Illinois Orthodox Choir

Illinois Orthodox Choir The Illinois Orthodox Choir was founded in the fall of 2015. This choir's repertoire embraces different musical styles and is performed in several languages.

Formed in Champaign-Urbana in 2015, the Illinois Orthodox Choir celebrates and performs Orthodox Christian music of all nations and a bit of other Christian music. The idea for a Pan-Orthodox choir came from its director and founder Zhanna Lehmann while she was pursuing her Doctoral degree in choral conducting and music literature at the University of Illinois. Zhanna’s inspiration was to gather s

ingers of all religious backgrounds, both Orthodox and non-Orthodox, to perform Orthodox music for a wide variety of audiences. The first performance of the Illinois Orthodox Choir was in December of 2015 with a program of Nativity music. The spring concert took place on May 7, 2016 and was devoted to the feast of Pascha. Paschal hymns were performed in Greek, Russian, Romanian, Georgian, and English. The Illinois Orthodox Choir is open to all singers from any religious background who have an interest in performing Orthodox Christian music and Byzantine chant. If you are interesting in singing with the Illinois Orthodox Choir or in having the choir perform at your church or in another place, please contact Zhanna at: [email protected].

Thank you to everyone who joined us for our Lenten Retreat; it was a beautiful, prayerful time. Glory to God! May you ha...
03/19/2026

Thank you to everyone who joined us for our Lenten Retreat; it was a beautiful, prayerful time. Glory to God! May you have a blessed remainder of Great Lent.

We're looking forward to Abbess Katherine Weston's talk at 3pm before our choir concert! Mother Katherine is an author, ...
03/14/2026

We're looking forward to Abbess Katherine Weston's talk at 3pm before our choir concert! Mother Katherine is an author, counselor, artist, composer, and president of the Fellowship of St. Moses the Black. Her presentation, titled “New Treasures and Old,” will introduce three of her newest publications, including "One Hundred Fifty Roses for the Mother of God: The Prayer Rule from the Queen of Heaven," "From Sorrow to Song: The Story of Matushka Michaila Altschul," and "Dear Sisters in Christ! Meditations from a Women’s Prayer Group."
We hope to see you there!

St. Nicholas Orthodox Church warmly invites you to a special Lenten Retreat on Saturday, March 14. Beginning at 3:00pm, ...
03/06/2026

St. Nicholas Orthodox Church warmly invites you to a special Lenten Retreat on Saturday, March 14. Beginning at 3:00pm, enjoy an inspiring talk by Abbess Katherine Weston—author, counselor, composer, and president of the Fellowship of St. Moses the Black.

At 4:30pm, the Illinois Orthodox Choir under the direction of Dr. Zhanna Lehmann will present a concert featuring Orthodox Christian hymnography in the Byzantine, American, and Slavic traditions.

The retreat continues with Great Vespers at 5:00pm, followed by a Lenten dinner and fellowship.

Admission is free, with donations gratefully accepted.

02/01/2026

Glory to God in the Highest! This last Christmas-themed video from our 2025 Nativity concert is "An Offering Carol" by Maia Aprahamian. We hope these videos have blessed you in this snowy late January.

01/31/2026

Our 2025 Nativity concert retrospective continues with "Christ Our God is Born," English lyrics by Theodore Ressetar.

01/30/2026

The Kontakion of the Nativity, as adapted by Fr. John El Massih. Sung by the Illinois Orthodox Choir and directed by Dr. Zhanna Lehmann.

01/29/2026

"I behold a strange, most glorious mystery..." So sings our choir in this Romanian chant, "Hymn to the Theotokos."
The Nativity season is over for now, but Christ's incarnation is a mystery we can return to with wonder, any and every day.

01/27/2026

Does all of this snow make you wistful for the Christmas season again? Us too. Enjoy this selection from the Illinois Orthodox Choir Nativity Concert 2025: Praise Ye the Name of the Lord by Fr. Igor Soroka. Conducted by Dr. Zhanna Lehmann.

12/07/2025
You are warmly invited to come and enjoy a selection of beautiful Orthodox Christian hymns at the Illinois Orthodox Choi...
11/25/2025

You are warmly invited to come and enjoy a selection of beautiful Orthodox Christian hymns at the Illinois Orthodox Choir’s Nativity concert, Dec 5th at 6pm, with Vespers to follow at 6:30.
Admission is free; any donations we receive will enable us to further our music ministry within the community.

May the Lord bless you this season!

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Urbana, IL
61801

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