“Three Romes”

25th of March, The Cathedral of Christ the Savior, Moscow
26th of March, The Cathedral of Irina the Martyr, Istanbul
Metropolite Illarion (Alfeev)
“St Matthew Passion”
20th of May, Pontifical audiences hall of Paul the IV, Vatican

Russian National Orchestra
Artistic director and head conductor – Mikhail Pletnev
Moscow synodal choir
Artistic director – Aleksey Puzakov

In spring, 2010, Russian National Orchestra under direction of Mikhail Pletnev will become the main participant of the unique international project “Three Romes”. This large cultural and educational campaign has been initiated by Russian Orthodox Church and Roman Catholic Church. The campaign will be carried through the three geographic centers that played the most important part in the history of Christianity: Moscow, Istanbul (Constantinople) and Rome.
The idea of such a large-scale and important cultural project has first come up back in autumn of the previous year. His Holiness Kirill Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia has blessed the meeting between the head of External church communications department of Moscow Patriarch’s office and Roman Pontiff Benedict XVI.  At that meeting has been decided on the incredible importance of cooperative work on maintaining the traditional values of Christianity to keep them alive in contemporary community. It has also been agreed that the development of interactions between the Catholics and Orthodoxies would serve to reach that goal. That is how “The days of Russian Spiritual Culture” in Rome, scheduled for the spring, 2010, have been started.
Concert of Russian music will become a central part of the campaign. It will take place on the 20th of May in the famous Pontifical audiences hall of Paul the IV in Vatican and be blessed by the presence of Pontiff Benedict XVI himself. Among the other guests of the evening will also be the hierarchs of Catholic Church and other Christian confessions as well as representatives from Christian communities from all over the world. The Hall can admit up to five thousand people.
Russian National Orchestra under direction of Mikhail Pletnev will perform for this respectable audience. It is remarkable that twenty years ago an ensemble, just started by then, has begun its foreign concerts practice with the evening in Vatican. After performing for Roman Pontiff, Russian National Orchestra has become the first Russian symphonic orchestra to ever visit the very heart of Catholic Church. Now, twenty years later, being the ensemble widely recognized all over the world, RNO will once again come to Vatican.  
By the suggestion of Russian Orthodox Church, this significant evening would be preceded by concerts in Moscow (25th of March, The Cathedral of Christ the Savior) and Istanbul (26th of March, The Cathedral of Irina the Martyr).  In those cities Russian National Orchestra and the recently recreated Moscow synodal choir will present “St Matthew Passion” oratorio written by mitropolite Illarion (Alfeev).  Such order of concerts shall underline the succession in Christian Culture, moving from Moscow (called “the third Rome”) towards the first Rome.
The program of concert that will take place on the 20th of May in the Pontifical audiences hall of Paul the IV includes the masterpieces of Russian symphonic and spiritual music. In particular, there will be presented creations of Tschaikovsky, Musorgsky, Rakhmaninov,  mitropolite Illarion (Alfeev). In the concert will also take part  Moscow synodal choir and Russian Horn Chapel (Saint – Petersburg).  

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