Introducing The Hugo Distler Choir Berlin
Our Choir is a tightly knit community of people from different backgrounds and creeds. Whether old or young, man or woman, from Germany, Sweden or India, whether postman, student or scientist – what binds all together is the joy of a common goal. We wish to encourage singers from all over the world in joining us.
The Hugo Distler Choir Berlin is firmly established on the Berlin and European choral scene. With around 40 singers from all walks of life, it situates a space between a chamber and a classical oratorio choir. Over the course of the year, its repertoire can thus feature both demanding a cappella works from all musical periods together with large-scale symphonic oratorios.
A passion for quality and learning
Honour-bound to 65 years of tradition and its spiritual founder Hugo Distler, the choir directed by Stefan Schuck is united in its desire to give outstanding performances in Berlin and with partners across Europe. In-depth rehearsals with Stefan Schuck, assisted by trained vocal coaches, ensure the highest quality of music-making.
Once every two years, ‘auditions’ sung solo or in a quartet are used to give targeted advice on vocal or interpretative skills. Regular rehearsals to practise vocal homogeneity and promote individual voice training also help to improve the choir’s unity of tone. It regularly finishes near the top of Berlin’s state choir competition, and is one of only a few amateur choirs in Berlin to receive funding from the Berlin Senate Chancellery.
Embracing old and new
The association with the name of the Berlin composer Hugo Distler presents the Choir with a double mandate. On the one hand, it engages closely with the sacred (primarily protestant) music of the baroque (such as Heinrich Schütz, Johann Herrmann Schein, Johann Sebastian Bach), music which was a rich source of inspiration for Hugo Distler. On the other, the name also imposes an obligation to perform contemporary and lesser known music. In the pursuit of this aim, the work of Hugo Distler occupies a special place.
Peoples and cultures
Music can transcend boundaries and foster understanding. The Hugo Distler Choir was a co-founder of “Europa Cantat”, the European choral association which brings together singers from across the continent.The choir proactively engages in international cultural exchange and musical dialogue between artists of many different backgrounds.
Stefan Schuck –
Musical Director
As musical director of the Hugo-Distler-Chor Berlin, Stefan Schuck concerns himself not only with the quality of the program and the interpretation of the music. He also involves himself in various ways in the complete choral experience, for example, with workshops on rhythm or sight-reading.
He studied choral and orchestral directing under, among others, Professor Uwe Gronostay and Professor J. Starek. He was Assistant Conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic Choir and is Assistant Professor at the Berlin University of Arts.
He has directed the Hugo Distler Choir since 1992 and also has been the Professor of Choral and Orchestral Conducting at the Rottenburg-Stuttgart College of Church Music since 1998.
Martin Netter –
Voice Teacher
Martin Netter gives the singers the possibility to reach the highest limits of their capabilities. This takes place in individual and small group voice lessons.
He studied Vocal Pedagogy at the Universität der Künste Berlin. He worked with famous conductors such as René Jacobs, Ton Koopman, Ivor Bolton and Konrad Junghänel and performs often on stage with the Festival d‘Aix-en-Provence, the Berliner Ensemble, Deutsches Theater Berlin and Hans-Otto-Theater Potsdam.
He is founding member of the Vokalakademie Berlin, gives private voice lessons, teaches various Berlin choirs and worked as a vocal coach at the Innsbrucker Festwochen der Alten Musik.