Culture enthusiasts can get to know a very special choir in Leipzig during the Christmas season. The "Sing&Sign" ensemble combines singing, signing and performance to make the performances as inclusive as possible for members and visitors. The almost 30 participants include hearing, deaf and hard of hearing people, as well as people with other disabilities.
The project was initiated by Susanne Haupt. The 51-year-old soprano studied singing in Leipzig and later earned her living in the music and education sector.
In 2015, she came up with the idea for the inclusive project: when the Christmas Oratorio was frequently performed in the Bach city of Leipzig at the time, she noticed that people with disabilities were often excluded, both here and in classical music in general. To change this, she started meeting with deaf people and talking to them about music. The choir project really got going in 2019, says the project manager.
