I cannot remember an instance when a major festival ordered its entire chorus to reaudition. The Bayreuth press office, however, insists it is entirely routine.
Anyone who would like to continue singing in the choir can reapply and audition, but the choir will not be disbanded. The new choirmaster would like to gain an overview of the existing choir members in this way, but also look for new talent, as is customary every year, even if not to this extent. We stated that this is quite common and point out that all existing choir members are invited to audition so that the new choirmaster can get to know his staff. This approach is also intended to ensure the continued high quality of the Festival Choir.
The job advertisement for the festival choir can already be found on the Internet.
Richard Wagner himself was never this brutal.
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