‘Soli Deo Gloria’ – a Festival and Contest of Young Organists and Composers

The Festival and Contest ‘Soli Deo Gloria’ has been organized by our Foundation since 2007. The participants of the Contests are young organists and composers from various cities of Russia, students and graduates of music institutions of higher education. Every year the competition's jury is new. During the years passed outstanding organists and composers from Europe, Canada and Russia became members of the Contest’s jury. The awards ‘De Boni Arte’ Charitable Foundation provides are solo recitals in European countries and in Moscow Roman-Catholic Cathedral. The contest of young composers was held as a part of the Festival and Contest ‘Soli Deo Gloria’ for the first time in 2009. The winning pieces in the nominations “A Composition for Organ” and “A Composition for Choir and Organ” will be published as a separate edition and recorded on a CD. The winning piece of the Composers’ Contest’2009 was also performed by the Head of the jury at the ceremonial closing of the Festival. The main goal of ‘Soli Deo Gloria’ Festival and Contest is to promote the creative activity of young organists. The official web-site of the event is www.solidegloria.ru.

The International Christmas Festival

During the Christmas holidays of 2008-2009 the Foundation set up an International Christmas Festival dedicated to the traditions of celebrating Christmas in Western countries. The Festival is to promote intercultural dialogue between Russia and the West. In 2008-2009 the spotlight of the Festival was on Italy. This winter it was dedicated to France, which particularly responds to the fact that the year 2009 has been announced to be the year of France in Russia, and the year 2010, that of Russia in France. The “French Christmas in Moscow” comprised 7 concerts performed by French and Russian musicians: the Festival's music ranged from Christmas classics to jazz arrangements of Christmas carols. One of the concerts will traditionally be a family happening. We strive to make the celebration of the Birth of the Saviour a bright and memorable event for all the guests of our Cathedral. The web-site of this year’s Festival is  christmasfest.info.

An Educational Project: Course on Western Church Music

This project aims to meet the need of contemporary Russia in systematic quality education in the sphere of Western church music. The scope of the subjects taught at the Course is not covered satisfactorily in any of Russian institutions of higher education. The program of the Course is oriented towards church organists, music students and musicologists studying the liturgical music of the Western Christian (Catholic and Evangelical) Church. The Course lasts for 2.5 years of interactive distance learning combined with compulsory attendance of 5 two-week sessions, 4 of which are academic and the fifth the examination one. The teachers of the Course are outstanding scholars and specialists in the area of church music, coming from Italy, Poland, France, Germany and Russia. Among other subjects, the Course includes theoretical and practical study of the Gregorian chant, organ performance, improvisation and liturgical accompaniment, the history of the Church and the Latin language. The web-site of the Course in Western Church Music is www.musicasacra.ru.

Musical Dramas and Mystery Plays

In 2002 and 2007 a "Christmas Mystery" was presented to the Moscow public by 'De Boni Arte'. In February 2008  the Foundation directed the first night of a mystery play under the title "The Icon-Painter". The music for the play was composed by a young Russian composer Anna Vetlugina. In 2008 the audience saw a staging of the famous “St. John’s  Passion” by J.S. Bach, performed by a mixed team of Russian and German musicians. It evoked high interest of the general public. In 2009 the Cathedral housed a concert performance of “St. John’s Passion” by a Bach’s contemporary - a talented German composer Georg Gebel.

“Pipe-Organs for Russia” Project

The goal of this project is to develop the organ culture on the territory of Russia. “De Boni Arte” Charitable Foundation looks for new or used pipe-organs in Europe for Russian Roman-Catholic Churches; the Foundation takes on the negotiation, both with the European partners who provide the organ, and with the Russian city governments, with the aim of giving the event of the installation of the new organ in a church a rank of an important cultural development. The dismantlement, transportation and the following reconstruction of the organ in the church accepting it is also done by the Foundation. We hope that this activity will contribute to the cultural life of the Russian cities and towns, especially to its spiritual aspect. It is in this way that the Moscow Roman-Catholic Cathedral obtained the grand pipe-organ ‘Kuhn’, which has since its inauguration been bringing joy to the hearts of the parishioners and guests of the Cathedral. 

Book publishing and CD production

These two activities are meant to support several initiatives of the Foundation: to make public a number of recordings of sacred music made within the Cathedral but yet unavailable for the general public; to support the 'Soli Deo Gloria' project by publishing and recording the winners' pieces and popularizing in this way the creative activity of young composers; to provide the necessary materials for the Course in Western Church Music and to publish translations of books which have never been published in Russia before and which can serve as a basis for the development of Western church musicology in the Russian language.