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In 1987, an enthusiastic group of young singers from Wilhelmshaven founded the Wilhelmshavener Vokalensemble (= WVE). The ensemble was founded in 1987 as part of the concert series Early Music Sengwarden. At the first concert on August 30, 1987, the then 23-year-old Matthias Hengelbrock conducted and most of the performers were still pupils or young students. To state it again: Matthias Hengelbrock, the younger brother of the internationally renowned conductor Thomas Hengelbrock, cut a fine figure as a choirmaster.
A lot has happened since then: The WVE, led since 1988 by the well-known singer and born in Wilhelmshaven, Ralf Popken, is one of the renowned chamber choirs in Northern Germany, has produced numerous CD's, sung many concerts in Germany and abroad and worked with well-known orchestras and soloists . Time and again, the choir has returned to the place where it was founded, Sengwarden. Today, the ensemble belongs in the first rank of German Chamber Choirs.
The WVE celebrated its 20th anniversary with a very special concert in which many alumni also take part under the direction of Ralf Popken on August 26, 2007 at the Sengwarder Kirche. The anniversary choir had at least 60 singers. In the gala concert, parts from the Messiah by George Frideric Handel were heard (including "Hallelula"), from J.S. Bach's great motet Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied (BWV 225) and romantic motets by Felix Mendelssohn, Josef Rheinberger and Johannes Brahms. One thing is exactly the same as at the first concert in August 1987: Admission is free. |
