The Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom - Choir of St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary

Another cool find from the Shelton Goodwill!
Directed by Professor Boris Ledkovsky
Priests: Rev. Nicholas Solak, Rev. Vladimir Soroka

In the Eastern Orthodox tradition the Divine Liturgy is described as "the sacrament of sacraments." It is the center, the very heart of the whole life of the Church, her entrance into the joy and peace of the Kingdom, her partaking of the paschal banquet. The ritual; the prayers and the music constitute one indivisible whole and express the ascension of the Church to the heavenly sanctuary where Christ eternally offers to the Father His deified Humanity and eternally accepts us into His Eucharist.

St. Vladimir's Seminary Choir is known throughout the Orthodox world not only for its prayerful rendition of Orthodox Church music but as one of the few a capella choirs which has aroused interest in the ancient liturgical music of the Russian Orthodox Church. For the past five years, annual concerts of liturgical music have been presented to capacity audiences in New York City. In 1962 and 1963, in addition to the twenty to thirty Lenten visits to Orthodox parishes, 8 members of this choir toured the United States singing responses to Divine Services in more than 150 Orthodox Churches.

The selections on this recording are, for the most part, taken from the various monastic chants which have been used throughout generations by the Russian Orthodox Church. All of the numbers, with the exception of "A Mercy of Peace" and "The Lord's Prayer," have been harmonized by Professor Boris Ledkovsky. The English adaptations and arrangements were done by David Drillock and Michael Pilat.