The Latvian Radio Choir, who will be appearing at the City Recital Hall, Angel Place during the Sydney Festival later this month, ranks among the top professional chamber choirs in Europe. A reputation for musical taste, expressivity and vocal compass have made us a well-respected name on the world map and we have won the Latvian Music Grand Prix seven times in total. But it wasn’t always plain sailing. In fact LRC had to be founded three times: first in 1940, then again in 1945 after a year of silence as a result of World War II, and finally in 1957 after a four-year break due to direct orders from Moscow to eliminate radio choirs in the Baltic Republics.

On all three occasions that LRC was launched it was entrusted to the legendary Latvian choral conductor Teodors Kalninš. And despite the fact that Kalninš was exiled from Latvia for a year, the Radio Latvia management offered him the position again when he returned. Despite the newly formed choir receiving no financial backing, a month after being founded we produced our first live broadcast at 7pm on July 16, 1940. Over the following years the choir went through various changes of...