The Moscow Oratorio Society

Do you love to sing?
Have you sung in choral groups in the past or played a musical instrument?
Would you like to make music a part of your life in Moscow?

If so, join the Moscow Oratorio Society!
We are seeking all voice parts for our Spring Charity Concert.

About The Choir

The Moscow Oratorio Society, founded in 1993, is the oldest international choir in Moscow. We present rarely performed classical works as well as popular music creatively arranged by talented young local composers. Even though we an amateur choir, Moscow audiences love our concerts as they combine the verve of nonprofessionals with the skills of some of Moscow’s best singers. We possess varying levels of experience, but with the support of our Moscow Conservatory trained artistic director Alexander Tsaliuk and a few other professional choristers, we strive for – and usually achieve! – a semi-professional sound. Our performances are unique, large-scale productions, often accompanied by a full orchestra.


Through this community choir, Moscow expats and Russians have the opportunity to get to know each other and become friends. In addition to rehearsals, choir members attend social events, such as parties at embassies and tours around Moscow. The rehearsal schedule is flexible because we understand that people have personal and work responsibilities. Nevertheless we require a commitment of each member to master his or her part. We provide assistance in the form of voice part recordings and small sectional rehearsals led by professionals. We are ambitious!


Ideally we are looking for singers with previous choral or orchestral experience who have a desire to continue creating beautiful music. Everyone is welcome to attend rehearsals, but those without the ability to read music often find themselves devoting hours to the music outside of rehearsals.


If you are interested in attending a rehearsal, please write to Carol at carolmoscow@gmail.com. She will provide you with all of the necessary details. Rehearsals will start in mid September and the Holiday Concert will take place in mid December.

Past Concerts

Since 1995, the Moscow Oratorio has performed the following music:

 

 

A Brief History

The Moscow Oratorio Society came together at a time when life in the Russian capital was in a state of rapid and exhilarating change in the aftermath of the end of Soviet communism. The birth and evolution of an independent cultural organization like this choir with its diverse international membership can, in many respects, be seen as part of this process of change, a significant expression of the general development of new forms of civil association and of the breaking-down of barriers between Russians and foreigners that this city has witnessed over the past decade.

Moscow Oratorio SocietyThe choir began life in 1993 when two English journalists in conversation at a Moscow party decided that it would be a good idea to fulfill a native tradition of long standing by singing Handel's Messiah at Christmastime. The first performances were held in Saint Andrew's, Moscow's Anglican Church, and were festive and memorable community occasions attended by the American and British Ambassadors. In those early performances, the choir was accompanied by student orchestras and Russian, English, and American soloists. Since that time, the Oratorio has kept up the tradition of singing The Messiah every year. In the years since, however, under the direction of Alexander Tsaliuk, the Oratorio Society has grown and changed, undertaking new and exciting musical projects, and drawing strength and financial support from many sources.

The choir's primary aim is to give amateur singers from all backgrounds and with all levels of musical experience the opportunity to perform great music to a high standard in some of the most visually and acoustically beautiful venues in Moscow, and also to enjoy the company of a diverse group of people with a shared love of music and inter-cultural exchange.

In the past we have sung in the White Foyer of the Bolshoi Theatre, the Gnessin Institute, the Rakhmaninov and Great Halls of the Moscow Conservatory, and other concert halls in Russia's capital. Over the years the choir has sung a wide repertoire ranging from Bach and Handel to Mussorgsky, Gershwin and Bernstein. We have been accompanied by some of the city's finest chamber orchestras, among them Musica Viva, The Moscow Conservatory Opera Studio, and the Gnessin Virtuosi, as well as soloists from professional companies such as the Bolshoi Theatre, the Stanislavsky Opera Theater and the Moscow Philharmonic.

