Virtual Choir Joins 8,000 Voices in Stunning Performance

At its best, technology can connect people in a way that makes this big, crazy world seem small. Grammy Award-winning composer and conductor Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choir project does just that. He takes singers of all ages from around world and puts them on one stage — even if it is a virtual stage — and the results are stunning.

The idea for the project first struck Whitacre in 2009, when a friend emailed him a YouTube video of a fan, Britlin Losee, singing the soprano part of his a cappella piece, Sleep. He realized that if enough singers recorded their respective parts (Soprano, Alto, Tenor and Bass), he could put them together to create a Virtual Choir.

Whitacre's first project featured 250 YouTube submissions from 12 countries.

Fast forward to 2013 — Virtual Choir 4, "Fly to Parasdise" is comprised of 8,049 video submissions from singers aged six to 98 from 101 countries.

Whitacre writes on his website, "We have truly become a global choir."

Watch the video above to hear the incredible performance.

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Image courtesy of YouTube, EricWhitacresVrtlChr