Musical Silk Road

According to Roger McMurrin, the artistic director of the Kyiv Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, this was the most expensive concert tour in the 14-year history of this orchestra and choir. Since local organizers could not afford to cover their travel expenses, concert fees, and rental charges (totaling $250,000), the whole project was funded by sponsors. Sixty firms and companies agreed to invest in the tour, and their names were listed in the concert programs. These were successful investments in art, as the media called the concerts given by the 105 Ukrainian musicians under the able guidance of an American conductor “an outstanding event in the cultural life of Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan.”

It has been a long time since audiences in the Central Asian countries have seen Ukrainian performers, although in Soviet times cultural exchanges between the republics of the former USSR were quite active. Veteran music lovers in Central Asia remember the brilliant performances of the Dumka Choir conducted by Yevhen Savchuk. Times have changed, and today top Ukrainian performers prefer to tour Europe and earn hard cash rather than tour Central Asia, where the average person cannot even afford a $2.00 concert ticket.

The Kyiv Symphony Orchestra and Chorus were warmly received by local audiences, although the Ukrainian musicians made no secret of the fact that they were afraid to cross into these Moslem countries, especially since their orchestra is conducted by the Presbyterian pastor Roger McMurrin.

The concert programs included traditional American spirituals, Handel’s Messiah, and other works. Local organizers warned that there could be protests and that people might even leave the hall during the concert. These fears proved unjustified, as the Ukrainian performers were warmly welcomed everywhere. The newspaper Uzbekistan Today carried a front page feature with a photo of President Karimov and next to it a picture of McMurrin talking about the Ukrainian concert tour. After the concert in Almaty, the US conductor was presented with a bouquet of 100 roses.

Muslims have great respect for Jesus Christ whom they regard as a prophet. So Handel’s Messiah was received with interest by the audience, which listened to the music while following the Russian text in the concert programs. During the concerts McMurrin explained to the audience the meaning of the spirituals. There were always many questions after each concert, for example: “Why is a Ukrainian choir with an American conductor singing ‘New York, New York’ in Central Asia?” The answer was, because New York is an international city where you can hear dozens of languages, including English, Italian, Ukrainian, Spanish, Russian, even Kazakh. The local audiences loved “Route 66.” This highway links Los Angeles with Chicago, and it is as important to American history as the Silk Road to the Orient. Before performing Handel’s Hallelujah, McMurrin told audiences how this composition was first performed 250 years ago and that King George was so impressed that he rose from his throne while listening to the music. Since then spectators always listen to this composition standing up. McMurrin’s audiences followed suit and continued applauding, asking for encores after the last chords were heard.

Local organizers warned against provoking the Muslims, but McMurrin couldn’t help joining the choir, which sang the Our Father before lunch in a Samarkand hotel. The next morning all the cooks asked the choir to sing the Lord’s Prayer for them. There were some unpleasant moments. After arriving in Bishkek, McMurrin was informed that only five tickets for his concert had been sold. The conductor was disheartened by the news and even suggested canceling the concert. But one hour before the concert the organizing committee said that there were 800 music lovers sitting in the hall. Our singers and musicians gave an inspired performance and had a full house at the next concert.

Besides giving concerts, the Ukrainian performers met with their counterparts in local conservatories. These were mostly improvised meetings during which the guests and hosts sang and performed their compositions and exchanged music and addresses. In Almaty a local choir serenaded the Kyiv Symphony Orchestra and Chorus with the Ukrainian lyric-epic song “Oi, dub, duba.” Then the Ukrainian basses picked up the melody, surprising the audience, which burst into rapturous applause.

Once again Ukrainian musicians have shown that they can outshine diplomats in crossing borders. The Kyiv Symphony Orchestra and Chorus proved to be so popular that they were invited to tour Central Asia again. Back home in Kyiv, their new concert season began with a performance at the House of Organ and Chamber Music, gladdening music lovers’ hearts with Vivaldi, Durufle, and Richard Strauss.