Sacred Treasures: Choral Masterworks from Russia

Sacred Treasures: Choral Masterworks from Russia

Artist: St. Petersburg Chamber Choir, et at
Item number: AJ045
Category: Russian
Chant Type: Russian
Language: Church Slavonic
Label: Hearts of Space
Period: Mixed
Length: 62'15
Release date: 1998
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Price: $16.98 USD
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You may need RealPlayer or Windows Media Player to listen to the music samples below.

1. Russian Cathedral Bells

2. Great Ektenia

3. Hymn of Praise

4. Hymn of the Cherubim (Rachmaninov)

5. Hymn of the Cherubim (Bortniansky)

6. Our Father (Kedrov)

7. Fervent Supplication

8. The Noble Joseph

9. Amen, And with Thy Spirit

10. Russian Monastic Vespers

11. Bless the Lord, O my Soul

12. Hymn of the Cherubim (Tchaikovsky)

13. Hymn of the Cherubim (Christov)

14. Our Father (Tchaikovsky)

15. I Have Chosen the Blissful

16. Hymn of the Cherubim (Lvovski)

17. Final Bells


Fifteen selections of Slavonic church music, mostly 19th and 20th century, that fit the Hearts of Space format: measured pace, neither background nor foreground, detachment from context inducing detachment in the listener. "This compilation focuses on the lyrical style of singing which blossomed during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Performed by very large mixed choirs ... a tapestry woven mainly from the quieter, more contemplative passages." There are five selections of Cherubic Hymns, making this a good comparison disc. Composers include Tchaikovsky, Bortniansky, Rachmaninov, etc. Attributions are clear and complete, and there are comments after each piece to guide the listeners feelings. No texts.

By: Peter Schwalbenberg

This is not wallpaper so much as curtains -- tapestry is the word the notes use. This is suitable both as background and (if you know the texts) attentive listening. The performances are all standard-of-comparison grade, so there are no surprises or special interests, just good performance of good music. Selection 10 by the monks of Chevetogne stands out as conveying a sense of the service rather than of a concert performance. Selection 11 features a church choir, and a much attenuated version of the formidable Arkhipova as soloist. Sound is generally good, though weak in 11. The program does not seem to add much in the way of explanation or context, but rather sustains a mood. High marks for good listening.