Renditions of ‘Hail Mary’ in Sanskrit, Russian on March 25

Panaji: An ensemble of about 70 musicians and singers will present a programme of sacred music to mark the feast of the Annunciation next week.
Conducted by Fr Romeo Monteiro, the chancellor of the Archdiocese of Goa, the musicians will present 12 interpretations of the Ave Maria (Hail Mary), including in languages such as Sanskrit, Konkani, Aramaic and Russian.
While the concert will include Ave Marias by western stalwarts such as Bruckner, Haydn, Bartolucci, and Rachmaninoff, several others, including the Konkani and Sanskrit interpretations, are arranged by Monteiro himself.
“The programme is a meditation of the sacred mystery of the incarnation of our Lord, using the medium of music and song,” Monteiro said. The Church celebrates this feast on March 25, nine months before Christmas.
The Annunciation refers to the announcement to Mary by the archangel Gabriel that she would conceive a son by the power of the Holy Spirit and become the mother of Jesus Christ. Explaining the significance of the programme, Monteiro said, “The Ave Maria, uttered by the heavenly messenger sent by God to Mary, coupled with the popular prayer of supplication — the Sancta Maria — is perhaps the most popular prayer on the lips of the Catholic faithful across the world”.
While the first concert will be held at the Church of Our Lady of Penha de Franca, Britona, at 6.30pm on Sunday, two more concerts will be held at the Nagoa de Verna church on Wednesday at 6.30pm, and the final one on March 25 at the Santa Monica convent church in Old Goa at 6.45pm. The last concert, in aid of the Museum of Christian Art, will be attended by Cardinal-Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrao.
Monteiro, a protege of Goan sacred music legend Fr Lourdino Barreto, is a former conductor of the 126-year-old Santa Cecilia choir of Rachol. He completed his musical education at the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music and the Pontifical Athenaeum of St Anselm.
For several years now, Monteiro has been organising sacred music concerts during the period of Lent with a varied group of singers and musicians from across Goa.