Earth, Air, Water, Fire - National Youth Choir (15-18 Years)

• This event takes place at Stoller Hall at 2pm on Sunday 24 August. Find out more about getting here
• For the enjoyment and safety of our young singers, please do not take photos or film during the performance

Elements: Earth - Katherine Gimon
Elements is set of choral works that abstractly depict the four classical elements and explores the wide range of capabilities of the human voice - from overtone singing, to vocal percussion, to colourful vocal timbres. Elements features no 'text' (at least not in the traditional sense), rather a series of syllables generated through improvisation meant to evoke the sound and energy of each element.

Earth is a beautiful, texturally-driven work depicting the simple yet unexplainable beauty of the earth. The work features harmonic overtone singing by a group of soloists.

Earth Song - Frank Ticheli
A cry for peace in a world torn by war, this poignant a cappella setting of an original text is filled with striking dynamic contrasts. "Sing, Be, Live, See... This dark stormy hour, the wind, it stirs. The scorched earth cries out in vain... But music and singing have been my refuge, and music and singing shall be my light..."

The Way Through the Woods - Anna Disley-Simpson
Wishing to give voice to the animals and ecosystems resilient to human destruction, Anna was drawn to this Rudyard Kipling poem about the magic of place and memory. Through swinging rhythmic phrases and contrasting hushed melodies we hear how nature forcefully takes back the encroached woodland once riven by a highway and the tumult of traffic.

Elements: Air - Katherine Gimon
Air traces the movement from calm breath to thick violent winds. Together singers gradually introduce new sounds and pitches, building an intricate texture with ever-shifting emphasis.

Leonardo Dreams of his Flying Machine - Eric Whitacre
When Eric started writing this piece, he started with a simple concept: what would it sound like if Leonardo Da Vinci were dreaming? And more specifically, what kind of music would fill the mind of such a genius? The drama would tell the story of Leonardo being tormented by the calling of the air, tortured to such degree that his only recourse was to solve the riddle and figure out how to fly.

Shamayin - Sarah Keirle-Dos Santos
'Shamayin' means 'sky' or 'heavens' in Hebrew. It is a choir-only arrangement of movement four of Speak to the Earth, a work for choir and electronics commissioned by Consortium Vocale Berlin and premiered in June 2024.

Elements: Water - Katerina Gimon
Water presents powerful soaring textures and lilting melodies that grow and decay like waves in the ocean.

Ganga’s Peace - Shruthi Rajasekar
For Hindus like Shruthi, the Ganga river is the most sacred of places. Believed to be an embodiment of the goddess Ganga, the river is a site of purification, rebirth, and solace. It additionally provides vital resources to the agrarian and urban communities of the region. Like many places in the world today, however, the Ganga river is in environmental peril. By taking from ‘Mother Ganga’, we have endangered Her – one example of the widespread harm humans have done to Mother Nature.

Ancient Hindu philosophy and mythology illuminate the path forward. In addition to the origin story of Goddess Ganga and the Shanti Mantra, Shruthi turned to the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad. This Hindu treatise provides three essential values to live by: dhaamyatta (self-restraint), dhatta (giving), and dhayadhvam (kindness), all contained in the thunderous sound of ‘Da’. These are the solutions for saving our environment. But will we have the integrity to implement them? Or will Ganga and Nature fare better without us?

Water Night - Eric Whitacre
Yes, you heard that right! This piece starts "Night with the eyes of a horse that trembles in the night". The words are from a poem - originally written in Spanish - by Mexican poet Octavio Paz. Perhaps it sounds so poetic is because it's hard to capture the essence of the Spanish words in their English translation? Listen out for the shimmering harmonies that makes this piece feel like a pool of cool water.

Loch Lomond - Traditional arr. David Overton
You may recognise this gently flowing setting of the traditional Scottish folksong as a favourite of vocal a cappella group The Kings Singers. The verses, serene and calm solos with choral backing, are contrasted with rousing choruses, with all the singers joining in.

Elements: Fire - Katerina Gimon
Fire is a fun, lively, and energetic work incorporating vocal percussion, body percussion, nasal singing, calls, nonsense syllables, as well as optional percussion.

‘Amor, io sento l’alma’ from Six Fire Songs - Morten Lauridsen
This piece is the third 'Fire Song' in this set of six pieces inspired by Italian Renaissance madrigals. Each of the six poems in the cycle contains romantic references to fire and the music is unified by manipulations of a sonority called the ‘Fire-Chord’, which opens the piece and is found extensively throughout each piece.

Amor, io sento l’alma Tornar nel foco ov’io Fui lieto et più che mai d’arder desio. Io arde ’en chiara fiamma Nutrisco il miser core; Et quanto più s’infiamma, Tanto più cresce amore, Perch’ogni mio dolore Nasce dal fuoco ov’io Fui lieto et più che mai d’arder desio.

