Campus - 16.10.2025 - 13:00
Ten days – that's all it took to turn an Instagram request into one of the most unusual performances by the Unichor St. Gallen. The German band Kraftklub, brought in at short notice to replace Kings of Leon at OpenAir St. Gallen 2025, was looking for a choir for one of their songs. So they sent a message to the HSG's Unichor on Instagram. ‘I agreed spontaneously,’ recalls choir director Sarah Abrigada.
There was no time for joint rehearsals before the concert. So they met backstage on the Friday of the festival, discussed the cues – and a few minutes later, 30 singers in red capes stood on stage in front of thousands of festival-goers.
‘Opening the concert in front of this crowd and coming back on stage at the end was really special,’ says Abrigada. Kraftklub was enthusiastic, and the experiment was a success.
Moments like these are no coincidence. In recent years, the Unichor has repeatedly ventured into collaborations: in 2019, for example, at Zurich's Hallenstadion, where the singers performed five musical songs alongside Hugh Jackman. ‘We are an amateur choir, but working with professionals gives us a lot of input,’ says Abrigada, who is herself a professional conductor and singer and has been leading the choir for ten years as a HSG lecturer.
There have also been collaborations with musicians from eastern Switzerland, such as jazz pianist Claude Diallo and the St. Gallen-St. Georgen Music Society. A project with the St. Gallen Oratorio Choir is currently being considered. ‘If that happens, we would have 200 singers on stage at the concert,’ says the choir director.
Despite its name, the Unichor is not a closed project of HSG but is open to external members: its members include students from various universities, teachers, nurses, HSG alumni – a colourful mix with significantly more women than men singing along. There are currently about ten basses for the low voices.
For many members, the university choir is much more than just a way to balance their studies. ‘I've been singing since I was a child – here I find the mix of fun and challenge that keeps me motivated,’ says HSG student Melanie Moser. She particularly appreciates the openness. ‘It's a colourful group, not just students, but also people from completely different fields. That's what makes the choir so lively.’ Moser and fellow HSG student Leonie Greutert manage all the administrative aspects of the choir, such as organising concerts. ‘I can't read music – but I'm still welcome here,’ says Greutert. For her, it's the camaraderie that counts: ‘With just a few rehearsals, we always manage to put something together, and in a very friendly atmosphere.’
The choir is currently rehearsing for its next concert at the end of the autumn semester 2025, which will have the motto ‘Worldwide’: around 10 songs from all over the world are being rehearsed, including from Japan, Spain and Macedonia. Each semester ends with a concert, for which around ten rehearsals and an intensive rehearsal day are scheduled.
‘The start of a new semester is always like a blind date,’ says Abrigada. ‘New members join, everyone has different levels of experience – but in the end, something comes together.’
