March 20, 1943. A letter to Dad from Stanislaus Kosinski. Every so often in the letters there is one from Mr. Kosinsnki, the director of the choir at St Cecelia’s in Albany. This is the choir that Dad and Stanley sang in. In some of Dad’s and Stanley’s letters, Mr. Kosinski is referred to as “the Professor”.
Kosinski writes to Dad to thank him for sending the program for the Don Cossacks. If you recall from an earlier post, this is the group that Dad had seen on February 6th while he was stationed in Miami Beach for basic training. Kosinski notes that he will keep the program and return it to Dad when he gets back. He notes, “I am certain you want to keep it.” He mentions to Dad that “We all attended the Don Cossacks concert here in Albany and liked them as ever before. They are always a great treat, something that lingers in the mind and memory for a long while.”
Image of the Don Cossack Chorus and Dancers from the back of the program Dad got at the concert he saw in Miami Beach.
The choir has been working on a new mass for Easter. “Last Sunday we sang for the first time our new Easter hymns. My impression is that people liked them very much. The sisters told us that they sounded beautiful. From the new Mass we learned Kyrie, Sanctus, Benedictus, Agnus Dei and Offertory. There only remains Gloria, which I will start rehearsing next week.”
He goes on to write that Holy Week will be very busy for the choir. “The forty hours devotion has been postponed until Palm Sunday. I do not know why. It means that we will be very much occupied from that Sunday until Easter.”
He continues, “The weather here is much better and we are glad of this. Spring will officially arrive tomorrow and the signs are already visible. The snow has almost disappeared and the sun shines much more brightly. I do not remember winters as severe as this one. We had enough of snow, slush, winds as in the Russian Steppes and temperatures to 22 below.”
He notes that “Ted is still at home and trying to get into some medical college. So far he has had no luck. If he does not succeed, he will have to go into the Army.” He goes on to tell Dad, “I am glad that you are getting instruction from which you will be able to benefit when you get back to civilian life.”
He closes his letter with the wish, “For the sake of all of us and the people all over the world, I hope that this war will soon come to an end”