Kiev Symphony and Orchestra is coming again

To the Editor,

     The Kiev Symphony Orchestra and Chorus (KSOC) is coming back to Monticello!

     Many of us have fading memories of previous concerts from these world-class musicians. It has been 10 long years since we have enjoyed their talents here. We will have an opportunity to relive those sounds on Sept. 7. If you have not yet had the opportunity to hear them perform, you are urged to attend this concert. The founders of this group often hear from concertgoers, “This was the greatest musical experience of my life!”

     Many of us have precious and warm memories of hosting the group members in our homes during previous visits. Once again, we have this opportunity to welcome them back. To consider this a cultural exchange minimizes the impact this group has had on our town. One former host of the KSOC was known to comment, “If the Jones County Fair is the five best days of summer, then the Kiev visit is the four best days of fall!” The group’s founder, Roger McMurin, is a former graduate and teacher of Monticello Schools. With such ties to our community, we are fortunate to be the jumping off point for another tour of the states.

     A committee of KSOC enthusiasts, Friends of Music Mission Kiev is developing a plan for you to participate. There will be opportunities to prepare meals, host musicians in your homes, or offer hospitality in other ways. Those of you who wish to host these musicians may contact Greg Kromminga at 465-5347. Please be patient, as those who have hosted previously will have first priority.

     Tickets will soon be on sale at local banks and online at http:/mxo.ticketbud.com/kiev-symphony-concert. Tickets are $20.

     You may learn more about their tour at your local church. In the meantime, we urge you to visit their website https://www.musicmissionkiev.org to learn more about the ministry. You may even find your former guests working in new ways within the ministry! To my delight, when watching a video of theirs online, I found my Luda singing along with the widows.

     After many years of conducting, Roger, along with his wife Diane and son were invited to Ukraine. What they found in Kiev 25 years ago was an enormous pool of professional musicians who had worked for the government during the years of communism. Roger had been invited to Kiev to present a concert for a Post-Soviet Ukraine. With him, he brought classic music scores, including Handel’s Messiah, once prohibited under the Iron Curtain. He auditioned musicians from all corners of the city. These disciplined musicians had practiced eight-hour days since their youth. They were enormously talented but had never performed or heard sacred music. Once exposed to such, they described it as “an explosion of light.”

     After the McMurrins returned to their home in Orlando they felt a permanent calling to minister to these musicians and the people of Ukraine. They then founded the Kiev Symphony Orchestra and Chorus. Soon thereafter, they established Music Mission Kiev (MMK) to minister to the Ukrainians.

     On Sept. 7 at the Monticello High School “42 exceptional Ukrainian members of the Kyiv Symphony Orchestra and Chorus will share a sacred concert of Slavic a-capella, sacred classics, hymns and spirituals, sung and spoken prayers, instrumental chamber music, Ukrainian folk music and stories, testimonies and pictures of God’s grace.”

     The proceeds of their tours support their extensive ministry to widows, pensioners, orphans, victims of war, the musicians and their families. Make your plans to hear the music Sept. 7th!

Sincerely,

Ann McLaughlin McClusky

Friends of MMK Committee