Russians join street choirs to sing away sorrows — or show dissent

When 20-year-old Muscovite Artyom Allabut stumbled upon videos of Russian street choirs, he was moved and decided to join one, finding a sense of unity and escape. In a country where public gatherings are strictly controlled and dissenting voices are suppressed, street choirs have been emerging nationwide. Some are openly political, but others are apolitical havens for people to come together and sing.

Artyom, a medical student, told AFP that the choirs provide a rare place to unwind and forget life's anxieties. In August, nearly half of Russians living in big cities reported depression, and 36 percent said they experienced acute anxiety, according to a survey by the Russian Academy of Sciences. Street choirs have sprouted in around a dozen cities this summer, from Saint Petersburg to Omsk in Siberia.

While some view them as a form of therapy, others see them as a covert way to express criticism. Ekaterina Mitrofanova, founder of "Choir for the Whole Courtyard" in Saint Petersburg, says that people need each other and that singing together provides a sense of liberation. In a busy courtyard in Moscow, hundreds of people gathered for a recent performance, singing with joy and camaraderie.

Some choirs have even become a subtle form of protest, performing works by banned composers. For Alexandra, a 24-year-old student, these choirs offer a much-needed sense of community, even as she faced detention for singing outside a court that had barred the anti-war Yabloko party from participating in parliamentary elections.