Choir-boy boy band

Nicolas Schwandner (14), Jan Enderle (13) and Georg Starz (14) are three outstanding soloists with the Augsburg Cathedral Boys' Choir, founded 40 years ago and now one of Germany's top boys choirs. A widely respected label signed an exclusive contract with the three in the hopes of reaching a new target audience.

"They aren't just Germany's youngest boy band; they're also the first classically trained, German-speaking boy band to be honored with an exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon / Panorama," the label announced.

But alto Georg Starz isn't entirely comfortable with the group being called a "boy band." "The CD is actually called 'Die Chorjungen' (The Choir Boys)," he said. "Yes, we're singing a few 20th century pieces, but most of the stuff is more classical. Maybe we are a boy group - just not very modern. After all, we sing in the Cathedral Boys' Choir, and they're classical."

The boys had a test run with the broader German market during a televised performance in early February at the glamorous Dresden Semperoper opera ball. They enchanted the ball's audience, including German celebrities such as TV presenter Thomas Gottschalk and star chef Horst Lichter, but also managed to draw an astonishing 12,000 attendees to a market square in Dresden to watch their performance.

Betting on a range of styles

With pop ballads like "Tears in Heaven" by Eric Clapton, folksy classics like "Über den Wolken" (Above the Clouds) by Reinhard May and some genuine folk songs, the CD is clearly a crossover offering. The "classical" side ranges from "Ave Maria" (Bach/Gounod) to a version of Strauss' "Beautiful Blue Danube" with lyrics and the famous "Miserere" by Italian Baroque composer Gregorio Allegri.

It's clear that the CD is targeting an audience that's as broad as possible, and that appeals to Starz, who says, "Actually, I find everything really cool. The main thing about this CD is the mix."

What brings it all together is the angelic and innocent loveliness of the voices, souped up with a heavy reverb added in the studio that detracts somewhat from the boys' natural quality. But the technical finessing does generate an almost instrumental-sounding aesthetic that was favored by the choir's founder after his experiences in England.

Maybe that's why the soloists were signed to Deutsche Grammophon by the label's new British head, Marc Wilkinson. And while there is suitable original literature for boy choir soloists already available, the CD almost exclusively features arrangements by Simon Lole, also from England.

"These parameters were a given," said Reinhard Kammler, the founder of the Augsburg Cathedral Boys' Choir.

Young pros, but not stars

They may be young, but Jan, Nico and Georg are essentially professional singers. Having worked with famous conductors such as Daniel Harding, their wide-ranging repertoire includes the role of Yiniold in Debussy's opera "Pelleas et Melisande," the three boys in Mozart's "The Magic Flute," the boy quartet in Schumann's "Scenes from Goethe's Faust" as well as the alto and soprano arias in Bach's Christmas Oratorio.

"The three are completely integrated in the larger choir and not at all snobby," says Kammler, adding, "The goal is not to pursue a cult of personality, which wouldn't make any sense from a teaching standpoint. So we're not marketing this just with the names of three individual singers, but also as the institution - the Augsburg Cathedral Boys' Choir."

Elite academy

The boys' accomplishments are based on thorough vocal instruction. Most candidates for the Augsburg Cathedral Boys' Choir begin training at age five. After preliminary stints in two choirs, they join a feeder choir that leads to one of two further choirs: the large A Choir or, ultimately, the institution's top ensemble, a 40-member chamber choir. Admission into the latter essentially qualifies the young singers as soloists. They also receive group and solo voice training.

With support from the Diocese of Augsburg, the academy rounds out instruction with instrumental training and tutoring. Augsburg makes a point of not turning the institution into a boarding school, and the young singers must commit less time to the choir than in some other German boy choirs. They have just two weekly commitments. The idea is that singing should remain a voluntary part of the boys' free time.

Whether Nicolas, Jan and Georg can hold on to that status after the release of their elaborately produced and promoted album remains to be seen. But in any event, their voices' innocent and angelic quality comes with a time limit.