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Vocal Ensemble LYRA From St. Petersburg, Russia

LYRA, a vocal group from Russia, is currently touring the Midwest and will be in Iowa on May 5th, 7th, 8th, and 9th.

LYRA is “a vocal ensemble from St. Petersburg. All singers are professional musicians, singing in different churches of St. Petersburg. Some of them are also soloists at musical theatres of the city. Through their performances, they want to introduce enormous musical heritage of the Russian Orthodox Church, as well as traditions of Russian folk music to all people taking great interest in Russia, its history and its culture.”

The first portion of their program will consist of sacred chants of Russian Orthodox church, including works by Tschesnokov, Ippolitov-Ivanov, and Rakhmaninov. The second portion will be folk songs and secular music by Arensky and Napravnik.

LYRA’s 2019 Midwest tour artists are Tatiana Melnikova, Denis Patsiuk, Sergey Tupitsyn, and Alexandr Kudriashov. All four singers graduated from either Minsk (Belarus) Conservatory or St. Petersburg Conservatory.

With a goal of “exploring and popularizing Russian choral music from the ancient songs of the Orthodox Church to works of little-known, but remarkable composers of the 18th–20th centuries,” LYRA has performed worldwide, received various awards, and recorded multiple CDs. Their latest CD will be available to purchase at each performance.

For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/lyra.usa.

LYRA’s Iowa appearances include

  • Trenton: Saturday, May 4th at 7 pm; Trenton UMC, 502 5th St., Trenton, IA 52641
  • Iowa City: Sunday, May 5th at 2 pm; St. Raphael Orthodox Church, 722 E. College St., Iowa City, IA 52240
  • Waterloo: Sunday, May 5th at 7 pm; First Congregational Church, 608 West 4th St., Waterloo, IA
  • West Des Moines: Tuesday, May 7th at 7 pm; St. Mark Lutheran Church, 1105 Grand Av., West Des Moines, IA 50265
  • Perry: Wednesday, May 8th at 7 pm; Performing Arts Center, 1200 18th St., Perry, IA 50220
  • St. Carroll: Thursday, May 9th at 7 pm; St. John Lutheran Church, 801 E. 18th St. Carroll, IA 51401

Jacqueline Halbloom is a Sr. Music Producer and Classical Music Host