On Reformation Day, the boy's choir of St. Thomas in Leipzig will begin its festive year

On Reformation Day (October 31st), the choir of St. Thomas in Leipzig will begin the festive year on the occasion of its 800th anniversary. The organisers announced on Wednesday that the beginning will be the performance of a Motet in the church of St. Thomas. The boy's choir will sing works by Johann Sebastian Bach, Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy and Johann Nepomuk David. The concert is also part of the prelude for the theme year "Reformation and Music" in the context of the Luther Decade that leads to the 500th anniversary of the Reformation in 2017.

"800th years of Thomana – to believe, to sing, to learn"

Further highlights of the anniversary year 2012 under the motto "800 years of Thomana – to believe, to sing, to learn" will be a ceremony on March 20th in St. Thomas with Federal President Christian Wulff. Throughout the anniversary year, a multitude of concerts, exhibitions and other events will be held, amongst them a motion picture about the famous young singers.

The parish of St. Thomas announced that the central exhibition during the anniversary year will be opened on March 19th in the Stadgeschichtliches Museum (museum of town history). The documentation is called "Jauchzet! Frohlocket" ("Exult! Rejoice!"). It depicts the fascinating history of the choir in the interplay of culture and politics.

Additional key events in the anniversary year will be five festive compositions that are written by international composers especially for the occasion. For example, St. Thomas Cantor Georg Christoph Biller wants to link his work to the St. Matthew Passion by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750).