Vienna Boys' Chorus Crisis Surviving Financial difficulties with new Corona 4:46, July 4
The Austrian Vienna Boys' Chorus, known as the ``angel's voice,'' is in danger of surviving due to the new coronavirus, which caused financial difficulties because all performances since March have been cancelled. I will.
The Vienna Boys Choir is a choir composed of 100 boys aged 9 to 14 years old from all over the world, including Austria, the United States and Japan, as well as 20 countries and regions.The clear singing voice is a UNESCO intangible culture. It is also registered as a heritage site.
The chorus was divided into four groups and performed 300 performances annually in Japan and overseas, covering more than 70% of the operating cost, but due to the influence of the new coronavirus, all performances after March were canceled. That's about 1 million euros, about 120 million yen lost in Japanese yen.
If this situation continues, there is a risk that the operating cost will bottom out and the management will collapse in October, so the choir calls for fundraising through websites and newspaper advertisements, as well as the government and the city of Vienna. Seeking help.
Choral leader Gerald Wilt said in an interview with NHK: "Without the support of the government, we can't even pay our employees after October. We have a history of over 500 years. We have to protect the chorus at all costs."
Meanwhile, the member boys have resumed practicing singing at school this past May, but to avoid overcrowding as a countermeasure against infection, they are practicing vocalization at the pool and conducting lessons online.
The choir will visit Japan in September this year as the first overseas performance after the resumption of activities, and it is hoped that this performance will be a catalyst for overcoming the crisis of dissolution.
More than 500 years of history UNESCO's intangible cultural heritage
The Vienna Boys Choir is a choir founded by the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire from the Habsburg family in the 15th century as a choir in the court.
Boasting over 500 years of history, it was registered as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2017. Members of the choir, 100 boys, practice singing while attending a boarding school in the Augarten Palace in Vienna.
The choir is also popular in Japan, and performances are held every year in Japan, and at the reconstruction aid concert after the Great East Japan Earthquake, "flowers bloom" are sung, and 150 years have passed since Japan and Austria established diplomatic relations. Last year, he performed a song in front of his Majesties the Emperor and Empress.
The chorus is not supported by the government and is operated as a non-profit organization, and 70% of the operating cost is supported by the performance income.