SOUNDS AND VIEWS

by Roman Sawycky

Symposium pays tribute to Wytwycky

A recent symposium at the Shevchenko Scientific Society in New York focused on the life and contributions of Dr. Wasyl Wytwycky (1905-1999), composer, conductor, educator, lecturer, editor and the most prominently productive musicologist of the Ukrainian diaspora.

Wytwycky's early research on Chopin's Ukrainian influence and his monographs on Vasyl Barvinsky, Mykhailo Hayvoronsky and Maksym Berezovsky are only a few examples of his noted firsts in Ukrainian musicology.

The March 31 symposium was conceived last fall and moderated by musicologist and attorney Dr. Andrij Szul, who spoke of Wytwycky's musicology as an upholder of culture. A guest speaker from Kolomyia, Wytwycky's birthplace, violinist and teacher Liubomyr Lekhnyk, reviewed Wytwycky's published memoirs of 1989 as an important source of 20th century music history. Mr. Lekhnyk came to this country to study Wytwycky's writings and music preserved at the family archives in New Jersey, as well as by friends and associates.

Dr. Ihor Pasichnyk, rector of the University of Ostroh Academy in Ukraine, extended greetings to the assembly. Arriving by fax was a statement of solidarity with the symposium proceedings, penned by Dr. Yuri Yasynovsky, head the musicology department at Lviv's Music Academy, and signed by other prominent musicians of that academy and members of Lviv's Shevchenko Scientific Society.

More personal remarks came from Dr. Bohdan Vitvitsky, who characterized his father as generous and shared little-known but illuminating details in the life of his parents.

Recordings of Wytwycky's timeless instrumental music from the collection of this writer were played between speakers, as was Barvinsky's "Dumka" in a heart-felt rendition by the late pianist Daria Karanowycz. It should be noted this composer was especially close to both Wytwycky and Karanowycz.

Spanning East and West

Whereas, composer-patriarch Stanyslav Liudkevych is credited with spanning the 19th and the 20th centuries in the progress of Ukraine's classical music, Wytwycky bridged the gap between East and West through his writings and music.

The Wytwycky bridge, built with the power and drive of his intellect, extended from past traditions of Eastern Europe to contemporary Western ones, constituting a creative and organic synthesis of two distant worlds.

Wytwycky's years of study in Prague and Krakow provided strong early impressions that introduced him to the rest of Europe and helped develop his outlook and views as a composer, scholar and educator. Always an observant commentator, he pointed to devious Soviet policies, mixing politics with the arts in a pungent exposé "Music and Politics," published by the Paris-based Polish magazine Kultura. At the same time he steadfastly pioneered the idea of improved relations between the Ukrainian and Polish communities.

Perhaps singularly lucky in his creative longevity spanning the century, at 94 Wytwycky had outlived colleagues who left life's stage much earlier: Barvinsky at age 75, Zenowij Lysko at 74, Antin Rudnytsky at 73, Roman Sawycky Sr. and Nestor Nyzhankivsky, respectively, at a mere 52 and 48. And Wytwycky's good fortune extended into his legacy, which survived almost intact, while a vital part of the music, writings and letters by others was lost in the winds of war.

On a personal note

My association with Wasyl Wytwycky started in 1960 with correspondence, after the demise of my father, pianist and educator Roman Sawycky Sr. His own relationship with the musicologist was a long and fruitful one. Wytwycky lived in Detroit and was instrumental in many musical successes due to his own leadership and the backing of the City Councilwoamn and Acting Mayor Mary Beck. Always a dependable letter-writer, Wytwycky helped me often as consultant on matters of the day. He generously gave moral support and expertise; I welcomed his wise council and guidance.

After the passing of Lysko (1969) and Rudnytsky (1975), Wytwycky remained almost alone as a guardian of music in the original Ukrainian version of Volodymyr Kubijovyc's "Entsyklopediia Ukrainoznavstva." He complimented me by suggesting I check the finished entries before they went to print; gradually I also started to contribute to "EU" on subjects he deemed important as references.

It proved to be extremely interesting work, but it was also a grueling task of precision. Despite health problems, Wytwycky kept on course, devoting himself fully to the cause. Between 1984 and 1993 the updated English version of the "Encyclopedia of Ukraine" was released in five large volumes. Many of its articles could not have been finished without Wytwycky's skills applied full time.

At some point in our busy correspondence, he suggested we dispense with titles and suddenly Dr. Wytwycky, the diaspora's greatest musicologist, became for me simply "Pan Vasyl." It was a special gesture made in the American spirit in lieu of the more formal associations, once customary between Ukrainian musicians. It drew us even closer together.

In summary, Wytwycky sought better ways of doing things; he advanced with the times, but did not sever his ties to the past. His agile intellect embraced a healthy kind of revisionism intent on building bridges from the past to modern times and towards a better tomorrow.

Wasyl Wytwycky strove for full independence for Ukraine's culture, which would serve as an international passport for the nation. His was a mind to prize, to remember and emulate.

(Note: see also this column's "Musician for All Seasons," February 20, 2000.)

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, July 22, 2001, No. 29, Vol. LXIX

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