LYRA, the choral music ensemble from St. Petersburg, gave a stirring performance Tuesday night of religious hymns from the Russian Orthodox Church and folk songs from the culture’s rich oral tradition.
The five members of LYRA performed for about 50 people in the Perry Performing Arts Center in one of the first shows of their 40-concert spring tour in the U.S. Midwest.
The a cappella chorus musical program of 11 sacred hymns and six folk songs was capped by an encore, sung in English, of “Baa, Baa, Black Sheep.” Once again, witty English commentary was provided between the songs by LYRA manager and baritone vocalist Sergey Tupitsyn.
Tupitsyn was joined by soprano Anna Makarenko, tenor Denis Patsiuk, mezzo-soprano Olga Dudchenko and bass Alexandr Kudriashov, all postgraduate scholars at the St. Petersburg Conservatory, Russia’s premier musical academy and the equivalent of the Julliard School in New York City.
LYRA formed in 1994, according to Tupitsyn, and is composed of 15 to 20 members. The group’s overseas tours usually include four to six members. He said they have performed in the U.S. 27 or 28 times since 2004.
The members wore formal evening wear for the sacred selections and then donned traditional peasant costumes for the second part of their Tuesday night performance, the jolly Russian folk songs.
Cathy Clark, director of the Perry Fine Arts programs, welcomed the small but appreciative audience, and Dr. Randy McCaulley introduced LYRA. The group performs next in the Twin Cities.
The next event in the Perry Fine Arts calendar is the 41st annual Fourth of July Musical Extravaganza and Ice Cream Social at the First United Methodist Church in Perry. Iowa singer and songwriter Carol Montag will be the featured musical guest.
Perry Fine Arts concerts are free and open to the public. In order to maintain the high quality of the Perry Fine Arts concerts, the non-profit organization depends on tax-deductible donations. For more information, contact Cathy Clark at cecat49@msn.com.
What embarrassment the LYRA group must have felt with the poor attendance at this wonderful concert. I simply cannot figure out why people do not attend such wonderful programs as put on by Perry Fine Arts. If this were in Des Moines, people would have paid to see such an event, and here in Perry it is free with a free-will offering accepted. Why were there no high school students in attendance? Why such poor attendance? I wish someone had the answers.
I concur. I’d say part of the reason is because many in town don’t avail themselves of our local media and simply don’t know. Unfortunately, Perry is no different from the rest of the country. There seems to be an ugly streak of anti-intellectualism in the U.S. of late. These events may be considered too highbrow by some. Prime rib turns the stomachs of many who are brought up on bologna.