37th Ukrainian
Music Festival – UMF
By John Pidkowich
The 37th Ukrainian Music Festival was held November 30,
December 1st and 2nd , 2007,at the elegant premises of
the Ukrainian National Federation Community Centre, 145 Evans Ave. in Toronto.
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 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, violoncello and
violin. The 2007 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 Tetiana
Tkachenko, Zenoby Lawryshyn, Ireneus Zuk, Oleh Machlay and Kvitka
Zorych-Kondracki. Every year, recognition is paid to various Ukrainian
composers.
The first half of this year’s Final Concert was
dedicated to the victims of the Holodomor Famine Genocide in
The Concert’s second half was a tribute to the
late Marta Barabash and her published music and works on Ukrainian music. To
the delight of a well-attended concert audience, about 40 young entrants,
winners of their class by instrument and age, performed their pieces. Hosted by
Zorianna Kilyk, a young festival participant, awards and scholarships were
presented to winners according to competition category. Piano scholarships in memory of Marta Krawciw
Barabash from the Barabash Family were given to Anastasia Rizikov, Daniel
Crosner and Julia Robinson, and Larissa Stech and Aleksandra Wasylyk – Piano
Duet. A violin scholarship from the Dr. Peter and Mary Pidkowich Fund was given
to Marta Skira. From the Stefa Fedchuk Fund, a voice scholarship was given to
Oleksandra Chaplyhina and a cello scholarship went to Oleksandra Bileychuk.
Sofia Godula and Oles Kolach received each a bandura scholarship from the Roman
Zazula Fund. The “Zajvir” Children’s Choir under the direction of Olesya Konyk
and piano accompaniment by Oksana Skiras as well as “Prolisok” and the St.
Sophia choirs received scholarships in memory of Marta Krawciw Barabash. All
participants in the Final Concert received a monetary award from the Ukrainian
Credit Union.
Work on the 38th Ukrainian Music
Festival is well on the way, to be held December 5-7, 2008, at the UNF
Community Centre in
Kiwanis “Key Notes” on Music Festival Season
The Toronto Kiwanis Music Festival takes place in February and our
children and teenagers from the Ukrainian Canadian community participate and
compete in the Festival’s classes for Piano, Speech Arts and Drama, Strings,
Voice, Woodwinds and Brass, Orchestras, Bands and Choirs. Under the Strings-Guitar
category, a Bandura Class competition will be held at 5 pm. on Thursday,
February 28, 2008, at