Kurrende (street-singing school choir)
A historical school choir that sang sacred songs in the street for alms, ancestor of choirs such as the Thomanerchor.
What it means
A Kurrende was a historical choir, usually made up of poor schoolboys, that walked through the streets singing sacred songs in exchange for small gifts or money. The name comes from the Latin currere, "to run", referring to the wandering performance.
Musical use
Kurrende choirs were widespread in Protestant Germany from the 16th to the 19th century, serving both as musical training for the boys and as financial support for needy schools. The best-known descendant of this tradition is the Leipzig Thomanerchor, whose members originally helped support themselves as Kurrende pupils singing in the streets; Bach, who as Thomaskantor was responsible for the choir, knew this practice from his own schooldays. As school funding improved in the 19th century, the Kurrende gradually disappeared as a begging and income-earning practice, though the name survives in some choir names today.