Herald Staff Report
(From the issue of 10/7/04)

Choir Sophia, a 25-member children’s choir from Siberia, will begin a series of performances in the Washington area with an Oct. 13 concert at St. Catherine of Siena Church in Great Falls at 7:30 p.m.

Choir Sophia was founded in 1991 at the Cathedral of the Protecting Veil under the patronage of Archbishop Antonii of Krasnoyarsk. More than 100 children, ages six to 21, perform a variety of Russian liturgical chants, sacred folk songs and concert classics.

An Oct. 14 concert is scheduled for St. Lawrence Commons on the campus of Christendom College in Front Royal beginning at 7:30 p.m.

Mary Washington College in Fredericksburg will host the choir on Oct. 19 at 7 p.m. A short concert will be performed at St. William of York School in Stafford on Oct. 20 at 11 a.m. St. William of York Church will host a concert that same day beginning at 7:30 p.m.

The choir also will perform in Washington, D.C., at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception and Georgetown University.

The choir has performed at various festivals, including the All-Russian festival "Sacred Unity" and the Festival Competition of Slavic Culture. The children also performed for Russian Patriarch Alexy II and received a silver medal at the International Choir Competition in Italy.

The choir will arrive in Great Falls Oct. 11 with Archbishop Antonii and its conductor, Olga Roussakova. They will stay with host families from St. Catherine of Siena Parish during their six-day tour of the Washington area.

For additional information about the choir’s schedule, contact the St. Catherine of Siena Parish Office at 703-759-4350.