Ukrainian music draws capacity crowd at Winspear Center in Edmonton (12/01/02)

Ukrainian music draws capacity crowd at Winspear Center in Edmonton

EDMONTON - A festive concert of primarily Ukrainian music was presented by the Ukrainian Male Chorus of Edmonton, under the direction of Orest Soltykevych, with Christine Chepyha, accompanist, on November 9 at the prestigious Winspear Center.

Featured at the concert, which drew a capacity audience of well over 1,000, were well-known special guests, the Montreal/Kingston piano duo of Luba and Ireneus Zuk, and Edmonton-born New York-based jazz pianist John Stetch. Andrew Hladyshevsky served as master of ceremonies. The rich and versatile program consisted of traditional and contemporary works by Ukrainian and Canadian composers, as well as some classics.

In the opening program the choir presented sacred works by Mykola Lysenko, Mykhailo Verbytskyi, Dmytro Bortnianskyi and Mykola Kolessa.

Subsequently, the Zuk piano duo performed "Ronde Villageoise" (1961, rev. 1986) by Clermont Pépin, "Andante cantabile" Op. 20 by Ihor Bilohrud, "Can-Can" (from Three Dances, 1955) by Myroslav Skoryk and the symphonic poem - "Mazeppa," in the composer's transcription for two pianos, by Franz Liszt. Ireneus Zuk introduced the works from the stage.

The second group of songs presented by the choir comprised works by Yuriy Shevchenko, Yevhan Kozak, Hryhorii Kytastyi, Anatol Kos-Anatolskyi and Anna Zwozdesky/Gene Zwozdesky/Willi Zwozdesky.

After the intermission the choir performed works by Yakiv Yatsynevych, Mykhailo Krechko, B. Laba, as well as Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata" in an arrangement by Liubov Zabashta.

This was followed by jazz pianist John Stetch, who announced his five selections, all his own compositions: a flirtatious song "Rye, Not Wheat"; a waltz, faintly reminiscent of the "Carol of the Bells" by Leontovych; "Sitting by the Window"; a ballad titled "Harmony in the Family"; "The Famine," dedicated to the victims of the 1932-1933 Great Famine in Ukraine; and "The Kolomeyka Fantasy."

The concert concluded with the final group of choral works by M. Bilan; Y. Kozak; Anatolii Pashkevych, Ivan Nedilskyi and Willi Zwozdesky.

The capacity audience warmly applauded and cheered members of the choir, the conductor, the accompanist, and the guest soloists who came on stage for the final bow. Maestro Soltykevych, Ms. Chepyha, Luba Zuk, Ireneus Zuk and Mr. Stetch were presented with bouquets of flowers.

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The Ukrainian Male Chorus of Edmonton was formed in 1984 with the objective of developing, promoting and fostering a greater appreciation for the traditions of Ukrainian choral singing.

The chorus has performed extensively throughout Alberta as well as in Saskatchewan and British Columbia, including Expo '86 in Vancouver. It has sung the national anthems at Oilers hockey games and at the Canadian Football League's all-star game when it was held in Edmonton.

The group participated in the opening ceremonies at Festival `88, which celebrated the Millennium of Christianity in Rus'-Ukraine and sang for the President of Ukraine during his 1994 Edmonton visit. In the summer of 1996 the male chorus represented Canada in the International Choral Festival in Missoula, Mont. The choir has also performed at Ukrainian festivals in Vegreville, Alberta, and in Dauphin, Manitoba.

This summer, the choir toured Poland and Ukraine. The first part of the tour was in northern Poland, performing for the Ukrainian community that has developed in the area as a result of forced resettlement by an act of the Polish government in 1947-1948. For the concerts the choir joined forces with the Zhuravli Ukrainian Men's Chorus of Poland. The choir then performed in Ukraine - in Lviv, Ternopil and in the native village of one of the choristers. The tour ended with a return to Poland for a performance at a festival in the Lemko region.

The Ukrainian Male Chorus of Edmonton produced a CD titled "The Old Sheepskin Coat" (1992) in commemoration of the centenary of Ukrainian settlement in Canada, and has just issued its new CD, comprising live performances throughout the past decade.

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Luba Zuk and her brother, Ireneus, perform both as solists and as a piano duo. The duo has appeared in concerts in North America and the Far East and has made several tours of Western Europe. Its recent tours in Ukraine included several return engagements at the International Music Festival in Kyiv.

The Zuk duo has consistently promoted music by Canadian and Ukrainian composers. They have given first performances of many of their works, and several prominent composers have written especially for them. The Ukrainian Canadian Congress awarded Luba Zuk, profesor at the School of Music at McGill University, the Shevchenko Medal in recognition of her research and performance activities in this field.

Ireneus Zuk, a graduate of McGill University and the Conservatoire de Musique de Québec, studied also at the Royal College of Music in London and the Juilliard School in New York, and holds a doctorate from the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University. He is director of the School of Music at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario.

Recently the government of Ukraine recognized the significant artistic achievement of the Zuk duo by awarding them a medal and the title "Merited Artist of Ukraine."

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Edmonton-born John Stetch started life as a professional musician while attending McGill University in Montreal, where he obtained his Bachelor of Music degree. He worked several years on the Montreal music scene, before moving to New York, where he worked with his own trio and quartet and as sideman with Rufus Reid. While in New York, Mr. Stetch had occasion to work with, among other, James Ulmer, Reggie Workman, Rashied Ali, Billy Hart, Mark Turner and Seamus Blake.

His seventh CD as leader, "Ukrainianism," is, in his words, his "most personal and challenging collection of pieces so far."

Two of Mr. Stetch's other CDs were nominated for Juno Awards, and he has earned second place in the Thelonius Monk Composer's Competition and first place in the Prix du Jazz du Maurier in 1998 at the Montreal International Jazz Festival.

He has performed solo at such prestigious venues as the Caramoor Jazz Festival in Katonah, N.Y., and the Esther Honens International Keyboard Festival in Calgary. Earlier, he frequently recorded for the CBC program Jazzbeat.

This fall Mr. Stetch was featured on the National Public Radio in the United States on Marion McPartland's "Piano Jazz."

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