It felt a bit like our 15 minutes of fame as about 20 EKOSingers members joined other members of the Choir Alberta mass choir to sing “A Thanksgiving” by Bob Chilcott, with Grammy award-winning The King’s Singers. The concert performance was the culmination of an afternoon workshop with the premier classical vocal group from the U.K.

We got a brief insight into the method of these performers as they coached us on the parts we sang in accompaniment to their performance of the piece. We saw first how they use the vocal instrument like craftsmen working with fine jewelry. They strived to form each sound to promote the unity of voices and to achieve the best quality.

EKOSingers Director, Paula Roberts, who also participated in the workshop noted “I was astounded, at first, to discover their plan of not having a conductor for the 150 voice workshop choir, but as things began to unfold, it was amazing how quickly every singer “tuned in” to each other and to the 6 King’s Singers. We actually pulled off a wonderful “unconducted” performance which was a new and exciting experience for us all. (But, hopefully, we choral conductors won’t be out of a job any time soon!)”

Their emphasis on the primacy of the ensemble over the desire to “shine” as a vocal performer was an excellent reminder to us as we strive for beauty in the vocal blend of our group. We heard in the workshop and again later in performance how their group has become so finely attuned to each other that they are conscious of the sound, the silence and even the breathing of their fellow singers. Their concert was filled with examples of singing as though they were one instrument and in other pieces how they sang in counter-point with the precision of an elegant machine.

Being in the presence of such virtuosity was a great pleasure and inspiration to strive harder in our EKOSingers ensemble.