Volume 24 Issue 2 - October 2018

75th Holodomor anniversaries, respectively. As Kondracki and
Komorowsky share: “It is important to keep the memory of this event
alive so that future generations learn about it and understand what
can happen under the rule of tyranny and media censorship.”
(Compare the frightening reality of our current world in the genocide
of Yazidis, the ethnic cleansing of the Rohingyas, and the
targeting of women and children by Boko Haram in Nigeria. Many of
the horrors we wish would stay in the past continue forward into our
present and future.)
Of the Holodomor, Kuryliw notes that for Ukrainians who survived,
“No one was allowed to mourn for these people. It was forbidden to
mention the famine in Soviet Ukraine for generations. The memory of
it was erased from history under the Communists.” As Kuryliw notes,
Ukrainians are particularly sensitive to the annexation of Crimea,
properly Ukrainian territory, by Russia. For those still in the Ukraine
and for the diaspora, remembering events like the Holodomor is “a
testimony of the resilience to survive despite starvation, deportations
and executions – all attempts to destroy [us].”
Music has been a way to keep many of those traditions alive. “Music
is an integral part of Ukrainian culture and, in particular, a strong
choral tradition,” say Kondracki and Komorosky. “From the very
beginning when Ukrainian pioneers came to Canada, they organized
in order to keep their cultural traditions alive in the diaspora. In
almost every Ukrainian-Canadian community throughout Canada you
will find choirs, bands, orchestras and dance groups. The Ukrainian
community in and around the GTA has long been a strong bastion of
Ukrainian culture with its many community and church choirs.”
It is no accident that Vesnivka is celebrating its 53rd year of
music making.
For this commemoration, Kondracki has programmed an entirely
Ukrainian concert. Many Ukrainian composers have written works
to commemorate the Holodomor. Evhen Stankovych’s Requiem will
be performed as well as Hanna Havryletz’s My God, why have You
abandoned me? The late Ukrainian-Canadian composer Zenoby
Lawryshyn’s Tryptych: In Memoriam to the Victims of Holodomor
will also be performed. Lawryshyn was a dear friend of the choir and
created many works for Vesnivka over the years. And treasured local
Ukrainian-Canadian composer Larysa Kuzmenko’s Voice of Hope
will be performed with soprano solo by Antonina Ermolenko accompanied
by the Gryphon Trio.
Recognizing the Slavic Orthodoxy is inseparable from the 7477
Ukrainian-Canadian experience. Sacred music composer Roman
Hurko is of Ukrainian Canadian descent. Educated at the University
of Toronto and Yale University, his speciality has been composing for
the Byzantine Rite, still the major form used by Slavic Orthodoxy.
The historical rootedness of his composing was brought forth in his
major work Requiem/Panachyda, written to commemorate another
Ukrainian historical moment – the nuclear disaster at Chernobyl. The
choirs will sing Eternal Memory, an excerpt from the Requiem.
This commemorative concert fits into the musical tradition of the
community who have long marked important moments with music.
“In addition to previous concerts commemorating Holodomor,”
Kondracki and Komorosky write, “Vesnivka Choir has spearheaded or
taken part in four concerts commemorating the Chernobyl disaster.
Following the Chernobyl disaster in Ukraine in 1986, many Ukrainian
musicians in Canada and abroad wrote music, including requiems,
commemorating this event. Other commemorative concerts have
included remembering the Ukrainian Army of WWI, the arrival of
Ukrainian pioneers in Canada, the 100th anniversary of Ukraine’s
independence in 1918, and several concerts in tribute to various
Ukrainian composers and literary figures.”
The church continues to be an important part of the Ukrainian-
Canadian tradition and Vesnivka continues that work. And never
far form their work is the Orthodox Rite. At their religious home of
St Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Church, Vesnivka bring forth all the
history and memory of what it means to be Ukrainian and Canadian.
On October 21, 2018, Vesnivka will join other dignitaries and
guests at the unveiling of the Toronto memorial to the victims
of the Holodomor. Led by the Toronto Ukrainian Association,
the new memorial will stand just north of the Princess Gates to
Exhibition Place.
October 28, 5pm. Vesnivka and the Toronto Ukrainian Male
Chamber Choir present “Commemorating Holodomor.” With special
guests the Elmer Iseler Singers, the Gryphon Trio and soprano
Antonina Ermolenko. Runnymede United Church, Toronto.
CHORAL SCENE QUICK PICKS
!!
OCT 10, 7:30PM: Chorus Niagara presents Brahms’ great work: Ein Deutsches
Requiem (A German Requiem). With the Avanti Orchestra and soloists. Chorus
Niagara, under Bob Cooper, is a fantastic ensemble bringing fine choral music to the
Niagara region. FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre, St Catharines.
!!
OCT 27, 7:30PM: The Orpheus Choir of Toronto performs the music to the 1924
silent film Peter Pan. This is a new film undertaking for the choir and will prove to be
an exciting addition to the oft-performed Phantom of the Opera. Eglinton St. Georges
United Church.
!!
NOV 4, 4PM: The Amadeus Choir presents “The Great War: A Commemoration.”
Featuring Gabriel Faure’s Requiem and joined by guests, the Eglinton St. George’s
Choir and soloists. This is an earlier option for those looking to catch commemorations
for Remembrance Day. Eglinton St .George’s United Church.
Follow Brian on Twitter @bfchang Send info/media/
tips to choralscene@thewholenote.com.
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“Clap your hands if you believe!”
Join us as we take flight to Neverland! Voices soar alongside flying
children, fairies and mystical ships as Orpheus provides its own live choral soundtrack
to the 1924 classic film fantasy Peter Pan. Organ improvisations heighten the
swash-buckling suspense, while creating a roaring twenties movie-house atmosphere.
Get set for adventure as we kick off our 55th season with faith, trust, and pixie dust.
October 27, 2018 | 7:30pm
Eglinton St. George’s United Church | 35 Lytton Blvd
Adult: $45 / Senior: $35 / Under30: $20 / Family: $100 www.orpheuschoirtoronto.com 416-530-4428
The Jackman Foundation
30 | October 2018 thewholenote.com