Międzynarodowy Festiwal Chórów „Gaude Cantem” im. Kazimierza Fobera w Bielsku-Białej – jeden z wielu, a jednak wyjątkowy
The “Gaude Cantem” International Festival of Choirs in Bielsko-Biała – one of many and yet exceptional

Author(s): Jadwiga Sikora
Subject(s): Music
Published by: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego
Keywords: “Gaude Cantem”; festival; competition; choirs; Bielsko-Biała
Summary/Abstract: This year, the Kazimierz Fober “Gaude Cantem” International Choir Festival will be held for the tenth time in Bielsko-Biała. The history of the celebration of the song Gaude Cantem, for this was the original name of the event, dates back to 1996. It was in that year that “Gaude Cantem” was organised for the first time in Oświęcim, as the most important festival of songster ensembles of the year based in the Bielsko Branch of the Polish Association of Choirs and Orchestras. The venue for the first three editions of “Gaude Cantem” (1996–1998) was provided by Oświęcim. Subsequently, the event was transferred to Bielsko-Biała where the event was to be organised ever after. Since 2001, each time the programme includes the following: a competition-based festival and afternoon concerts organised in Bielsko-Biała and in various towns of the bielski region. The most recent stage in the history of “Gaude Cantem” began in 2005 when an international competition became a part of the event. Among the choirs which participated in the Festival in 2005–2013 there were representatives of the Czech Republic, Latvia, Macedonia, Germany, Slovakia, Slovenia, Hungary, Italy, Russia, Estonia, Ukraine and Poland. Since 2012 the festival is accompanied by musical workshops for choirs whose representatives are interested in them. For three years, the programme of the Festival was also enhanced by a seminar for choir conductors. The programme-related novelty of this year’s 10th anniversary edition will be the Festival of the Senior Citizens’ Choirs. During 18 years the humble one-day Celebration of Song was transformed into a magnificent four-day International Festival of Choirs, which is attended by the best songsters and the brilliant conductors from Poland and beyond. “Gaude Cantem! – Enjoy the song!”. Let the joy of singing become a true determinant of the Festival. Let the beautiful choral singing develop the artistic sensibility of the performers and the audience, let it integrate communities, let it make people live in a better world.

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