24 July 2006, London: BBC Radio 3 Choir of the Year (www.choiroftheyear.co.uk) the UK's largest amateur singing competition which brings together the country's most talented and diverse singing groups, has announced 24 choirs are now through to the Category Finals at the Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff on 11 & 12 November.

An audience of around 2,000 people are expected at the Category Finals to watch singing groups including 100 punks, a group from the London Turkish community and an all-female choir that ranges in age from 11 to 80.

Highlights from the Category Finals and the complete Grand Final will be broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and the Grand Final will also be televised on BBC FOUR.

Tickets for BBC Radio 3 Choir of the Year Category Finals (11& 12 November) and Grand Finals (10 December) can be purchased from the Wales Millennium Centre Box office. To book tickets call 08700 40 2000 or go to www.wmc.org.uk.

BBC Radio 3 Choir of the Year encompasses a vast array of musical styles and types of singing from barbershop and gospel to pop, musical theatre and World music. Over 5,000 singers from communities all over the country took part in regional auditions, ensuring the competition reflects the rich diversity of music-making in the UK.

Changes to the competition, a biennial event which began in 1984, mean choirs will receive live feedback from the judging panel as soon as they have performed. Another change for 2006 is the introduction of the Open Category, whereby any choir, with no upper or lower age limit, can enter singing in any musical style.

Roger Wright, Controller, BBC Radio 3, said: "As the UK's leading cultural broadcaster, BBC Radio 3 is delighted to present Choir of the Year, bringing together choirs from all musical traditions and from all parts of the country in a celebration of choral music-making."


Choirs through to the Category Finals include:

• Sense of Sound (Open Category) - a multi-cultural, a cappella performance group based in Liverpool with around 20 members both men and women. For the regional audition rounds they sang music by Sting and the Artful Dodger in a spellbinding performance.
  
  
• Choir Invisible (Open Category) - made up of 100 non-auditioned singers from across the East Midlands, the group has only been singing together for 18 months. Ranging in age from 15 to 70, they came to the regional audition dressed as punks!
  
  
• Chantage (Adult Category) - a stylish, dynamic chamber choir made up of young professionals from all over London performing a wide variety for music from traditional choral music to contemporary classics.
  
  
• London Bulgarian Choir (Open Category) - brings to life the beauty of Bulgarian sounds, fiery rhythms and harmonies unfamiliar to British audiences.
  
  
• The Inverclyde Schools' Junior Choir (Children's Category) has 100 members aged 9 to 14 taken from schools across the Inverclyde area. Palma Allen is their dynamic musical director. She also runs another choir, Inverclyde Senior Choir, for older children, which is through to the Youth category final. At the end of the summer, they are taking part in the BBC Proms in the Park in Scotland.

Following the Category Finals eight winning choirs - one from each category and four wild card choirs - go forward to the Grand Final on 10 December at the Wales Millennium Centre.

The Category Finals and the Grand Final will be broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and the Grand Final will also be televised on BBC FOUR.

Information on tickets for the Category and Grand Final will be posted on www.choiroftheyear.co.uk during the competition.

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Categories

• Open Choirs - a new category open to all choirs and singing groups from any musical background. There are no upper or lower age limits in this category and it's ideal for singing groups who want to so something different - maybe songs from the shows, songs from the charts or world music - and for choirs who feel they don't fit the other categories.
  
  
• Children's Choirs - Majority of singers 14 and under.
  
  
• Youth Choirs - Majority of singers 18 and under.
  
  
• Adult Choirs - Same or mixed voices

Choral Singing in the UK
Choral singing in this country has always been a highly social activity and outside sport, it is the UK's most popular participatory leisure activity. There are over 25,000 choirs, with 500,000 singers across the country reaching an audience of 3m*. Regular group singing has proven health benefits, from improved breathing capacity and better posture to increased self-confidence and the feel good factor that comes from singing your heart out with a group of friends.

* Figures supplied by TONSIL


Press information
BBC Radio 3 Choir of the Year news, high resolution images and other information can be downloaded from http://www.kallaway.co.uk/2006-choir_of_the_year.htm. Pictures of 2005 semi-finalists and finalists can also be downloaded from this site.
For further press information contact:

Press Contacts:
Kallaway
Anna Cusden  anna.cusden@kallaway.co.uk  020 7221 7883
BBC Radio 3
Linda Siemon   linda.siemon@bbc.co.uk  020 7765 4934

BBC Radio 3 Choir of the Year Competition Management
Kallaway
David Nagle   david.nagle@kallaway.co.uk  020 7221 7883
Radio 3
Kate Jones   kate.jones.01@bbc.co.uk  029 2032 3649


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