SOUNDS AND VIEWS: Bandurists mark 50 years in North America (11/14/99)

SOUNDS AND VIEWS

by Roman Sawycky

Bandurists mark 50 years in North America

The Ukrainian Bandura Chorus marks 50 years of performing in North America this fall. Founded in Kyiv in 1918, it is - apart from the Dumka State Choir - the oldest Ukrainian ensemble. Under the direction of its long-standing conductor Hryhoriy Kytasty, the ensemble has been based in Detroit since half a century ago.

Today, Oleh Mahlay, a 30-year-old former student of Maestro Kytasty, is its artistic director and conductor. Like his mentor before him, Mr. Mahlay, the group's first American-born conductor, has worked for the preservation of the bandurist tradition, while taking the initiative of creating a vision for its future.

While it is based in North America, the chorus (known in Ukrainian as the "Kapelia Bandurystiv") has performed throughout the world. However, it was not until Ukraine was about to declare its independence that the ensemble was able to travel to Ukraine for a triumphant tour encompassing 14 major cities.

The bandura isn't just a musical instrument, it's a widely recognized symbol of freedom that literally served as an instrument for independence in 1991. The timing of the aforementioned tour may be said to have contributed to the resolve of much of Ukraine's population to come out in support of independence. During the tour the chorus was awarded the Taras Shevchenko State Award, the highest citation bestowed by Ukraine's government in recognition of its efforts to preserve and perpetuate the legacy of Ukrainian music.

Since 1996 the chorus has been revitalized. Computer-age communications, music and specialized bandura camps, as well as increased member involvement in core business matters have given the ensemble a needed boost. Artistically inspired by its new director - the youngest conductor the chorus has had in decades - members continue to join for a variety of reasons, yet foremost among them is a strong emotional attachment to the Ukrainian heritage and identity.

The chorus's discography goes back to mid-century phonography recordings; if found today, these would have the effect of H.G. Wells's time machine, transporting us back to a different era. The first phono-album was cut in America by RCA in Chicago in 1950.

We have come a long way since 78-speed discs. The chorus's 1991 concert tour, under the direction of Wolodymyr Kolesnyk, of the major cities in Ukraine, as well as special appearances in Crimea in 1994 were preserved in live recordings that appeared as a double-CD issue in 1995.

In the recording of the 1994 concert, the music was well rendered in stereo sound and any electronic or mechanical noise, almost inevitable on records of a generation ago, was eliminated in the Dolby digital recording.

Previously recorded in mono in 1958, the digital recording of Dmytro Bortniansky's "Cherubic Hymn," which features truly spectacular basses, brings out an extra measure of clarity. Featured soloists in the recording are R. Kasseraba, B. Kekish and M. Kostiuk.

Among other pieces on the recording is the exuberant and rousing battle song "Play, Bandura" by Ihor Shamo (text, Taras Shevchenko) and more lyrical works, including a Crimean Tatar song arranged by the contemporary Tatar composer Iliasa Bashysh. The latter selection provides an interesting and novel addition to the ensemble's repertoire.

Irving Berlin's classic "God Bless America" is a welcome piece that fits into the program as an expression of thanksgiving for the chorus's (and composer's) new home in the West. (While the liner notes claim Irving Berlin was born in Ukraine, the latest biographers trace his birthplace to Mohyliv on the Dnipro River in Belarus.)

Among other selections are works by Vasyl Yemetz, the chorus's founder and first director. Included is the song "Stubborn Crane," whose folk theme was masterfully incorporated by Peter Tchaikovsky into the latter's "Ukrainian Symphony."

Among composers included in this issue are Kyrylo Stetsenko and his rousing composition "Gathering Eagles" and B. Kudryk's stirring "Guelder-Rose" ("Chervona Kalyna") anthem. M. Hayvoronsky's "Yikhav Strilets" (A Freedom Fighter's Farewell), however, fares less well (this piece was subsequently scored to music by Lev Revutsky.) Featured soloists in this issue are I. Kushnir and P. Pysarenko. Finally, one would have expected a more solemn and majestic rendition of the Ukrainian national anthem, given that the disc was issued in the year of Ukraine's independence.

Overall, the strength of this double-CD lies in its celebration of Maestro Kytasty's skill with the bandura. Whether it be a happy love song or a lament of a hapless "chumak" (salt trader), Maestro Kytasty is able to conveny the full gamut of life - tracing both the tragic and sublime moments of a nation - through its song.

Many outstanding works by this former chorus director are available in the U.S. in state of-the-art recordings. (Maestro Kytasty's rendition of the song celebrating commander Yuriy Tiutiunnyk, with soloists R. Kassaraba and T. Pryshliak, so impressed WQXR's Robert Sherman of The New York Times "Listening Room" radio program, that he aired an earlier recording conducted by Maestro Kytasty himself.)

Another prominent bandurist and composer featured on the recording is Hnat Khotkevych, (whose works were banned in Soviet Ukraine, but have been revived since the 1960s), in chorus's performances under the direction of Ivan Zadorozhny and Maestro Kolesnyk. "The Slave Market at Kaffa," as conducted by Maestro Mahlay, is an evocation of a 16th century Kozak scene. Khotkevych's uncanny skill with program music included images with sound effects worthy of a major film studio. In the work "Storm on the Black Sea," the music conveys the sound of the swelling and surging waves. In the composer's conception the canvas broadens in scope until, employing a suitable augmentation of vocal and instrumental components and aided by the natural effect of stereo channel separation, he succeeds literally in producing a veritable sea of sound. Featured soloists are J. Cisaruk and T. Pryshliak.

As the recordings are of live concerts, they capture for posterity the truly exciting sound that comes to life in a performance.

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