Ukrainian Artists will Perform Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony in a special concert at London’s St Paul’s Cathedral

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On the evening of Monday 29 July 2024, the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra and its founder and conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson will join the Royal Opera House’s Songs for Ukraine Chorus in a historic performance at London’s St Paul’s Cathedral.

In a concert presented by the Barbican, Royal Opera House and Askonas Holt, the orchestra and chorus will perform Beethoven’s Symphony No 9 in the Ukrainian language. In the 200th-anniversary year of the symphony and its famous “Ode To Joy” fourth movement which premiered in May 1824, the orchestra’s acclaimed Ukrainian-language version of the work (recorded and released on Deutsche Grammophon in Feb 2024) will be performed to re-assert values of freedom, sovereignty, and resistance against Russia’s invasion.

Following their performance at the Barbican in 2023, the orchestra returns to the City of London for this special performance in St Paul’s Cathedral, as part of the orchestra’s tour of the great cathedrals and concert halls of Europe and the USA and their continuing demonstration of Ukrainian artistry as the nation fights for its freedom.

The Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra was formed in 2022 by Keri-Lynn Wilson, in coordination with the Ukrainian Ministry of Culture, New York’s Metropolitan Opera, and the Polish National Opera in Warsaw. It was a direct response to Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine and a bold initiative to defend Ukraine’s cultural legacy as the country fights for its freedom in the face of violence and aggression. The orchestra brings together leading musicians in Ukraine alongside Ukrainian musicians forced into exile by the war and Ukrainian members of European ensembles. Male members of the orchestra based in Ukraine have been given special governmental permission to leave the country and deploy their musical excellence as part of the wider war effort in a remarkable demonstration of the power of art over adversity.

The Royal Opera House’s Songs for Ukraine Choruswas established in the spring of 2023 in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Made up of 130 Ukrainian people, a majority of whom have been displaced by the war, the Chorus celebrates Ukrainian culture and resilience. Formed as part of the Royal Opera House’s Creative Exchange programme, the Songs for Ukraine Chorus, performing alongside members of the Royal Opera Chorus, demonstrate the power of music to inspire hope and solidarity.