Moscow Oratorio SocietyThe Moscow Oratorio Society welcomes singers of all levels of experience, requiring of them only a love of music and a sense of commitment. While some of our singers are very experienced musicians, others had only limited exposure to choral singing. In the past the choir has included members of the expatriate business and journalistic communities and the diplomatic corps as well as many Russian singers. Rehearsals are conducted in both English and Russian with a professional accompanist. Our members enjoy the friendly, multicultural atmosphere of rehearsals, which, while musically demanding, also provide an opportunity to meet and develop friendships with people from other countries who share an interest in music.

The choir traditionally performs two concerts a year, one before Christmas and one in the spring. The rehearsal season begins in early September and late January. Rehearsals are held on Wednesday evenings between 7 and 9.30, with an additional weekly rehearsal in the few weeks leading up to a concert.

Singers are invited to contribute a modest membership fee each season. The net proceeds from concerts and sponsorship are donated to various charities of Moscow, including those of the International Women's Club and the Salvation Army. Both these groups support marginalized populations in Moscow.

Artistic Leadership

Moscow Oratorio SocietyIn 1994, when he was invited to take on the role of conductor and artistic director of the choir, Alexander Tsaliuk gave the Moscow Oratorio Society its name. Since then, Tsaliuk's unfailing commitment, energy, and artistic vision have provided a unique and vital source of continuity for a group that is, by its nature, always changing.

Alexander Tsaliuk is a graduate of the Moscow Conservatory, where he received a PhD in choral conducting under Professor Kulikov, Director of the Conservatory. He also has a PhD in symphonic opera conducting from the Jewish State Academy. As well as directing the Moscow Oratorio Society, Tsaliuk is conductor of the Moscow Male Jewish Choir, the «Hasidic Cappella», which he co-founded in 1989. Under his direction, this award-winning choir - whose repertoire includes Jewish liturgical, classical, and Jewish and Russian folk music - has given hundreds of acclaimed performances in distinguished venues in the CIS, Western Europe, and Israel.

Moscow Oratorio Alumni Page

Andrew Walker, Great Britain, a founding member who still sings with The Moscow Oratorio Society, remembers its beginnings:

«Andrew Sparke, an English contemporary of mine at the University of Exeter who worked for the BBC and another British journalist were at a party together and in chatting idly they suddenly thought it would be a good idea to stage the Messiah at Christmas. An advert was placed in the Moscow Times, and I rang Sparke and thus became one of the founder members. There were a number of Americans, of whom as far as I know none are left in Moscow. There was a Baptist minister called Brad, with a great sense of humour, a large gentleman called (by Russians) Danchik Oduvanchik who worked for Boeing, and others. Among the soloists was Toby Spence, an English tenor of outstanding merit (and friend of Andrew Sparke) who has since appeared at the Promenade Concerts in London and risen to international prominence. We remember the performance in 1993. In The Last Trumpet, the solo trumpeter added certain embellishments which had not been heard at the final rehearsal, and Andrew was not pleased. I don’t know why, because they sounded very good. This trumpeter is now in one of the Moscow orchestras.»

Linda Knapp, USA, Director of the Moscow Oratorio Society from 1997-1998 remembers preparations for the Spring 1998 Concert in which Leonard Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms were given their first Russian performance:

«Leenda! Good evening. Hello. I have a most fabulous idea. We will perform so wonderful and grandiose a concert. In the Bolshoi Zal of the Moscow Conservatory. The Moscow Oratorio and my male Jewish choir. A fantastic opportunity for us. A Leonard Bernstein premier. The Chichester Pslams. First time in Moscow. First time in all of Russia. A full orchestra. Harps. Timpani. Fantastic!»

I cleared my throat to say something, but Sasha hurried on. «This year is the 50th anniversary of the founding of Israel. There will be so many celebrations in Moscow. This will be so big an event. Maybe I will bring the most famous cantor, Malovani, from New York to sing with us. We will do some other things too, of course, but the Chichester Psalms! This would be so big a concert for us.»

