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A recital of Russian spiritual music will take place on March 26, 2010, at the old museum church of Agia Eirini in Istanbul, Turkey, to perform Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk’s Passions According to St. Matthews, and oratorio for soloists, a choir and an orchestra.

The idea of this concert was discussed by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia in a talk he had with His Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew during his official visit to the Church of Constantinople on July 4-6, 2009. It was supported by the Primate and other prominent hierarchs of the Patriarchate of Constantinople. His Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew, who has given his blessing upon the concert, is expected to attend.

This monumental oratorio composed by Metropolitan Hilarion was first performed on March 27, 2007, at the Grand Hall of the Moscow Conservatoire. Later this composition was performed in Italy, Australia, Canada and Ukraine, as well as various regions in Russia, invariably arousing a genuine interest of the public.  On March 25, 2010, it will be played at the Church Councils Hall of the Cathedral Church of the Saviour in Moscow. Passions are based on the story from the Gospel of St. Matthews about the last days of the Lord Jesus Christ’s earthly life.

Passions According to St. Matthews will be rendered by the Russian National Orchestra founded in 1990 by Mikhail Pletnev, a People’s Artist of Russia. Internationally renowned, this orchestra is ranked among the best orchestras in the world. The choral music will be sung by the Moscow Synodal Choir conducted by Alexey Puzakov, an Honoured Artist of Russia. With the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, the Synodal Choir has been recently recreated on the basis of the choir singing in the church of Our Lady the Joy of all the Afflicted in Moscow. This team, engaged in reviving the repertoire and traditions of performance which were characteristic of the Synodal Choir in its prime in the late 19th– early 20th century, also gives great attention to the works of modern composers.