2023-05-17
Music conference “Sing to God” in Sosnovy Bor
And so, the final chords of the hymn were sung at the music conference "Sing to God", in the hospitable UECB church of Sosnovy Bor, near St. Petersburg. Wonderful works performed by the choir sounded especially great after master classes were held by guest speakers.
This time a special guest of the seminar was Vladimir Kashalaba, an experienced musician and director. He briefly covered the formation of Christian Protestant music history in a fascinating way. We learned the intricacies of Gregorian chant, a unique look at the music of Luther and Calvin, and were surprised that Ivan the Terrible was also a composer. Also, the comparison of great musicians, Handel and Bach, and their contribution to Christian music will long remain in our memory.
I was pleased with the live broadcast with a phoniatrist, who in an accessible form told us about the intricacies of the work of the vocal apparatus and answered important questions about the health of the voice. Kristina Tyurina, held a practical interactive session on solfeggio.
Musical directors were specially invited to the council: Olga Butova, Vladimir Kashalaba, Lyudmila Bolshakova, Anna Voronina and other regents of the city and the Leningrad region. They shared the secrets of choral mastery and prepared the final choral work. It was their joint work that gave a wonderful result and laid the groundwork for each each individual minister’s developement in their field for God.
I was very impressed with the master class on conducting for beginners. Experienced directors were not left behind, as they also had teachers give advanced instruction. Everyone was interested!
The geography of the event, as always, was diverse: guests cities of Izhevsk, Arkhangelsk, Novgorod, Kirovsk, Petrozavodsk, Staraya Russa, St. Petersburg, Tikhvin, Lomonosov, Kingisepp, Vyborg, Sosnovy Bor, Kolpino, Vsevolozhsk gathered.
Such conferences are definitely needed! They help raise the quality of spiritual worship service to another level, share the latest news, and share invaluable experience. And lastly, they inspire and unite the fellow music ministers.
Therefore, we are looking forward to the next meeting and invite everyone who has not yet been able to attend the "Singing to God" conference to join the number of guests and share the joy of participation!
Elena Fuchs
