38^th Ukrainian Music Festival Features Mykola Fomenko

By John Pidkowich

The 38^th Ukrainian Music Festival was held December 5^th, 6^th and 7^th, 2008, at the attractive and spacious  premises of the Ukrainian National Federation Community Centre, 145 Evans Ave. in Toronto. This year’s Festival was dedicated to the 20^th Century Ukrainian composer Mykola Fomenko.

Marta Krawciw Barabash founded the Festival in 1970. After Mrs. Barabash’s death in 2002, the Festival remains vibrant and successful due to dedicated hardworking executive and committee members. The Festival Executive is headed by co-presidents Marta Chomyn and Irena Patten. Myron Barabash is Honorary President.

The aim of the Festival is to promote the music of Ukrainian composers for piano, violin, bandura, voice, guitar, violin and violoncello. The 2008 Festival had over 200 children (aged five and up) and teenagers in competition performing primarily solo and some duet pieces. Participants were both of Ukrainian heritage and of non-Ukrainian background.

The jury of adjudicators was comprised of Ireneus Zuk, Luba Zuk, Kvitka Zorych-Kondracki, Adrianna Radelicki and Zenoby Lawryshyn.

The UMF Final Concert was held on December 7 and was hosted by Zorianna Kilyk, a young festival participant. Special Guest Oksana Bryzhun-Sokolyk shared her memories and presented a short biography of Mykola Fomenko (1894 – 1961). Born in Rostov –on-Don, Fomenko graduated from the Kharkiv Conservatory of Music in 1929, specializing in piano, composition and conducting, He and his wife, opera singer Isabella Orlovska, immigrated to the United States and settled in New York City where he taught music. Whilst Soviet authorities were purging references to him back in the USSR, Fomenko’s compositions gained popularity in his new homeland. Mykola Fomenko’s music to Volodymyr’s Sosiuras poem “Love Ukraine” has gained international recognition.

Awards and scholarships totalling $4,000 were presented to festival winners according to competition category – by instrument (or vocal). Winning finalists performed their festival entry pieces in the Final Concert.  All 30 final concert participants received monetary awards. Buduchnist Credit Union, the Prometheus Foundation and the Ukrainian Credit Union provided very generous financial support.

Piano scholarships in memory of Marta Krawciw Barabash were given to Anastasia Rizikov, Aaron  Lau and Olga Vilkova. A violin scholarship from the Dr. Peter and Mary Pidkowich Fund was given to Marta Skira. The bandura scholarship was awarded to Borys Ivan Ostapienko.

“Zhajvir” Children’s Choir with Marta Skira on violin, under the direction of Olesya Konyk and piano accompaniment by Oksana Skira, as well as, St. Sophia School Choir under the direction of O. Iakovleva and piano accompaniment by Tania Kraw received vocal scholarships. Both choirs performed works by Mykola Fomenko. “Zhajvir” sang “Mother of God” and “In Winter” (words by I. Savytska) and St. Sophia sang “Autumn Song” and “Prayer to the Patriotic Land” (arranged by T. Kraw).

Work on the 39^th Ukrainian Music Festival has already begun, to be held December 4^th, 5^th and 6^th, 2009, at the UNF Community Centre in Toronto.