St Matthew Passion
music by Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev)
oratorio for soloists, chorus, and orchestra
St Matthew Passion by Metropolitan Hilarion is based on the text of the Gospel of Matthew dedicated to passion and death of Jesus. The oratorio also includes recitatives, choral pieces and arias compiled using texts of the Orthodox Service for Passion Week. St Matthew Passion premiered on 27 March 2007 at the Moscow Conservatoire: it was performed by the Moscow Synodic Chorus and Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Vladimir Fedoseyev. The text was recited by Metropolitan Hilarion himself. The oratorio has also been performed in Roma, Melbourne, and Toronto.