Bravo, Kyivites!

The National Symphony Orchestra headed by the conductor Mykola Diadiura has toured France, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein. At the 2009 International Music Festival in La Chaise Dieu, the Kyivites performed Symphony No. 8 (Symphony of a Thousand) by Gustav Mahler and Requiem by Giuseppe Verdi. Their colleagues — the choir Dumka, the Great Children’s Chorus of the National Radio Company and the National Opera soloists — came to perform the Symphony of a Thousand.

The final concert in Geneva was attended by nearly 100 diplomats and UN representatives. In the ancient Victoria Hall known for its unique acoustics, the Ukrainian musicians performed a suite from the ballet Vikings by Yevhen Stankovych, Symphony No. 2 by Sergei Rachmaninoff, and Piano Concerto No. 2 by Sergey Prokofiev with the solo performed by pianist Ihor Chetuiev.

Our orchestra’s performances were accompanied by accolades in the mass media and rapturous welcome of the audiences. For example, a French newspaper published an article entitled “Veni Vidi Verdi.” The princess of Liechtenstein came to a concert and later said in a private talk with the musicians that it was the first time that such a high-level concert took place in her country. She invited them to come again and promised to bring her entire family to the next concert.

Our musicians also met a wonderful personality, Baron Eduard von Falz-Fein, a public figure and a patron. He has dedicated his life to reviving of the cultural heritage of many countries, including his homeland, Ukraine. (He was born in the village of Havrylivka, Kherson gubernia.). At the age of 97 he is full of energy and creative plans. Falz-Fein invited the members of the orchestra to visit his villa called Askania Nova, where they visited for several hours, and expressed his interest in strengthening of relations between our countries.

It is a joy that Europeans come to know Ukraine via arts and culture, and the merit for this goes, to a large extent, to Ukrainian musicians, who worthily present our country abroad.