I listened patiently, and sighed. The choir had just performed an enormous Christmas concert at the Radisson in early December. It had been a huge success, but even four weeks later we were all still reeling from the exhaustive effort to pull off such an ambitious performance.

I flashed back to a moment a few days before that December concert when Sasha announced that we would have to transport the orchestra’s instruments and music stands to the Radisson Hotel ourselves. Including my electric piano. And the timpani. And the 17th century harpsichord. Which we still had to rent. And tune. I remembered my useless protests that musicians should be able to transport their own instruments, that we didn’t have a van, that we had no extra funds to handle this.

«But, Leenda, we must do this!» We found a way.

So, did he think we could pull this off, too? The Conservatory. The Bolshoi Zal. 2000 seats. Full orchestra. Seven timpani. Three harps. Not enough money. Not enough time. Not enough tenors! A Bernstein premier? I started to laugh.

«Leenda!» he continued, determined to persuade me. But I was not listening. What was the point? I sighed again, my mind racing through the weeks ahead. I knew it wasn’t possible.

I also knew we’d be there.

Because that’s how it is with Sasha. This 27 year-old double doctorate from the Moscow Conservatory talks me into the unreasonable, the impossible, the unthinkable. Every time."

Claire Hughes, Great Britain, remembers the excitement of working with Sasha Tsaliuk:

«Sasha is what made the Moscow Oratorio so different from other choirs I’ve been in. His undying passion for music, no matter what (and you know what (no matter what) can mean in Russia), his drive for perfection — with us! — his humour when all else failed».

Choir Management

The choir is organized by volunteers.

All inquiries should be directed by e-mail: carolmoscow@gmail.com

The choir depends on its members to organize its activities. Tasks require different skills, and members are expected to devote a few hours per season to help with an activity that suits their interests and skills.

Charities

Net proceeds from the choir's performances are donated to charities of the International Women's Club and the Salvation Army. We invite individual and corporate sponsorship for the choir and its charitable projects. To receive information on the benefits of sponsorship, please contact carolmoscow@gmail.com.

Charities we have supported with funds from past concerts include: Cradle, a small independent NGO that provides assistance to impoverished single mothers with children. Past donations from our choir have enabled the organization to increase its shelter and to provide vocational and legal aid to its clients. In this way many children who might otherwise have ended up in state orphanages are able to remain in a family setting.

The Foster Family Project: This project was launched by the IWC in 1999. It supports 10 families fostering approximately 50 children. The IWC helps these families, all of whom struggle in the face of administrative obstacles, poor funding, health problems, and lack of support from local authorities. Many of the fostered children are mentally handicapped and have problems at school. Some are street-children abandoned by their own parents. The Foster Family Project offers these families the assistance of 12 tutors (in mathematics, Russian and foreign languages, music, chemistry, biology, solfeggio), as well as two psychologists, a family doctor, and a family lawyer.

The Street Children Project in St Petersburg. This project provides food and other necessities on a regular basis to street children in St Petersburg.

Become a Choir Member

Come and sing with us and enjoy the atmosphere of friendship and culture that the Moscow Oratorio Society has come to represent. The choir welcomes anyone with a desire to sing beautiful music under a conductor who strives to achieve excellence.

No auditions are required at the beginning of each season. Singers who wish to join after cut-off date are required to audition.

To join the choir

Write an e-mail to carolmoscow@gmail.com including the following information:

  1. Name
  2. Nationality
  3. Voice part (bass, tenor, alto, soprano)
  4. Level of experience:
  5. How you heard about the Moscow Oratorio Society

Requirements

  1. Ability to attend rehearsals regularly
  2. Love of music and inter-cultural exchange
  3. Willingness to commit a few hours every season to organizational tasks in preparation for the concert

Language

Rehearsals are conducted in both English and Russian. This means that the choir is not only a splendid musical experience but also an informal and very enjoyable language course.

Contact Us

Director: Carol Sorrenti

E-mail: carolmoscow@gmail.com


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