The flag of Ukraine (blocked blue on top and yellow on bottom) waving in the wind

Music by Ukrainian Women Composers

We at WSF have been thinking about how best to acknowledge the horrific events of the past two weeks. Here we present eight works by eight Ukrainian women composers, performed by seven different ensembles, many of them led by women. There are other works available on line by all of these composers, and there are many other Ukrainian women composers.

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Iryna Aleksiychuk (b. 1967)

“Gloria Patri,” performed by the Female Choir of Kyiv at the European Grand Prix Association for Choral Singing, 46th Tolosa Choral Contest 2014, Basque Country, Spain.

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Stefania Turkewich (1898-1977)

“Sweet and Low,” performed by Krisztina Szabó (mezzo-soprano) and Albert Krywolt (piano).

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Hanna Havrylets (d. 27 Feb. 2022)

Zasvichu Svichu,” performed by the Female Choir of Kyiv at the European Grand Prix Association for Choral Singing, 46th Tolosa Choral Contest 2014, Basque Country, Spain.

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Victoria Poleva (b. 1962)

“No Man Is an Island,” chamber cantata on words by John Donne for Soprano, Piano and Strings (2006). Performed by Tamara Khodakova (soprano), The National Ensemble of Soloists “Kyivska kamerata,” conductor Valeriy Matiukhin.

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Bohdana Frolyak (b. 1968)

Kyrie Eleison for mixed choir and strings, performed by “Dudaryk” Lviv State Academic Male Choir and the “INSO-Lviv” Symphony Orchestra, Conductor Oksana Lyniv, in the ruins of the Synagogue in Brody, Lviv Region. The concert, on 4 Aug. 2019, was dedicated to the memory of Joseph Roth.

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Lesia Dychko (b. 1939)

“Petrivochka” from the folk cantata “The Seasons,” performed by the ensemble “Making Waves at the Ohrid Choir Festival, Macedonia, 2013. Solo Olena Maksymova. Conductor Viktoriia Vitrenko.

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Ludmila Yurina (b. 1962)

Existenza” part 1 (2008) for electronics, dance and video, recorded on private Palmcorder.

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Julia Gomelskaya (1964-2016)

“Вийди, вийди, Іванку” (“Come, Come Ivanku”), Choir of the Odessa National A. V. Nezhdanova Academy of Music, Grand Prix winner of the VIII Mikola Leontovich Competition, Kyiv 2018.

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