MOSCOW, February 23. /TASS/. New members of the world famous Russian military choir, the Alexandrov Ensemble, will give a concert in the State Kremlin Palace on Thursday on occasion of the Defender of the Fatherland Day.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to attend the concert.
The renewed choir gave its first performance on February 16 in the Theater of the Russian Army in Moscow, after the loss of 64 members in the Tu-154 plane crash in December 2016.
Russia’s Defense Ministry had viewed the renewal of the choir within the shortest possible period as a task of paramount importance for itself, Deputy Defense Minister Nikolai Pankov said. The choir has offered contracts to the best of the best, he said.
The Tu-154 crash occurred on December 25, 2016. The aircraft, en route to Syria, crashed shortly after taking off from the Black Sea resort of Sochi. There were 92 people on board the aircraft, including eight crew members and 84 passengers that lost their lives in the plane disaster. The plane was carrying members of the Alexandrov Ensemble, including conductor Valery Khalilov, charity activist Elizaveta Glinka as well as nine Russian reporters.