Choir of Moscow Danilov Monastery |

The festive male choir of the Moscow Danilov Monastery has existed since 1994. It consists of 16 professional singers – graduates of the Moscow State Conservatory, the Gnessin Russian Academy of Music, the A.V. Sveshnikov Academy of Choral Art – with higher vocal and choral education. The director of the Festive Men’s Choir of the Moscow Danilov Monastery is Georgy Safonov, a graduate of the Gnessin Russian Academy of Music, laureate of the XNUMXst All-Russian Competition of Conductors. The choir constantly takes part in divine services on Saturdays and Sundays, as well as in solemn festive divine services led by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, has extensive experience working at large concert venues in Moscow and the Moscow region.

The concert activity of the group is diverse and has an educational character. The team often goes on tour around the cities of Russia and abroad, where they take part both in worship services and in concerts.

The choir’s repertoire includes chants of the Great and Twelfth Feasts, parts of the All-Night Vigil and the Divine Liturgy, chants of Great Lent, the Nativity of Christ and Holy Easter, chants, carols, spiritual poems, Russian military and historical songs and hymns, as well as romances, waltzes and folk songs . The team recorded CDs “Do Not Hide Your Face” (chants of Great Lent), “Passion Week”, “Quiet Night over Palestine” (chants of the Nativity of Christ), “Antiphons of Good Friday”, “Liturgy of John Chrysostom” (by tune Suprasl Lavra in 1598), Lord’s Feasts of the Znamenny Chant (according to the manuscripts of the Suprasl Lavra and the Novospassky Monastery of the 1598th-XNUMXth centuries), Holy Trinity Week (chants of the feast of the Holy Trinity according to the melody of the Suprasl Lavra in XNUMX), Macedonian church singing, “From the East of the Sun to the West” (spiritually musical compositions by Russian classical composers), “God Save the Tsar” (hymns and patriotic songs of the Russian Empire), “Canon for the Sick”, “Prayer to the Lord” (in memory of the Great Archdeacon Konstantin Rozov) , “Russian drinking songs”, “Golden songs of Russia”, “Good evening to you” (Christmas chants and carols), “Souvenir from snowy Russia” (Russian folk songs and romances), “Christ is Risen” (chants of celebration of Holy Pascha). The festive male choir was recorded by such well-known companies as BBC, EMI, Russian Seasons. The team is the owner of the “Tefi” award as part of the film crew of the film series “Secrets of Palace Revolutions”.

Reviving the traditions of Russian znamenny, demestvennoe and line singing that existed in Russia in the XV-XVII centuries, the Festive Men’s Choir at the same time continues the singing traditions of the Moscow Synodal Choir and men’s choirs, including the choirs of the Trinity-Sergius and Kiev-Pechersk Lavra.

The festive male choir is a laureate of international and all-Russian competitions of church music, awarded with Patriarchal letters and numerous diplomas of the Moscow Patriarchate and state cultural institutions. In 2003, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia awarded the collective the honorary title of the Male Choir of the Synodal Residence of His Holiness the Patriarch.

The festive male choir of the Moscow Danilov Monastery is a permanent active participant in international conferences on the problems of deciphering old singing manuscripts, international festivals of church music in Russia and abroad, various charitable and youth forums, including the International Festival of Church Music in Budapest, the International Festival of Church Music in Moscow, the International Festival of Church Music in Krakow, the International Festival of Church Music in Hajnówka, the Ohrid Musical Autumn festival (Republic of Macedonia), the Glory of Culture festival (United Kingdom of the Netherlands), the Inexhaustible Chalice festival (Serpukhov, Moscow Region) , Musical festival in Spoleto (Italy), festivals “Shine of Russia” and “Song of the Orthodox Priangarye” (Irkutsk), festival “Pokrovsky Meetings” (Krasnoyarsk), youth festival “Star of Bethlehem” (Moscow), Moscow Easter Festival, St. Petersburg Easter festival, between international festival “Christmas Readings” (Moscow), festival “Orthodox Russia” (Moscow). The choir is often invited to the awards “Person of the Year”, “Glory to Russia”, participates in the Russian-Italian bilateral dialogue.

Such well-known figures of Russian classical singing art as I. K. Arkhipova, A. A. Eizen, B. V. Shtokolov, A. F. Vedernikov, V. A. Matorin and many other leading soloists of Russian opera theaters performed with the ensemble. The male choir of the Synodal Residence fruitfully cooperates with well-known creative teams in Russia.

Source: Moscow Philharmonic website