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The Vienna Boys Choir: 521 Years-Old And Going Strong

Lukas Beck

Not many ensembles can say that they are over five-hundred years old, but the Vienna Boys Choir is one that can. Founded in 1498, the choir began singing in the Chapel Imperial in Vienna, but now sings for audiences all over the world, giving an estimated three-hundred concerts per year.

On Thursday March 7th at 7:30pm, the Vienna Boys Choir will sing for a Knoxville audience at Church of the Ascension on Northshore Drive. The concert features popular, theatrical, and classic works: a little something for everyone.

Morning Concert host, Melony Dodson, speaks with Kapellmeister Jimmy Chiang about how one becomes a member of the choir, how the boys balance school and singing, and about the challenge of the inevitable voice change. Chorister, Bubba, from Houston, Texas also chats about the experience of being in this "once-in-a-lifetime" ensemble. 

More information on this event is available at www.knoxvilleascension.org

Melony calls the beautiful mountains of Boone, N.C., home, although she was born near Greensboro, N.C. There’s just something about those Blue Ridge Mountains that got in her blood and never left after she moved there to attend Appalachian State University (ASU). While at ASU, she majored in piano performance and music therapy and began to cultivate a love for accompanying and for collaborating with other musicians. This soon led her to earn a master’s degree in collaborative piano at the University of Tennessee, which she attended from 2006-2008.