#ClassicsaDay #UkrainianClassics Week 2
For several years, the Classics a Day team has made Soviet composers the theme for May. This, of course, was inspired by May Day. For many, though, the terms “Soviet” and “Russian” have become conflated. Many composers active in the Soviet Era were actually from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Estonia, Latvia — and Ukraine. This year the team chose to make Ukrainian classical music the theme for May.
The challenge is to post music from Ukrainian composers. Some were subjects of Imperial Russia. Others were citizens of the USSR. And some live in the independent nation of Ukraine.
In my research, I found two common threads running through the history of Ukrainian classical music. The first is that Ukrainian composers were proud of their heritage and expressed it through music. The second is that the Russian rulers, be they Czars or Commissars, continually sought to obliterate Ukrainian culture.
We celebrate what survives with this month’s theme. Here are my posts for the second week of #UkrainianClassics
5/9/22 Mykola Leontovych (1877–1921) – A scene from “The Water Nymphs’ Feast”
Leontovych, composer of “Carol of the Bells” wrote primarily choral music. His goal was to develop a national Ukrainian style. Leontovych was working on this opera when he was assassinated by a Chekist (Soviet state security) agent.
5/10/22 Vasyl Barvinsky (1888–1963) – Piano Concerto in F minor
Barvinsky was an internationally recognized composer when he was denounced by Soviet authorities in 1948. He was imprisoned for 10 years, and his music was suppressed. Most of his works are lost, destroyed by the NKVD. Fortunately, some were published outside the USSR.
5/11/22 Sebastian z Felsztyna (1480/1490?–after 1543) – Felix es Sacra Virgo
Sebastian is often credited as a Polish composer. He was born in Felsztyn (modern-day Skelivka, in Ukraine). He studied in Krakow, then went to Felsztyn as a chaplain. Only three of his motets survive.
5/12/22 Marcin Leopolita (1537–1584) – Missa paschalis
Leopolita was born in Lviv and served at the court of Zygmunt August, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania. His Missa Paschalis is the only mass from 16th Century Poland to survive.
5/13/22 Dmytri Bortnyansky (1751–1825) – Sinfonia concertante in B-flat major
Bortniansky spent 10 years in Venice, studying and composing. He returned to join the court of Catherine the Great. He’s known primarily for his sacred choral works, which demonstrate mastery of polyphony.
