Severstal Sponsors Premiere Concert by the Moscow Synodal Choir in London

The British premiere of the oratorio St. Matthew Passion by Russian composer Metropolitan Bishop Hilarion was performed at London's famous Cadogan Hall during his official visit to Great Britain. Part of the festival of Russian culture in London, the project was sponsored by the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, the Moscow Patriarchate's Department for External Church Relations, E.ON Russia and PAO Severstal, one of the world's leading steel and steel-related mining companies.

Mr. Alexander Yakovenko, Russian Ambassador to the United Kingdom, gave an opening speech to an audience which included honoured guests Prince Michael of Kent, the Serbian Princess Ekaterina, Metropolitan Kallistos (The Patriarchate of Constantinople), Zamira Menuhina, daughter of the famous violinist and conductor Yehudi Menuhin and other guests of honor. Metropolitan Hilarion, author of the work, theologian, patrologist, church historian, composer came to the concert from Russia. After the oratorio he took the stage of the Cadogan Hall to thank performers, as well as the London audience for the warm welcome. For Metropolitan 'St. Matthew Passion' project is not so much music as missionary.

The oratorio was performed by the Moscow Synodal Choir and the London Russian Orchestra and was conducted by Alexey Puzakov, an Honoured Artist of Russia. This was a unique event representing Russian Orthodox culture abroad. The 'St. Matthew Passion' was written in 2006 by Metropolitan Bishop Hilarion Alfeev, a renowned church historian, theologian and composer. The piece is notable as one of the only works of Russian music to depict the life and resurrection of Christ. Metropolitan Hilarion took inspiration from Johann Sebastian Bach's great masterpiece of the same name, filling the "old form with new content" and using edited liturgical texts as the libretto.

Источник: UTime News