AECMC

As usual the Sixth Conference was held in London at the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of God and the Holy Royal Martyrs. Holding this type of event in person is vital as it provides the opportunity for many participants to join together to develop their kliros skills, to discuss common questions/problems and find mutual solutions. Another very important aspect of having this event in person is that it makes it possible to work on various practical skills and to sing together a repertoire that is rarely possible in parishes due to the typically small number of singers in a parish choir.

The participants joined together in a choir to sing two hierarchical services over the weekend (Vigil and Liturgy), under the direction of highly qualified conductors. This year bishop Alexander (retired vicar of the London and Western European diocese) led the celebration of the services.
Participants listened to interesting and informative lectures, discussed common problems, and sang some of Bortniansky’s works. In addition to this, in roundtable format and in practical sessions participants discussed problems related to maintaining the tradition of Russian Orthodoxy singing, as well as the importance of choosing the right music. Preparatory general rehearsals served not only to expand participants' repertoire but also to impart useful practical knowledge. The event was open to all choir directors, singers, readers, and all people interested in Russian Orthodox liturgical music.
All total the event drew more than 35 participants from the UK, Germany, France, USA, Switzerland, Spain, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Ireland. Most participants were able to take part in all four days. In addition, several people were able to join for three or two days, or for particular sessions. Despite the main working language of theconference being Russian, we offered a synchronous translation into English over the course of four days, so that non-Russian speakers could also benefit from this event. One session was held in English, during which simultaneous translation was provided into Russian for those who do not understand English. Participants who benefited from the translation expressed their appreciation; their attendance showed that music and church singing education is in high demand across all Orthodox communities in Europe, regardless of language.
 

The following lectures were delivered:

• «The Origins of the Modern Liturgical Tradition: The Historical Path and Theological Foundations of the Orthodox Liturgical Synthesis» (Fr. M. Leszczynski);

• «History of Church Singing at the St. Sergius Theological Institute in Paris» (Dr. S. Zvereva);

• «D.S. Bortniansky: Known and Unknown. To the Bicentenary of His Death» (Dr. А. Lebedeva-Emelina);

• «The Transmission of the Tradition of Church Singing Using the Example of the Choir of the St. Sergius Institute in the Period of the 70s-80s of the 20th Century» (Fr. I. Drobot);

• «The Emigré Tradition and Problems of Repertoire in Modern Conditions» (Dr. I. du Quenoy).

Several workshops and roundtable discussions were organised:

• Roundtable «Life on the Kliros Today: Preserving Traditions, Choosing a Repertoire»;

• Workshop «D.S. Bortniansky: Manner of Performance» (P. Fekula);

• Several workshops on Conducting and Obihod were delivered by V. Kashlyaev and Fr. A. Kedroff.

The highlight of this year’s Conference was a Masterclass on Conducting led by Mr. William Spaulding, Chorus Director of the Royal Opera House (London). During his class Mr. Spaulding spent some time on training several participants on how to work on quality of sound production, diction and proper conducting gestures, using Orthodox repertoire that had been shared with him earlier for this purpose. After this he demonstrated how to learn a piece of music with a choir “from scratch”. For that purpose he used a chorus from Giuseppe Verdi’s opera Nabucco. The choice of this chorus was in retrospect quite appropriate as its religious themes and lament over the loss of a fatherland resonated with the participants, most of whom are to some degree or other emigrants working to preserve their religious/musical tradition in contexts of exile/emigration.
All these activities raised huge interest and provoked peaceful and fruitful debates about the possibility of further collaboration across Europe to strengthen the Russian Orthodox liturgical music tradition.