Media coverage

 

 

Over this period the choir, which is well-known in many countries and is a four-time Grand-Prix winner at prestigious European choral contests, will conduct an all-Ukrainian tour. The tour began in Luhansk, after which the choir took part in first all-Ukrainian choral council on Sacred Mountains, and on Sunday, the "Kyiv" Chamber Choir will perform in the Prokofiev Concert Hall of the oblast philharmonia.

 

A few years ago the choir sang in Donetsk and won over choral music connoisseurs with its professionalism, harmonic perfection, and the wonderful voices of its singers. And this time the Kyivites remained true to themselves, again affirming their artistic perfection. Only twenty singers were on the stage, yet it seemed that a massive multi-voiced choir was singing, one that knows how to add unique timbral coloring to each musical work.

 

 

That day (Friday the 13^th ) despite all superstitions twenty light voices charmed concert audience by presenting masterpieces of choral singing - Ukrainian baroque, ancient liturgical, and examples of classical and modern music. The concert reached its climax when the audience stood to sing together with the choir "Many Happy Years". The audience gave the choir a standing ovation.

 

Mykola Hobdych: "Our mission in Ukraine is to acquaint local choirs with incredible music that earlier was inaccessible or considered lost. We want these masterpieces to be known not only in the capital city. Who knows, maybe Luhansk is where the young Stankovyches, Hobdyches are found.."

 

 

A magical and so rare concert in our modern computer age was held in Rivne that presented ancient liturgical and Ukrainian folk songs.  The masterful performance of folk genre immediately captured all listeners and alternately raised their captive feelings to the heavens and with unbelievable gentleness brought them back to earth. In a unique musical union of singers and listeners one could feel that eternal and ancient power of spirituality of the people cultivated by centuries of traditions.

 

 

The "Kyiv" Chamber Choir singers took command of the stage. Their concert programme this year was dedicated to Yevhen Stankovych's 60th anniversary.

 

The Lviv concert audience saluted choral singers - now folk-opera actors - with passionate applauds and rich autumn flowers for the wonderful event. Expressing his gratitude to the audience for its warm reception, Mykola Hobdych emphasized that this concert was one of 29 in the first all-Ukrainian tour of "Kyiv" Chamber Choir. The concert would be impossible without the support of foreign companies (that work in Ukraine) Bosch and Romyr.

 

 

The most notable event, without doubt is the concert of the Chamber Choirs "Kyiv" and "Cantus" presenting choral works of our famous compatriot Yevhen Stankovych, which will be held in the great hall of the oblast philharmonia.

 

 

Yesterday's concert by this excellent choir was held in the oblast philharmonia (for the second time; this time as a part of an all-Ukrainian tour). For many people this was not only a festive occasion and a pleasure in today's economic situation, but also hope for the revival of national culture and of a creative atmosphere in the city.

 

 

The all-Ukrainian tour is an intention of Mykola Hobdych, professional, enthusiast and exert on choral tradition and Artistic Director of the "Kyiv" Chamber Choir, to share his valuable riches not only with colleagues in the Capital City but also with enthusiasts of choral singing in the regions.

 

The programme of tour includes classical of the Ukrainian music by Mykola Dyletsky, Artemiy Vedel, Yevhen Stankovych, and also folk songs arranged by Yuri Alzhniev, Myroslaw Skoryk and others. 

 

 

Last Saturday the Municipal Chamber Choir "Kyiv" presented a concert in the Musical Drama theatre. Everything receded into the background from the moment the twenty well-dressed singers and their conductor Mykola Hobdych appeared on the stage.

 

The very manner of performance in which Mykola Hobdych incomprehensibly found a way to unite academic and folk traditions, turned the performance of each work into a small, perfect masterpiece: each with its own musical and theatrical staging.

 

 

The concert audience absorbed attentively and with inspiration the light, precisely decorative singing of  revived masterpieces of Ukrainian Baroque masters, ancient liturgical and choral folk music of the XX century. It is important that in addition to becoming acquainted with the outstanding music which earlier was inaccessible or considered as lost, those who wanted to also could acquire audio- and video recordings of the choir, and professionals, conductors and local music groups could obtain unique choral scores, which will promote the Ukrainian school of singing and national music of different years. 

 

 

Last weekend our region which is well-known for its singing traditions greeted the famous "Kyiv" Chamber Choir in a concert held at the Music College. Kirovohrad became the eighteenth city in a tour by the choir.

 

It is interesting that this choir, which has been awarded prestigious prizes at international festivals, was heard in Kirovohrad, as well as other Ukrainian cities, for the first time.  The voices, which have been heard in Carnegie-Hall in New-York, in Notre Dame in Paris and in other musical centers, belong to professional singers, graduates from conservatories and musical institutes in Ukraine. Although our audience may not be as capricious or as knowledgeable as those in the Capital or abroad, it greeted the artists with a standing ovation, with the hope of hearing more performances in the future.

 

 

Today, thanks to true professionals, patriots of our native culture we are returning again to the priceless treasures of our own spirituality left to us by our ancestors.

 

Mykola Hobdych: "I think the moment has arrived when eternity is returning to our hearts. Europe has essentially rid itself of mass Americanization. We have not been able to do this for many reasons. But today we are here and I am very grateful to the Culture and Arts Administration of the City of Kyiv and to our sponsors, the international corporations Robert Bosch and the Ukrainian PR agency Romyr & Associates."

 

 

Last Tuesday the "Kyiv" Chamber Choir performed on the stage of the oblast philharmonia. This was a significant event in the cultural life of the city and of Ukraine. The issue is that the choir is conducting the first all-Ukrainian tour, having initiated a major project directed at promoting the rebirth of Ukrainian choral music.

Throughout the past years, an enthusiast and expert on Ukrainian choral traditions, Honored Worker of Arts Mykola Hobdych (musical and artistic director, and conductor of the choir) has collected scores choral works. His collection includes national and foreign music of the Middle Ages, Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic and Modern periods, and ancient liturgical song.   

 

 

It was a complete switch. The choir sauntered out and the women, arms folded, began a sing-song dialogue with the men. The piece by contemporary composer Yuriy Alzhnev, moved from fairly abstract, wordless chanting through a classical chorale. Along the way, it picked up the comic dialogue an endless tale about a coat between two of the men, who ran off the stage chattering, only to return again with another endless dialogue towards the end of the piece.

 

The most unusual piece, called "The Reapers", was not really a song at all, but a dueling trio of men on scythes. Shaped like scimitars, the blades made the lively trio look like dashing swordsmen. Here, unexpected talent vitality came out in some of the less-visible singers, especially Oleksandr Biloshapka, who would not have been out of place in an avant-garde jazz trio. The audience was in an uproar when it ended.

 

 

Everything happens in Kyiv, Lviv, Odesa and a couple of other cities - the rest of Ukraine has no idea of the riches of Ukrainian music. So the effort by Bosch and Romyr is truly admired.

 

In addition to the concerts, "Kyiv" is bringing scores which it published and CD's of what it performs to give away to local choral activities. The program will cover 5 centuries of Ukrainian spiritual music - Dyletsky, Vedel, Lysenko, Stankovych, Stepurko, Dychko in the first half and spectacular arrangements of folk music for which choir "Kyiv" is so well known and loved in the second.