The Ensemble

For 25 years, the Leipzig-based Calmus Ensemble has been committed to creating concert programmes and CD productions that tell a story, combine classical repertoire with new musical discoveries, bring world premieres to life and touch people in the process. Being one of the most successful vocal ensembles in Germany, it showcases a wide variety of styles and genres, which brings the ensemble to the concert stages of Germany, Europe and regularly to the USA. Its trademark is a sound culture that runs like a common thread through all the line-up changes of the last 25 years: rich sound colours, homogeneity, attention to detail and a lyrical interpretation of the music.

The ensemble's repertoire range is almost unlimited: Influenced by the St. Thomas Choir tradition of the founding members, the Leipzig masters are an integral part of concert programmes, as is the vocal music of the Renaissance, Baroque and Romantic periods. Another cornerstone of the Calmus Ensemble's work is the performance of new music. Over the years, they have commissioned and premiered numerous compositions, including works by Paul Moravec, Mathew Rosenblum, Steffen Schleiermacher, Wolfram Buchenberg, Bill Dobbins, Mia Makaroff, Gordon Kampe and, as recently as 2024, Bernd Franke (‘face to face’) and Harald Banter (‘Elemente des Seins’). Pop, folk and jazz arrangements complete the repertoire, as evidenced by numerous publications of sheet music. Collaborations with colleagues such as the ensembles Sjaella and Singer Pur (‘Elemente’), amarcord (‘Leipziger Disputation’) and the lautten compagney BERLIN (‘BachArkaden’ / ‘Mitten im Leben’), the Raschèr Saxophone Quartet, the hr-Bigband and the Capella de la Torre also enrich the ensemble's repertoire. At the Choir Day in Mainz Cathedral with Sir John Rutter and around 1,500 singers in September 2024, the Calmus singers were not only invited to teach a workshop, but also to perform in an a cappella concert and as soloists under the baton of Sir John Rutter himself.

With their latest release ‘Liebesleid’, the quintet has released 27 recordings to date and won a whole host of international prizes and competitions – most recently the OPUS KLASSIK 2019 ‘Best Choral Recording’. Calmus devotes part of its time to promoting young talent: workshops and jury activities are part of the singers' everyday life, at home in Leipzig and on the road, including as patrons of the Rundfunkjugendchor Wernigerode under the direction of Robert Göstl, at the HfM Saar Summer School or at the International Masterclass for Choral Conducting at the Bayerische Musikakademie Marktoberdorf and also frequently in the USA. Innovation, dedication and friendship – that's what Calmus carries to the outside world and keeps Calmus together from within.