A day for a worldwide symphony

World Choral Day is on December 8 this year. On the second Sunday of every December, choirs around the globe gather to embrace the fellowship and musicality of singing groups.

The event began in 1990 after Alberto Grau, a Venezuelan composer, proposed the idea to the International Federation for Choral Music (IFCM). Today, over 50 countries and thousands of singers take part in the holiday.

Choirs are ensembles of 10-20 singers. On World Choral Day, choir groups and orchestras around the world perform concerts and hold festivals.

At home, you can celebrate by singing along to holiday music, due to its closeness to the holidays and the church-oriented congregations. While most communities are not holding a choral festival this year, traditionally people attend these events to bask in the joys of live music. Instead, it would be worthwhile to enjoy live streams or old videos available online of choir group performances.

The most important thing about this day, though, dedicated by the IFCM, is to simply enjoy music. Whether or not you have “musical talent”, singing is a pastime that can bring people together, especially during the Winter holiday season.

Sources

• (2020, September 28). World Choral Day | 30th Anniversary. Retrieved November 9, 2020, from http://worldchoralday.org/
• National Day Calendar. (2019, December 06). WORLD CHORAL DAY – Second Sunday in December. Retrieved November 9, 2020, from https://nationaldaycalendar.com/world-choral-day-second-sunday-in-december/