Scandinavium Side by Side 2024: Festival Concert

Welcome to celebrate the summer with the international music camp Side by Side! Festival Concert is a massive music manifestation where over 2000 young musicians and singers participate, together with Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra. We get to take part in what the participants have rehearsed during the camp days and the magnificent program includes both classical music pieces and a tribute to one of the heroes of Swedish choral music, Georg Riedel.

For over 10 years, Side by Side music camp has been one of the year’s absolute highlights for music practicing children and young people from all over the world. For a few beautiful summer days, they gather to play and sing together, side by side with professional musicians. Side by Side is organized by Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and is open to participants aged 6-23. The camp promotes classical music while building bridges between people, cultures, and continents.

During Festival Concert, over 2000 choir singers and orchestral musicians of mixed ages perform together with the entire Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra in Scandinavium arena. They form massive choirs and orchestras in various combinations for a powerful musical manifestation, all under the direction of the camp’s renowned conductors, Ron Davis Alvarez, Emilia Hoving, Marjolein Vermeeren, and Birgitta Mannerström-Molin.

A grand musical experience

Festival Concert offers symphonic music in various forms, magnificent choral songs, and film music in powerful arrangements. These include “How Far I’ll Go” by Lin Manuel Miranda from Disney favorite Vaiana, in a new arrangement by Henrik Torolphi.

Another highlight will be the children’s choir classic “Vi är blommor” (We are Flowers) by Georg Riedel. In connection with the completion of Tormod Tvete Vik’s adapted arrangement, the camp received the sad news of Georg Riedel’s passing. The performance will thus be a tribute to this beloved composer and his work for children and young people’s music practice.

Festival Concert marks the end of the music camp for many of the participants, but Side by Side also offers several other concerts during the week. The selection includes, among other things, the choir concert Choirs in Concert and the symphonic concert Closing Concert, where you get the opportunity to listen to the virtuosos of the future today. The full program can be found here.