The MDR-Rundfunkchor (MDR Radio Choir) is the largest and most traditional choir in public broadcasting. In 2024, it celebrated its 100th anniversary. In demand worldwide, conductors such as Herbert von Karajan, Kurt Masur, Claudio Abbado, Herbert Blomstedt, Simon Rattle, Seiji Ozawa, Riccardo Muti, Daniel Barenboim and Christian Thielemann have paid tribute to the choir. The singers also perform regularly with the MDR-Sinfonieorchester (MDR Symphony Orchestra), dedicating themselves to the choral-symphonic repertoire. Other artistic partners for the 2025/26 season include the Mahler Chamber Orchestra under Thomas Adès, the Gewandhaus Orchestra under Andris Nelsons and Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla, the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra under Manfred Honeck, the hr-Sinfonieorchester in Frankfurt under Alain Altinoglu and the SWR Symphonieorchester under François-Xavier Roth. Beyond choral symphonies, the ensemble also impresses with its highly acclaimed a cappella interpretations.
Secular and sacred music, ensemble singing and choral symphonic works are equally part of the repertoire, which spans almost 1000 years of music history. As a specialist ensemble for contemporary music, the singers have also made a name for themselves through numerous world premieres and first performances. In January 2024, James MacMillan's large-scale choral work "Ordo virtutum" received its highly acclaimed premiere in Leipzig's Peterskirche.
Josep Vila i Casañas has been Chief Conductor of the MDR-Rundfunkchor since the beginning of the 2025/26 season. His predecessors in this position include Herbert Kegel, Gert Frischmuth and Howard Arman, who also developed the highly successful Nachtgesänge (Night Songs) format, as well as Risto Joost and Philipp Ahmann.
The ensemble has recorded nearly 250 records and CDs to date, many of which have won awards. In 2017, the singers received the International Classical Music Award for their recording of Max Reger's Motets op. 110, and in March 2018, they received the Diapason d'Or for their recording of Sergei Rachmaninoff's "All-Night Vigil" conducted by Risto Joost. In 2021, a recording of motets by Anton Bruckner and Michael Haydn was released under the direction of Philipp Ahmann, followed in 2023 by a selection of sacred choral works by Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy.
The MDR-Rundfunkchor's performances are broadcast worldwide via the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and can be heard on tours and in guest concerts. In this way, the Choir, which was awarded the European Culture Prize in 2013, successfully represents Central Germany as a musical ambassador.