Oh love, I feel my soul Return to the fire where I Rejoiced and more than ever desire to burn. I burn and in bright flames I feed my miserable heart; The more it flames The more my loving grows, For all my sorrows Are born of the fire where I Rejoiced and more than ever desire to burn

Kasar Mie La Gaji - Alberto Grau
This piece is a call to the human race to save the Earth and reduce our environmental impact. The Venezuelan composer uses only one line of text ‘Kasar mie la gaji’ (The Earth is tired) throughout the piece, manipulating it in many ways; sometimes the choir whisper, speak or scream the words instead of singing. The slow introduction and middle section of the piece are a lamentation for and a depiction of our tired planet, whilst the contrasting energetic rhythmic sections are an encouragement, perhaps demand, to change our ways. Hand clapping and foot stamping in the final section build up to a mighty shout and scream to save our planet.

Singers in National Youth Choir (15-18 Years) meet twice a year for residential courses. On courses, singers live, sing and learn together with rehearsals for most of the day time and social events in the evening, all facilitated by a team of National Youth Choir conductors, vocal coaches, musicianship leads and pastoral staff.

From dancercise to birthdays to the now, traditional 'pink Wednesdays', there's far too many special things about National Youth Choir courses to mention all of them. To get a taste of what these young singers have experienced over the last eight days, watch our Instagram stories highlight

See behind the scenes on Instagram

Claresta Adetogun Rosie Ahmed Henry Allen Sophie May Anderson Charles Ashworth Sanjana Bathala Anastasia Bell Hannah Bevan Matilda Bradley Jemima Broadhead Ellen Broadley Sarah-Jane Butler Sophia Camina Samantha Carew Annabelle Carmichael Long Chan Sylvie Chong Ernest Chui Eve Collins Hannah Craig Alexander Crook Madeleine Davis Caitlin Day James Delap Ferdinand Delhaise Daniel Devenish Alejandro Donnai Jessop Oscar Dragten Alice Edge Euan Elston Sophia Esposito Ingrid Feliu-Morstang Aaron Foo-Storey Oscar Ford Tansy Fowler Orli Garnett Georgina Godfrey Elsie Graham Tabitha Gurney Mimi Hayward Autumn Heppenstall

Ruby Hewitt Arianwen Hughes Aaliyah Ignatovaite Wyatt Ip Joseph James Elen Johnson Evie Kang Amelia Kashis Daniel Kelly Breesha Kelsey Nina Koschalka Alys Kramer Manasa Laxmi Krishna Miles Lam Charlotte Landsbert Alexander Lau Sasha Laxton Ava Lea-James Nicholas Leigh Oreon Lewisson Catherine Li Jixuan Li Isabella Lindop Iona Lyall Martha Machray Holly Mackinnon Augusta Maddox Divine Mankrado James Mason-Carney Alex Mather Anjali McElwaine Reuben McKinney-Rowe Abigail Miller Asker Moeller-Jensen Karl Morewood Kaira Navin Amelia O'Keeffe Tomi Olunuga Maya Parker Imogen Paskins Willem Paskins

Joseph Pasley Alice Patterson Manoli Patton Fergus Peacock Bethan Pollard Rebecca Pugsley Sophie Pugsley Alice Rickard Heloise Roberts Anise Robinson Maia Rynehart Mariam Saccoh Evie Schmidt-Martin Ted Scott Maya Sinel Aaliyah Smith Hettie Smith Isaac Smith Rose Smith Alex Somerville Harry Sundeland Gisele Sutherland-Hay Joel Swedensky Jamie Tabor Mary Taylor Rhona Tealby-Watson Evie Thomson Angus Timmins Isabella Turner-Keeble Sophie Tyler Savanna Vogt Kathryn Watt Maximilian Webber Honor Weir Charles Weston Zoe May Wilkinson Esther Williams Benjamin Willis Natasha Willsher Natalie Wingfield Emma Wyse Mollie Yarrow

Conductor - Ellie Slorach 
Vocal Coach in Residence - Charlotte Dougan
Vocal Coach - Miriam Allan
Assistant Conductor & Section Coach - Andy McTaggart
Section Coaches - Charlotte Galloway, Rebekah Nieser Jones, Daniel Rodríguez-Tíjaro, Emily Varney

Course Manager - Moya Morrison
Assistant Course Manager - Lizzie Cullen
Head of Pastoral Care - Anna George
Heads of House/Senior Pastoral Care - Alice Biggs, Harriet Jarvis, Will Matthews 
Senior Pastoral Care - Ellie Drabble, Anna Lush, Hannah Macauley
Head of Social - Rachel Wheatley
Course Assistants - Martha Dowland, Sam Tilley