The Dumka Choir’s International Summer
Immediately after coming back to Kyiv from a foreign tour, our famous collective, the Dumka Cappella, went to the Ukraine Palace to rehearse for the Independence Day gala concert in which they eventually took part.
According to the Dumka artistic director, Yevhen Savchuk, this summer was rich for them in various ways. The performers took part in many cultural actions and made a large number of tours. In August, they participated in two festivals in Switzerland and also performed in Normandy. Dumka prepared two programs for those foreign tours: Antonio Vivaldi’s Gloria and Johann Sebastian Bach’s St. Matthew Passion.
Our choristers performed together with musicians of the Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra and the National Cappella of Latvia. Vocal numbers were sung by the following soloists from France: Patrick Garaiyt (tenor), Marie-Noell (soprano), Brigitte Vinson (mezzo soprano), and Alain Wostyn (bass), with Saulius Sondeckis conducting. Moreover, this new international collective debuted at the Neen rock festival during the soiree of classical music. The concert drew a 20,000-strong audience. There was shortage of seats, so many of those who wished to hear the performance had to sit right on the grass. Neen can be called a festival affair. To get there, one must pay a $100 admission fee and get hold of the festival currency. Amusements, bars, and bistros work round-the-clock. At this factory of entertainment, every guest can listen to the music catering to any taste. Then Dumka, together with their new friends, went to Sion for the Tibor Varga festival. That place, among picturesque mountains, was also brimming with festival life. The musical fiesta lasts until September.
In France, the cappella gave three concerts in cities of Normandy. During this tour, the international team was joined by musicians of the Yekaterinburg Chamber Orchestra conducted by Yevgeny Savchuk. At the Des Abbayes festival of classical music, they performed on an unusual stage among the ruins of an old abbey. The artists were pleasantly surprised by the wonderful acoustics of that place. According to Mr. Savchuk, they decided, after that festival tour, to ask the French cultural center to help them invite the French soloists to Kyiv, so that Ukrainians could also see the program.
