U. singers euphoric over win

When the University of Utah Singers were declared the winners at the European Grand Prix, the announcement was greeted by a cacophony of shouting and screaming from the stunned performers, who were waiting backstage for the results.

"It was sort of a great relief mixed with euphoria," said choir director Brady Allred. "It was a nailbiter, because you never know how these competitions will turn out."

Allred and the choir have been there before. They won first prize at the Florilege Vocal Competition in France last year, a competition they didn't expect to win. And that victory brought them back to Europe this year to participate in the European Grand Prix, held in Tolosa, Spain, on June 17.

To qualify for the Grand Prix, a choir has to take first prize at one of six major competitions held in Europe. Consequently, the groups who performed in Tolosa are, arguably, among the best in the world.

"There were some good performances," Allred said. In particular, he enjoyed the girls choir Cantemus from Hungary. "They gave a very pleasurable performance."

But as the competition wore on, Allred began to feel that the University Singers had a real chance of winning, in part because of their program. "I choose our programs carefully, and that worked in our behalf."

Allred selects the order of pieces to ensure a seamless flow between songs. "I like our programs to be a complete package. I like them to flow smoothly without interruption."

By the time of the competition, the choir members had polished their program and refined their performance. When they arrived in Spain, they had just completed a two-week tour of France. "By then we had performed 15 concerts," Allred said.

But that still wasn't enough. "We had a 20-minute warm-up a couple of hours before the competition, and the choir tended to go a little sharp."

The problem was, on their French tour the group had become accustomed to singing in cathedrals with lively acoustics. "The hall where the competition took place didn't have much reverberation. But we stayed in tune for our performance."

After being crowned the winners, the choir was asked to come back onstage to sing an additional song. When the applause from the audience wouldn't die down, Allred finally grabbed a singer's hand and escorted her offstage, followed by the rest of the group. Once they were backstage again, the singers lifted Allred on their shoulders. "The mood was unbelievable," he said.

As a result of their win, the University Singers have been invited to three European festivals next year. "We're going to be featured at a winner's concert in southern France." And before and after that concert, the choir will be featured in two other festivals — the 12th International Choir Festival in Provence, France, from July 23-Aug. 1, and the "Choralies de Vaison-la-Romaine," from Aug. 1-10.

The difference between previous festivals and those coming up next year is that the University Singers will have all their expenses covered by the festivals. "We're now getting paid to sing," Allred said. "That's a nice change for us."

---

E-mail: ereichel@desnews.com