Master Chorale To Present All-Russian Concert At St Rose Church

The Connecticut Master Chorale, under the direction of Tina Johns Heidrich, will present an All-Russian Concert on Saturday, May 21, at 8 pm, at St Rose of Lima Church.

The program features the works of great Russian composers spanning three centuries, ranging from glorious and profound sacred music to opera choruses to emotive arrangements of folk songs.

The concert will open with Russia’s stirring national anthem. Selections will also include sacred compositions by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, Ippolitov-Ivanov, Rimsky-Korsakov, Lvovsky, and Bortniansky.

Several well-known and loved folk songs will also be performed including “The Birch Tree, “Cossack Lullaby,” “Kalinka” and “Song of the Volga Boatmen.” The concert will also feature opera selections, climaxing with the well-known “Polovetsian Dances” by Borodin. This sequence of orchestral and choral pieces from Prince Igor is renowned as one of the great composer’s most exhilarating works.

The Chorale will be accompanied by the Connecticut Master Chorale Orchestra.

The Connecticut Master Chorale is a premiere ensemble of 55 auditioned, highly gifted select singers in the western Connecticut area. The chorale is in now in its sixth season and has had many achievements and high honors. Newtown residents currently in the chorale are Judy Bolduc, Ginnie Carey, Lisa Cedergren, Wendy Fong, Steve Gardner, Pia Ledina, Nancy Raymond, Joel Romanelli, Grant Skinner, and Dan Yee.

In addition to its regular three-concert season, CMC has performed at West Point Military Academy, at Carnegie Hall twice within a year, Madison Square Garden, and the White House, all by invitation.

Tickets are $15 in advance or $20 at the door.

The church is at 46 Church Hill Road in Newtown. For more information, call 743-0473 or visit www.CMChorale.org.