Word: mickiewicz
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Under the exuberant direction of Denis Mickiewicz the group sang as one like a great human organ with vocal chords in place of pipes. Their repertoire is small but polished. Everything is done from memory and it was obvious from the performance that the chorus knows each selection inside...
SUCH mastery of material allows the conductor a great deal of flexibility, and Mickiewicz capitalized fully on the chance. His conducting was demonstrative, fluid, and expressive, moving in phrases instead of measures. His lines were lovingly shaped, sometimes elegantly, sometimes extravagantly. Mickiewicz is a master of that peculiarly Slavic kind of rubato whose sentiment hovers between joy and sorrow and has a gradual rocket accelerando that makes the Rossini crescendo dull by comparison...
Fully half the Yale Russian Chorus's program consisted of conductor Denis Mickiewicz's excellent arrangements. He showed an instinctively sure touch with the Russian folk idiom, and a good understanding of men's voices. The only exception to this was a modulation for solo tenor in "Kalinka," which must have been as uncomfortable for the singer as it was for the audience. Mr. Mickiewicz's chordal vocabulary was thankfully traditional, with the unfortunate exception of "A Maiden's Heart...
Although I have heard them sing better, the Chorus sounded very good Friday night. Assistant Conductor Dan Gsovsky (who conducted the entire program due to Mr. Mickiewicz's illness) seemed at times to be pulling the music out of them. They responded superbly, singing with much power and involvement, and covering a range of emotions from deep melancholy to fierce patriotism. Songs of the steppes, the Volga, and the Battle of Borodino were for them as charged with emotion as they are for most Russians. The audience was infected with their spirit, and literally stomped them back on stage...
...prevailing world prices, but the Ceylonese demanded an extra $50 million U.S. aid (in addition to the purchase price) as a condition of the sale. Washington demurred, and Peking closed the deal by increasing its price 40% and offering part-payment in rice. Last week the Polish freighter Mickiewicz sailed from Colombo with 5,600 tons of rubber for delivery to Shanghai. Presumably, a U.S. naval blockade of the Chinese coast would put a stop to the voyages of the Wiima and the Mickiewicz...