Black Forest Voices Festival Choir

The BFV Festival Choir is open to all singers of all ages and abilities from near and far who want to sing together and get to know great conductors. Three to four songs and some improv and sound collages are rehearsed and performed on stage during the festival.
The interest in the Festival Choir has been so great in recent years that we will be expanding the Festival Choir concept in summer 2025: in 2025 there will be two phases of the Festival Choir. You can take part in both phases, or choose just one of them. Different pieces will be developed in each phase.
Phase A
The choir will come together for two full days one weekend before the festival (public holidays: Whit Sunday & Whit Monday) and rehearse with three festival lecturers in Kirchzarten and work on a small program. The choir's first performance will take place on the Schalampi stage at noon on Thursday (June 12, 2025) at the festival opening event; the second performance with the songs from Phase A will be at the lunchtime matinee on Sun, June 15, 2025.
Phase B
Phase B of the festival choir begins during the festival: as in previous years, the festival choir takes place during the festival period, where a further repertoire (new songs and improvisations) is developed. The choir will perform at the Sunday morning service in the Catholic Church and will also perform at the Sunday lunchtime matinee (June 15, 2025).
Interested singers are very welcome to register for both phases - or just for one of the two phases (A or B). For long-distance travelers: If you don't have to travel home again between the two phases, we cordially invite you to take a vacation in Kirchzarten or the Black Forest on Tuesday and Wednesday.
And for those who would rather be active than on vacation: parts of the team are already on site - we can certainly use a helping hand here and there with the preparations for the festival ;-)
Schedule
Date |
Time | Place | Conductor | Event | Phase |
Sun, June 8, 25 | 10-13 AM / 3-6 PM | Bürgersaal | Brooke, Knoche, Pannier | Rehearsal | A |
Mon, June 8, 25 | 10-13 AM / 3-5 PM | Bürgersaal | Brooke, Knoche, Pannier | Rehearsal | A |
Thu, June 12, 25 | 12 AM | Schalampi stage | Brooke | Rehearsal | A |
1:30 PM | Schalampi stage | Brooke, Pannier | Opening Session, Performance | A | |
4:15-5:45 PM | n.n. | Brooke, Martens, Pannier | Rehearsal | B | |
Fri, June 13, 25 | 4:15-5:45 PM | n.n. | Brooke, Martens, Pannier | Rehearsal | B |
Sat, June 14, 25 | 4:15-5:45 PM | n.n. | Brooke, Martens, Pannier | Rehearsal | B |
Sun, June 15, 25 | 9:30-10 AM | Kath. Church | Brooke, Martens, Pannier | Rehearsal | B |
10 AM | Kath. Church | Brooke, Martens, Pannier | Church Service, Performance | B | |
11:15 - 12 AM | Kath. Church | Brooke, Martens, Pannier | Rehearsal | A + B | |
12 AM | Kath. Church | Brooke, Martens, Pannier | Matinee, Performance | A + B |
Conductors


David Brooke (Freiburg) studied school music (violin) and maths in Freiburg. Since then, he has been involved in the Freiburg choir scene, taking over the management of the Freiburg Jazz Choir in 2019 and directing the Junior Jazz Choir. In 2022, he organised the ‘Chorwärts!’ festival. He also directs the Jazzchor Bern and is a founding member of the a cappella group ‘Kaleidoskop’. In 2024, he completed his master's degree in jazz singing and was awarded the ‘Young Art!’ prize in Constance in 2023.

Matthias Knoche

Matthias Knoche (Berlin) studied jazz singing in Leipzig and performs as a flexible vocal artist together with Tanja Pannier in the a cappella duo ‘Klangbezirk’. He teaches choral conducting in jazz and pop at the Berlin University of the Arts, is in demand internationally as an arranger and gives workshops and coaching sessions for choirs, choirmasters and ensembles. Matthias Knoche regularly works with jazz greats such as Ed Partyka and Kim Nazarian. Concert tours have taken him to other European countries, South Korea, Singapore, China and Taiwan.

Merel Martens

Merel Martens (NDL) is a choral conductor, arranger and coach. She received her Master's degree in ‘"nnovative Choral Conducting" from the Royal Academy of Music Aalborg (DK) in 2015. In the Netherlands she is known for her work with the award-winning vocal groups Pitch Control, MAZE Voices and VOÏSZ Vocal Projects. She coaches vocal ensembles, conducts workshops and founded the Vocal Leadership programme at Codarts Conservatory Rotterdam in 2015. In 2018, she was honoured as "Best Choir Conductor of the Year".

Tanja Pannier

Tanja Pannier (Berlin) is a singer, composer, arranger and vocal coach and gives workshops for singers, choirs and ensembles throughout Germany and internationally. She is a founding member of the internationally award-winning a cappella duo Klangbezirk and has written theatre music for the GRIPS Theatre and Schauspielhaus Düsseldorf, among others. She has been a lecturer and head of department for jazz/pop singing in the pedagogical study programmes at the Berlin University of the Arts since 2021. She has been Artistic Director of the Black Forest Voices Festival since 2022.
Registration & Costs
COSTS
Phase A: 70,00 €
Phase B: free
The payment process for Phase A does not take place upon registration, but at a later date after confirmation of participation.
REGISTRATION
Participation in the festival choir is by registration, the vocal groups are limited. Registration for both phases is now possible via the following registration form:

Repertoire of the last years
Song | Composer | Arrangement |
Ade zur guten Nacht | Volkslied | Oliver Gies |
A Look Beyond | Klangbezirk | |
Call of Melody | Patrick Heil, Julian Knörzer, Richard Leisegang, Cornelius Mack | |
Evening Rise | traditional | Meinhard Ansohn |
Find The Cost Of Freedom | Crosby, Stills, Nash, Young | Matthias Knoche |
Fix You | Coldplay | Carsten Gerlitz |
If you're out there | John Legend | Merel Martens |
Illuminated | Hurts | Patrick Oliver |
In Between | Klangbezirk | |
Jesu, meine Freude | Johann Sebastian Bach | Johann Franck, Johann Crüger |
Lasst und keine Zeit verlier'n | Patrick Heil, Julian Knörzer, Richard Leisegang, Cornelius Mack | |
Les Fleurs | Richard Rudolph, Charles Stepney | Edward Randell |
Let us Break Bread Together On Our Knees | traditional | |
Narnia | Jo Goldsmith-Eteson, Sara Brimer, Oliver Griffiths | |
People get ready | Curtis Mayfield | Tanja Pannier |
Spürt ihr es im Bauch | Patrick Heil, Julian Knörzer, Richard Leisegang, Cornelius Mack | |
Unsere einzige Hoffnung | Oliver Gies |
