Performance of Fern Flower is a great present for me

Yevhen Stankovych is a hero of Ukraine, academician, head of the Composition Department at the National Music Academy of Ukraine. He enriched our culture with true masterpieces in many musical genres: opera, ballet, symphonic, choral, chamber, and instrumental music. Stankovych is also the author of music for a great number of films. In his early music works Stankovych appears as a composer of great dramatic talent. His refined technique of composing, elaborate polyphonic textures and meditative lyricism are similar to the Baroque style and the full-blooded post-romantic orchestration adds warmth and expression to music. Stankovych’s creative work is incredible in showing emotional freedom, perfect technical skill, and flexibility of form.

“This anniversary is sad because I want to be always young and the clock is ticking. For me it is a great present to hear the performance of Fern Flower,” confessed the composer at the First International Instrumental Competition in honor of Yevhen Stankovych. “I wrote this folk opera 30 years ago and only not that long ago it was performed as one piece.” On September 24 this piece of music was performed for the second time in the National Philharmonic Society by musicians of the National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Volodymyr Sirenko and accompanied by Hryhorii Veriovka Choir (led by Anatolii Avdiievsky).

Before the maestro’s anniversary celebration The Day asked his colleagues prominent figures of national culture to tell us about Stankovych as an artist and our contemporary.

“THIS PERSON SHAPES THE GLOBAL IMAGE OF UKRAINE”

Volodymyr LUKASHEV, artistic director of the National Philharmonic Society of Ukraine:

“I think you would agree with me that we always distinguish a certain country by its prominent figures of culture and art. For example, we know Italy primarily through art of Raphael, Sandro Botticelli, Michelangelo, Giuseppe Verdi, and Gioachino Rossini. After all, culture and art at the first place determine the place of the state in the civilized universe. I think that the name of Stankovych belongs to the constellation of the personalities that shape Ukraine’s global image. This is a unique, very generously gifted person who has managed to do so much for Ukrainian culture! Many of his brilliant works have become regular parts of the National Philharmonic repertoire. A few years ago we had a fantastically bright and extremely spectacular staging of his famous folk opera Fern Flower – quite a unique piece by genre, based exclusively on Ukrainian music folklore, written specifically for the Hryhorii Veriovka Academic Folk Choir and Nina Matviienko. On September 24 we will once again demonstrate the beauty of this amazing piece of music. Stankovych has always been able to surprise even the venerable musicians with his unique orchestral way of thinking. In each of his new works the orchestra as if got filled from the inside with some absolutely unique vibrations, always plays in unexpected timbre colors, as if feeding on naturally life-giving power of fertile land named Ukraine.

“In 2010 we included the concert with intriguing title Three S to the program of our season. The concert included the works of famous composers of our triad – Yevhen Stankovych, Myroslav Skoryk, and Valentyn Silvestrov. There is an interesting pattern: at first a talented person earns the support of the state but later in the process of creative growth of the artist the state earns high international status through such talented individuals. Actually, relying on such reputable names as Stankovych, Ukraine strengthens its status of a cultural and spiritually highly developed country. I am happy to live in the same time with Stankovych and that I can assist with performance of his music in National Philharmonic Society.

“It is always a great pleasure to talk to this unique man. He is a true artist and he is not concerned with any political issues, purely domestic problems, and triviality of nowadays fuss. He is focused on the main theme of his life – creation of music. I honor and praise him in this! And I am proud of the fact that I live in the era of Stankovych.”

“SECRET OF HIS SUCCESS IS THAT HE IS DEEPLY ROOTED INTO HIS NATIVE LAND”

Marianna KOPYTSIA-KARABYTS, art critic, Professor at National Music Academy of Ukraine:

“Ivan Karabyts and I have been fortunate that our lives have closely intertwined with the life of Stankovych. I remember when while still being a student he would come to the 33rd class of his teacher and mentor Borys Liatoshynsky. I recall the bright pages of professional growth of young composers. I remember how Petro Suk (father of the famous pianist Mykola Suk, then director of the House of Composers) tried in every way to promote the prestige of Ukrainian music and arranged solo concerts of young authors. One of such concerts took place at the time when my first publication came out of print. At that time it was common to publish comments and reviews on musical and philharmonic events that took place in Kyiv. I was still a young musicologist then and got a task to write about the premier of the Symphony No. 3 by Stankovych I Reaffirm. I was lucky to attend the rehearsal of the orchestra led by our renowned conductor Stefan Turchak. I will never forget the phrase he pathetically proclaimed right after the prelude – low bass sound of strings: ‘No way! What did you just play? Give me a chord that will make the Earth tremble!’ This is how the conductor felt the powerful energetic impulse already in the prelude of Stankovych’s piece. In fact, this symphony has revealed to me all the strength and depth of this composer’s talent. Right away it became obvious that we were witnessing the growth of a great artistic personality, conscious and worthy follower of his teacher.

“Stankovych passed several stages of formation of his composing style and eventually declared himself as a composer of dramatic and conflict symphony. Later, his music gains meditation notes and its philosophical line gradually becomes deeper and deeper. Fate was always favorable to Stankovych and ensured his successful development: his music was always readily performed and received rave reviews from critics and audience, just like his public work at the position of the Chairman of the Union of Composers or the head of the jury of the music competition this year. At the same time I know Stankovych as a very sympathetic and tolerant person. He had never suffered from superiority complex and always remained a friendly and kind spirit even when working on high positions. I think that the secret of the success of Stankovych is that he is deeply rooted into his native land where he was born. Stankovych was born in Svaliava (Transcarpathia). People of this beautiful region, where authorities changed very often and different ethnical cultures interacted a lot, despite the difficult history, formed a unique tolerance towards each other. Kindness is the basis of their lives. This quality was also characteristic of Stankovych. He is a man with fine sense of humor, very friendly, open-minded, always ready to help at any difficult moment of life. I remember when Ivan Karabyts got very sick I got the first call from Yevhen and Tamara Stankovych. They just came back from Canada and were ready to get the necessary medicine that was hard to find here at that time. Stankovych is a great person and a great artist!”

“CONSTANT PRESSURE OF WORK DID NOT TURN THE COMPOSER INTO A HERMIT”

Leonid HRABOVSKY, composer, honorary member of the Academy of Arts of Ukraine (United States):

“There are names in the history of world’s music ‘filled’ with inspiration, who have left behind a huge musical legacy: Johann Sebastian Bach (over 1,000 pieces of music), Franz Schubert (over 900 music pieces), Karlheinz Stockhausen, Darius Milhaud (nearly 500 pieces), a composer from the Crimea Alemdar Karamanov, and others. A lot depends here on the inborn energy level of an artist. I think that Stankovych belongs to such type of people. Insatiable desire for composing, aided by his natural strong physical structure and excellent genetics, is the main feature of his personal character. Fortunately, Stankovych also has rich spontaneous musical imagination. While many composers spend years on final formation of their own style, with him it all happened very quickly and as if all by itself. After a youthful and promising Cello Sonata, which he wrote in his student years, he very soon composed such bright and emotionally generous pieces as Sinfonia Larga, Sinfonia Lirica, String Quartet No. 1, and classically perfect triptych for violin and piano In the Highland, which was immediately included by Oleh Krysa to his repertoire. Since that time productiveness of Stankovych has never decreased a bit – he wrote symphony by symphony, a concert after concert, ballets, and music for numerous films. Few among Ukrainian composers can take pride in such continuous flow of large-scale music pieces – dozens of fundamental scores of big format, which always instantly found their performers and received the deserved recognition of the audience. However the constant pressure of work did not turn the composer into a hermit. He remains a friendly, sociable person, he is always warm-hearted, open for humor and jokes, but does not seem to like lengthy and in-depth discussions: the artist is at all times ready to go back to his chosen ‘hard labor,’ to his favorite gallery – his desk. My congratulations to you our ‘convict’ on your venerable anniversary! Many more happy years ahead for you!”

The Day joins all the kind greetings and sincere wishes expressed to the famous hero of The Day: We wish you health, inspiration, and implementation of all your creative projects and ideas!