Sacred Choral Masterpieces from Eastern Europe in Rome
Rome, Chiesa di S. Paolo entro le Mura — Sala 1
About the Event
This new concert in St. Paul Within the Walls Church in Rome is a musical journey through different eras and distant lands, from the forests and mountains of Moravia and Bohemia to the vast steppes of Tsarist Russia. It opens with Antonin Dvořák’s evocative Mass in D Major, inspired by the folk songs of his homeland and composed to be accessible to all. We will perform the original version for choir, soloists, and organ, just as the composer conceived it for a small chapel, where an orchestra would not have fit.
We will then continue with a selection of captivating a cappella pieces by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, Kalinnikov, and Gretchaninov, written for the Orthodox Church during the final days of the Tsarist era, blending spiritual melodies with rich, immersive harmonies.
Closing the program is Igor Stravinsky’s monumental Symphony of Psalms, a technical and spiritual challenge in which the composer, by then exiled in America, transforms sacred chant into a symphony of extraordinary power, using bold harmonies, octatonic scales, and an almost ritualistic intensity.
A concert that celebrates the sacred and the popular, the intimate and the monumental, in a musical journey that spans centuries and emotions.
Program
- Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky – Liturgy of Saint John Chrisostom (excerpts)
- Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff – Liturgy of Saint John Chrisostom (excerpts)
- Antonín Dvořák – Mass in D major, op. 86
- Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky – Symphony of Psalms
Cast / Production
The New Chamber Singers
Ex Collegio Choir
St. Paul's Orchestra
Stefano Vasselli, Organ
Tim Venvell, Conductor
Address
Chiesa di S. Paolo entro le Mura, Via Nazionale 16a, Rome, Italy — Google Maps
