The Emil Adamič Teachers’ Choir of Slovenia, one of Slovenia’s oldest choirs, has this year embarked on its hundredth year of activity. As its name suggests, it is a pan-Slovenian choir that brings together singers from every corner of the country. The choir has a rich and varied history. Its direct predecessor was founded shortly after the First World War by teachers from Trieste and
the surrounding area. This, however, soon disbanded as a result of increasing pressure during the rise of Fascism. Attempts to establish a teachers’ choir met with better fortune in Ljubljana, where Emil Adamič and choir director Srečko Kumar succeeded in founding a new teachers’ choir in 1925.
The cultural mission pursued by the choir has been of inestimable value to the tradition of music education in Slovenia. At a practical level, its primary aim in the past was to educate and train its members, drawn from the ranks of educators, for musical or choral activities with school choirs and community choirs. The choir has nurtured a succession of teacher-choir directors who have successfully passed on their knowledge to singers of all ages in their own communities. It has also continuously maintained a high level of musical performance, something made possible by the fact that it has been led by many distinguished directors.
The Emil Adamič Teachers’ Choir of Slovenia continues to uphold this mission today. It also acts as a connector and motivator for choral culture among Slovene teachers, pursuing this aim primarily through an annual concert of teachers’ choirs, which it organised for the ninth time last year and which attracts more participating choirs with every new edition. The event always takes place on the same day 5 October, World Teachers’ Day at the Slovenian Philharmonic Hall. This year the Philharmonic Hall will also host the gala centenary concert at which the choir will mark its important jubilee.
Janez Kukovica
