The Yale Russian Chorus in Livermore!

The Yale Russian Chorus will be performing in Livermore as part of a rare California tour. The program “Let All Mortal Flesh: A Musical Journey in Celebration of Orthodox Lent” will be performed only once in the Bay Area so don’t miss this concert held on Saturday, March 7, 2015 at 7:00 PM at the First Presbyterian Church 2020 Fifth Street, Livermore. Tickets are available on www.brownpapertickets.com or from a parishioner of St. Innocent Orthodox Church, the hosts for the concert along with generous supporters. Tickets costs are: Adults $20, Seniors $15, Students $10, Children 12 years and under free with a zero cost ticket.

The Yale Russian Chorus (YRC) attracts students and members of the greater Yale community from a variety of backgrounds and representing numerous interests, all united in their love and appreciation for Slavic choral music and culture. The YRC was founded in 1953 by Denis Mickiewicz and George Litton as an extension of Yale’s Russian language club, and has thrived since then throughout numerous generations of Yale students, having served as a powerful force toward the preservation of Russian choral music during the Cold War era. It is now recognized as one of the world’s most important performance ensembles of Slavic music. The YRC’s repertoire, which spans from the twelfth century to the twenty-first, includes a variety of sacred and secular music, including ancient chant, cultural songs, and major choral works by Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakoff, and Rachmaninoff, to name a few.

Mark Bailey was appointed YRC artistic director in 1995. Since that time, the ensemble has performed in over fifty major American cities in a variety of major concert venues, including twice by invitation at Carnegie Hall. Other prominent performances during the last few seasons have included two gala appearances at Carnegie Hall, the White House for President Clinton, the St. Petersburg Festival at New York’s Winter Garden, and the opening of the Hermitage exhibit at the Yale Center for British Art.

In 1996, the YRC released Chants and Carols, a recording that was praised by InTune magazine, proclaimed as a “must have” on NPR’s “Performance Today,” listed among the best recordings of the year by Billboard Magazine and the Richmond Times and placed on the 1996 New York Times critic’s choice list. The Yale Russian Chorus continues to attract the attention and elicit the praise of the professional arts media.

Questions concerning the concert may be emailed to stinnocentsinging@gmail.com or call 510.708.3938.