Sala: Shostakovich Philharmonic Hall: Grand Hall, St Petersburg

How times change. Only a few decades ago, sacred music, if it was heard at all in Russia, was presented in a strictly secular concert setting, and even in many cases with the texts altered to reduce their religious significance. Today though, the Orthodox Church is an influential and highly visible player in Russian public life.

The second concert of the St. Romanos Melodos I International Composers Competition featured the remaining six winning pieces performed by two choirs: that of the Mikhailovsky Theatre with Vladimir Stolpovskikh, and the St. Petersburg Youth Chamber Choir with Yulia Khutoretskaya.

Last week, I was lucky enough to visit St. Petersburg to hear two concerts featuring winning pieces from the newly-launched St. Romanos Melodos I International Composers Competition. The aim of this competition is to revive ‘the spiritual and musical traditions founded in pre-revolution Russia’, and it was a fascinating window for me into a very different musical culture.