March on a Russian Hymnsong

Larry Brownlee, Director of Bands, in Sterling, Kansas, asked me to write a work based on the hymntune attributed to Russian composer, Alexis F. Lvov. This hymn has been used by the students and faculty of Sterling High School as the musical basis of their alma mater. Although the tune does appear in a number of hymnbooks, usually associated with words by Henry Chorley and John Ellerton, and under various titles, its background and the biography of the composer are unknown.