ISing's HD Choir Wins Champion of the World Title at 2023 World Choir Games

Bay Area-based girlchoir iSing Silicon Valley has claimed the title of Champion of the World this month after a stunning performance by the group's elite HD Choir at the world's biggest international choir competition, the World Choir Games in Gangyeung, Republic of Korea. The honor was awarded in the category of Musica Sacra a cappella for a performance of Duo Seraphim by Tomás Luis de Victoria, Gute Nacht: Sechs Gesänge, opus 131 no. 6 by Joseph Gabriel Rheinberger, Hodie by Joan Szymko, and Ave Regina Caelorum by Andrew Smith, which is featured on iSing's new album, love & light.

iSing HD also received a gold medal in the Youth Choirs of Equal Voices category, competing against choirs from China, Republic of Korea, Denmark, Czech Republic, and Thailand. iSing HD - which is made up of more than 40 girls in grades eight through twelve from the Bay Area, including San Jose, Cupertino, Sunnyvale, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Menlo Park, San Carlos, Redwood City, and San Rafael - was one of only two choirs from the US invited to participate in the games this year, following their 2018 Grand Prize win at the International Robert Schumann Choir Competition in Zwickau, Germany.

“We went to win and we won so much more than a medal or title,” said Artistic Director Jennah Delp Somers. “The competition bonded us closer as a choir and united us in harmony with choirs from all over the world. We spent the week after the competition exploring Korea, from a temple stay, to becoming 'Seoul sisters', our adventures with Korean culture and people have changed us forever.

The wins come as a capstone to iSing Silicon Valley's 10th anniversary season, during which the choir performed in concert alongside soprano Joyce DiDonato and St. Olaf Choir, performed at the prestigious American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) conference, and released their second full-length album, love & light on Avie Records, which featured iSing commissions from Sungji Hong and Kenyon Duncan, and other works on themes of remembrance, love, wisdom, and healing, from the ecstatic chant of the 12th-century abbess Hildegard of Bingen to ascendant contemporary choral works by Sir James MacMillan, Andrew Smith, and Kile Smith.

About iSing Silicon Valley

Founded in 2013 by artistic directors Jennah Delp Somers and Shane Troll, award-winning girlchoir iSing Silicon Valley brings together more than 300 talented young singers in Silicon Valley, offers them rigorous musical and vocal training, and guides them toward the highest level of artistry. Celebrated for innovative choral education methods and for the gorgeous vocal blend and joyous singing of its choruses, iSing has built a deeply committed musical community in the Bay Area and beyond. iSing has also achieved recognition on the national and global stages through collaborations with world class artists including Angel Blue, Barbara Bonney, Estelí Gomez, Meredith Monk, and Voces8, and as the winner of both new music commission and international competition awards. iSing can be heard on Here I Stand and So Quietly (Innova Recordings), Drift (New Amsterdam Records), and Love and Light (Avie Records).

Photo Credit: iSing Silicon Valley.

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