Sts Cyril and Methodius Orthodox Institute
3 Oct 24: Russian Orthodox Male Choir of Australia toured Serbia
Eight years ago, a new Russian Orthodox male choir was founded in Australia. The choir consists of singers from various churches in Sydney and other cities in Australia, includes many young people, mainly children and grandchildren of Russian emigrants who came to Australia 50-70 years ago.
In June 2024, the Russian Orthodox Male Choir of Australia (ROMCA) toured Serbia over the course of 14 days where they were welcomed by thousands of Serbian people with open arms. The idea of travelling to Serbia came about in early 2023. ROMCA received the blessing of Archbishop George of Sydney Australia and New Zealand and met with the Serbian Metropolitan Siluan of the Australian and New Zealand Diocese to discuss their trip. The choir also received a blessing from His Holiness Patriarch Porfirije of Serbia to travel and began planning their trip. The aim of this tour was to see the many significant religious sites in Serbia, sing services and concerts in various parts of the country, and experience the rich Serbian culture.
When ROMCA arrived in Serbia they were instantly welcomed with open arms. The hospitality and brotherly love shown by the Serbian people was very special.
The choir travelled by bus across almost all of Serbia. While the land mass itself isn’t that big, the terrain, particularly outside of the major cities consists of steep mountains and valleys which meant travelling to each monastery sometimes took 3 to 4 hours. Serbia has over 200 monasteries, many of which were built in the 13th and 14th centuries by previous Kings of Serbia.
ROMCA visited and sang at 15 monasteries and towns located outside of major cities: Manasija, Studenica, Zica, Kraljevo, Valjevo, Celje, Lelic, Ravanica, Ravanica-Vrdnik, Kovilj, Grgeteg, Velika Remata, Surcin, Backa Palanka, Indija – a very ambitious schedule for 14 days! Of course, the choir also sang in the cities of Belgrade, Novi Sad and Sremski Karlovci.
Some of the highlights of the trip included:
- Venerating many complete relics of great saints of the Serbian church such as St. Iustin Popovic, St. Nikolaj Velimirović, St. Price Lazar, St. King Stefan – with their relics being completely opened for the choir. ROMCA prayed for all families, friends, and many others back in Australia.
- Singing a spiritual concert in the St. Nicholas Cathedral located in Sremski Karlovci. This is the church where our ROCOR Bishops served the first Liturgy and had their first meeting (архиерейский собор) abroad after the revolution occurred, more than 100 years ago. To have the opportunity to sing in the very church where ROCOR began, was very special. ROMCA also sang a панихида to Metropolitan Anthony Hrapovitsky (founder of ROCOR) in this Cathedral.
- Singing a spiritual concert in Surcin, a small town located outside of Belgrade, where we had a few local TV and radio interviews, and where the director of the choir was introduced to a local author. The author is currently writing a book on the history of Surcin and noted that he wanted to dedicate the last section of his book to ROMCA’s travels to Surcin and the concert held in the town.
- ROMCA participated in the Summer Music Festival in Indija, a town between Belgrade and Novi Sad where they sang a folk concert outdoors on a professional stage in front of hundreds of people.
- ROMCA held a folk song concert at the Ruski Dom in Belgrade which was built by the emigre generation who fled Russia during the revolution, another significant place for the choir. Hundreds of people were in attendance and overfilled the venue with some people remaining listening outside, there being no room to sit or stand inside the hall.
ROMCA sang many Liturgies in significant locations, such as the Ravanica-Vrdnik Monastery for Vidovdan – the National Serbian day of remembrance for Saint Prince Lazar and the other holy martyrs who fell during the battle of Kosovo in 1389.
The most memorable Liturgy, however, was the Divine Liturgy on the final day in Serbia where ROMCA was invited to sing in the St. Sava Cathedral in Belgrade, one of the largest Orthodox churches in the world, larger than all other churches in Russia. The liturgy was presided by Serbian Patriarch Porfirije. The evening before the Liturgy, ROMCA held a final concert in the Crypt of St. Sava – a church located underneath the big Cathedral which was attended by close to 500 people. For the Patriachal Liturgy the following day, the local clergy estimated that over 800 people were in attendance. St Sava Cathedral is by far, the most magnificent Cathedral – made entirely of mosaics inside. While ROMCA was very much looking forward to singing in the Cathedral, the choir quickly discovered that it was acoustically challenging due to the grand size of the church. After singing a chord, one could count to almost 30 seconds and still hear the reverberation. The choir focused on diction to ensure the text sung was not lost in the acoustics. At the end of the Patriarchal Liturgy, ROMCA was invited to meet the Patriarch who expressed his gratitude and invited the choir to a festive banquet. At the request of the Patriarch, the choir was asked us to sing the Russian folk song Конь.
There are no words to describe the experience of ROMCA’s travels to Serbia. The Serbian people expressed their appreciation following each concert with thunderous applause and standing ovations. The feedback from many of the locals was that the impact on listeners was unprecedented with many listeners moved to tears. Everyone was very appreciative, and ROMCA received many invitations to return.
The majority of this choristers who are part of ROMCA are youth who are in their teens and 20’s. The experience this once in a lifetime trip gave them was eye-opening and inspiring. God willing, this will inspire the younger choristers to continue praying, actively participating in church life, and praising God through singing, and promoting our faith and culture, which is the mission of ROMCA.
Nektary Kotlaroff
Director, ROMCA
