Throughout his life, legendary Russian tenor Ivan Kozlovsky (1900-1993) remained a champion of Russian Orthodox sacred music, performing it and recording it whenever he had the opportunity. During the period of Soviet persecution of religion and the Church, these opportunities occurred at private concerts for visiting dignitaries and recording sessions held in empty halls and behind closed doors. This CD assembles some of these rare archival recordings, made in the 1940s and 1950s, and offers a fascinating historic look not only at one of the greatest voices of the 20th century, but also into interpretations of sacred classics by Russian choral conductors of those long bygone decades, when Russia's great sacred choral heritage was in danger of being wiped out by militant atheism and rampant secularism. The booklet offers an historical article about Kozlovsky (in Russian and a shorter summary in English).--V. M.
