Boris Mikhailovich Ledkovsky (Бори́с Миха́йлович Ледко́вский; 9 May 1894 in Agrafenovka,
Don Host Oblast — 6 August 1975 in
Jordanville, New York) was a
Russian-American composer of
Church music and father of composer
Alexander Ledkovsky.
Life
Ledkovsky was born near
Novocherkassk in 1894 to
Protopriest
The Protopriest of the College of Cardinals ( it, protopresbitero, and, rare, it, protoprete) in the College of Cardinals, is the first Cardinal-Priest in the order of precedence, hence directly after the Cardinal-bishops.
This title is always ...
Mikhail and Sophia Ledkovsky. He studied at the Theology School in Novocherkassk, in the Royal School in
Rostov-on-Don
Rostov-on-Don ( rus, Ростов-на-Дону, r=Rostov-na-Donu, p=rɐˈstof nə dɐˈnu) is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East Eu ...
and at the
Moscow Conservatory with
Alexander Kastalsky
Alexand(e)r Dmitriyevich Kastalsky (russian: Александр Дмитриевич Кастальский) ( – 17 December 1926) was a Russian composer and folklorist.
Kastalsky was born in Moscow to protoiereus (a title roughly equivalent ...
.
He directed at the
St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in
Sofia,
Bulgaria; in Paris and in Berlin parishes and cathedrals. In 1937 Ledkovsky formed in Germany the all-male ''
a cappella
''A cappella'' (, also , ; ) music is a performance by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Ren ...
'' ensemble "Black Sea Cossacks Choir".
Ledkovsky married in 1943 to Marina V. Fasolt. With her, he fathered four children:
Alexander (also a Church musician of note), Dimitri, Tatiana, and Michael. He emigrated with his family to the
United States in 1951.
He was a prolific arranger and composer of
Russian Orthodox Church music in the Moscow School style, relying heavily on traditional chant as well as austere harmonization forms.
From 1952 to 1975 he served as director of the
Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia
The Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (russian: Ру́сская Правосла́вная Це́рковь Заграни́цей, lit=Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, translit=Russkaya Pravoslavnaya Tserkov' Zagranitsey), also called Ru ...
(ROCOR) Synod Cathedral Choir of New York.
About the Synod Cathedral Choir of New York
/ref>
Boris Ledkovsky died of lung cancer on 6 August 1975, and was buried in Jordanville, New York at the Holy Trinity Monastery.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ledkovsky, Boris
Russian composers
Russian male composers
American male composers
Sacred music composers
1894 births
1975 deaths
Deaths from lung cancer
20th-century American composers
20th-century American male musicians