Yale Russian Chorus
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The Yale Russian Chorus, under the artistic direction of Slavic music expert Mark Bailey, is a tenor-bass choral ensemble at Yale University, established in 1953 by Denis Mickiewicz, who was a Yale student at the time. The group sings a variety of secular and sacred Slavic choral pieces, from the 12th century onward, including folk songs of Russia and Eastern Europe.
The YRC was the first American group to visit the Soviet Union as a private initiative touring the country in 1958 following the signing of the Lacy-Zarubin Agreement on cultural exchange.[1] The YRC made 16 tours to the USSR before the union dissolved in 1991. The ensemble tours domestically every spring.
The chorus rehearses for about two and a half hours every week. Admission is by audition and is open to all interested persons from the New Haven community. As a tenor-bass chorus, membership is primarily male, but auditions are open to all, and the chorus has had female members of the tenor section.
The chorus has performed at many venues in Russia and Ukraine, and also many places in the United States, most notably:[2]
- Carnegie Hall in New York City
- The White House (for President Bill Clinton)
- The Smithsonian Institution
- The Russian Cultural Center in Washington, D.C.
- The Winter Garden Theatre in Manhattan.
[edit] Foreign tours
- USSR 1958
- Ukraine 1995
- Russia 1999?
[edit] References
- ^ Scherer, Barrymore L. "The Yale Russian Chorus, Diplomats of Song." The Wall Street Journal 23 Oct. 2003. ProQuest.
- ^ "Yale Russian Chorus - About Us." Yale Russian Chorus. 10 Nov. 2006. 21 Dec. 2006 <http://www.yale.edu/yrc/>.
