Like all life in Ukraine during the war, musical life, of course, changed dramatically. But music (we are talking first of all about academic music) now not only continues to function actively, but also expands all its possibilities and influences as much as possible. She has become an important part of spiritual resistance to aggression and evil, a symbol of hope and faith in the victory of good, emotional, moral and psychological support, a means of uniting people.
New extremely bright works appeared as a reaction response of composers to tragic events. I will name only a few of them – the symphonic and choral opus «Ukraine. Music of War» and «Psalms of War» by Yevhen Stankovych, «Bucha. Lacrimosa» by Victoria Poleva, the choral cycle «Tears» and “Prayer for Ukraine” by Valentin Sylvestrov, «Lacrimosa» by Oleksandr Shchetynskyi, «City of Mary» (dedicated to Mariupol) by Zoltan Almasha, «Shine by the black sun» (Donbass, 2022) by Yevhena Petrichenko, « War Psalms» chamber compositions «Drop after drop» (to the heroes of Ukraine) by Maksym Shalygin, «Reading History» by Carmella Tsepkolenko, and the opera «Terrible Revenge» (based on Gogol) by Yevhen Stankovych and many others. These and other works are heard not only in Ukraine.
During the war, the disposition of Ukrainian musical culture in the world changed dramatically. The attention of the world community to the war in Ukraine aroused interest both in the country itself and in its history and culture. In this sense music, thanks to its communicative capabilities found itself in the center of attention. Well-known art agencies began to actively involve Ukrainian soloists and orchestras in the musical life of their countries. From recent examples there is the very successful tours of the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine in Great Britain: IMG Artists organized 17 concerts in the cities of England, Scotland, and Wales. Among the classics of European music, the works of Ukrainian composers were played in these concerts, which literally became a discovery for the listeners.
Composers in the crosshairs of our attention