pm at the Celje House. It will feature the RTV Slovenia Children’s Choir with the conductor Martina Burger and members of the RTV Slovenia Symphony Orchestra. “The program of this part of the concert is special, it is Janez Bitenc’s songs. This year we remember the 100th birth anniversary of probably one of the most important composers of children’s music. He left the huge opus of children’s songs, which received a permanent place in the children’s choir repertoire and are recognized as part of the national heritage. So to speak, he is not an adult who would not encounter John Bitenc’s tradition, « said Firšt.

In the minutes for the song, visitors to Celje will listen to young people on the city streets. Photo: MPF

In the second part of the introductory concert, the Girl Choir of the Celje Center Grammar School, led by David Preložnik, will perform. “This is one of the two choirs that were best rated at last year’s Youth Singing Festival. It is a really great choir and we are proud that, not because the locals, but because they have proven to be the best in the country, they will mark the opening of the festival and give a good trip to all for quality performances that follow in the competition. ”The girls will be presented with a variety of program, nor Carpe Diem The Joker Out Group will not be missing.

The place of song

The city will be filled with the so -called minutes for a songwhen the choirs are centered in the city center, everyone who will compete also sing to passers -by. Which choir performed best in the competition will be announced on Saturday at Choral boom in the Golden Hall. More than 5,000 choir singers will sing accompanied by the Youth Wind Orchestra of the Celje Music School. Choral boom They prepare with the Institute of Education of the Republic of Slovenia (ZRSŠ). As she said Inge Breznik from ZRSS, they are Choral boom So far in Maribor. “The city of Maribor has resigned a little since tradition. I am immensely grateful for Celje, for people with hearing for choral singing and music. We are returning with great impetus. We didn’t expect such a big number. « 

In the minutes for the song, visitors to Celje will listen to young people on the city streets. Photo: MPF

Inge Breznik said that mass singing contributes to a better quality of choir singing in schools because everyone is preparing the same program. On Saturday Choral boom The children will sing songs that have established themselves as heels during the last 15 years and have been performed most often at the national competition in Zagorje ob Savi. “We always start with an anthem and end with a song The day of love. There will be a little less space for the audience this year, and the whole hall will sing, « she announced.

While all visitors are invited to listen to young people, everyone is already preparing for the singing spring of 2026, when the festival will celebrate the eightieth anniversary. “Tadej Čater will make a documentary with RTV Slovenia, prof. dr. Darja Kotar will be the author of the monograph, which will be published by the Celje Mohor Company, and the Academy of Music and Museum of Contemporary History Celje, which prepares the exhibition, and call for everything to share photos from the festival, « announced Gregor Delea.

The youth singing festival is primarily a holiday of youthful song. Photo: Andraž Purg/MPF

116 full buses will be driven to Celje, a thousand children will take the train, he smiled at Delea. “Slovenian Railways will make a revolution because they will add trains to Saturday. But what really matters? The effect that such an activity has on participating. ”Whoever eats does not think evil.