My parents sometimes went to Sunday mass at the Hofburg Palace Chapel at which the Vienna Boys Choir sang. My mother said they were up in the choir loft so she never “saw” them there but they were always wonderful to hear. They are my favorite choir—as much for nostalgic reasons as any other. I did see them on stage (not at mass) and they were always impressive. I love this performance of Mozart’s Sub Tuum Praesidium: it is sung by Stefan Möckel and Max Emmanuel Cencic, among the best of boy singers. Their performance was not video recorded, so it has been superimposed on other boys’ singing the same hymn. I am bothered when people say they want girls in such historic boys choirs, mostly because I don’t think they can replicate the sound of an adolescent male treble as is heard here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m86Z9EywtUw&list=RDm86Z9EywtUw&start_radio=1
I recall a delightful live action Disney movie c. 1960 about the adventures of the Vienna Boys Choir entitled "Almost Angels." The story itself may have been somewhat pedestrian, but the soundtrack featured the voices of the actual choir, and there were beautiful location shots of Austria.
Wow, hearing the Vienna Boys Choir in person. That's a treat. It's a shame that people are offended by boy choirs, really. There is a unique tone to boys' voices .. it is haunting and, as we know, also fleeting, because the boys' voices change and then cannot sing in that way for long. Girls who want to sing in choirs should have opportunities, too. But not at the expense of a particular sort of singing that only boys can do, and only when they ARE boys. Thank you for sharing the video. Wonderful!
This is the version I’ve always loved most. Thank you so much.
It's a blessing to be able to find older recordings of these wonderful choirs to share. Merry Christmas!
Absolutely my favorite Christmas song! Thank you for posting this. I had wondered about the background of the song. You have answered many questions!
We used to sing it at all of our caroling parties, in German and English!
My parents sometimes went to Sunday mass at the Hofburg Palace Chapel at which the Vienna Boys Choir sang. My mother said they were up in the choir loft so she never “saw” them there but they were always wonderful to hear. They are my favorite choir—as much for nostalgic reasons as any other. I did see them on stage (not at mass) and they were always impressive. I love this performance of Mozart’s Sub Tuum Praesidium: it is sung by Stefan Möckel and Max Emmanuel Cencic, among the best of boy singers. Their performance was not video recorded, so it has been superimposed on other boys’ singing the same hymn. I am bothered when people say they want girls in such historic boys choirs, mostly because I don’t think they can replicate the sound of an adolescent male treble as is heard here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m86Z9EywtUw&list=RDm86Z9EywtUw&start_radio=1
I recall a delightful live action Disney movie c. 1960 about the adventures of the Vienna Boys Choir entitled "Almost Angels." The story itself may have been somewhat pedestrian, but the soundtrack featured the voices of the actual choir, and there were beautiful location shots of Austria.
Wow, hearing the Vienna Boys Choir in person. That's a treat. It's a shame that people are offended by boy choirs, really. There is a unique tone to boys' voices .. it is haunting and, as we know, also fleeting, because the boys' voices change and then cannot sing in that way for long. Girls who want to sing in choirs should have opportunities, too. But not at the expense of a particular sort of singing that only boys can do, and only when they ARE boys. Thank you for sharing the video. Wonderful!