Sing to the Lord a New Song: Ukrainian Sacred and Liturgical Music

Conductor and artistic director: Maria Dytyniak 
Assistant conductor: Gloria Zaharia
Acompanists: Victoria Kowalchuk and Irena Tarnawsky
Recording engineer: Garth Hobden, Arktos Recordings
Graphic design: Michael Burrows, Off-World Productions
Booklet text: Olesia Talphash
Recorded at St. George’s Ukrainian Catholic Church in Edmonton, Alberta
on June 18, June 25 and November 26, 2001

Special thanks to: Irena Tarnawsky, Eugene Topolnisky, St. George’s Ukrainian Catholic Parish, Ukraine Millenium Foundation National Executive.&

Playlist

  1. Bless the Lord, O My Soul – Kyrylo Stetsenko (1882-1922)
  2. Sing to the Lord a New Song – Dmytro Bortniansky (1751-1825)
  3. The Light of Thy Countenance, O Lord, is Signed upon Us – Maksym Berezovsky (1745-1777)
  4. The Miracle of Pochaiv Monastery – Mykola Leontovych (1877-1921)
  5. Hymn of the Cherubim – Valerii Kikta (1941- )
  6. The Lord’s Prayer – Mykola Leontovych (1877-1921)
  7. Through Wide Fields and Oceans Deep – Porphyr Demucky (1860-1927)
  8. Prayer of the Thrice-Holy Hymn – Lesia Dychko (1939- )
  9. Salvation – From the collection of Rt. Rev. Archpriest S. Kindzeriavy-Pastuchiv (1923- )
  10. The Birth-Giver of God, Who is Constant in Supplications – Mykola Lysenko (1842-1912)

Choir Members

Sopranos: Alice Chumer, Larysa Eliuk, Markiana Eliuk, Oksana Ensslen, Irena Federkewych, Gloria Franchuk, Donna Holowaychuk, Cathy Kowalski, Leona Laddish, Theresa Lamb, Lesia Moroz, Nadia Opyr, Susan Romaniuk, Vivian Samoil, Olya Savaryn, Oksana Tarnawsky, Lilea Wolanska, Stella Yaskiw, Christine Zaharia, Gloria Zaharia.

Altos: Stephania Bayduza, Alexandra Cybulska, Luba Feduschak, Sylvia Gorchynski, Irena Hladki, Uliana Kanivets, Victoria Kowalchuk, Nadia Kreptul, Patrica Lesoway, Darcia Wasarab-Rolland, Florence Savitsky, Olesia Talpash.

Tenors: Stefan Melnychenko, George Orescan, Lubomyr Pastuszenko, Roman Petriw, Eugene Topolnisky, Taras Zakordonsky, John Zinchuk, Roman Konowalec.

Basses: Emilian Groch, Andrew Hladyshevsky, Victor Laurence, Ron Solowan, Andrew Tarnawsky, Roman Wasarab, Orest Yusypchuk, Dennis Yurkiwsky.

About Dnipro

The Dnipro Choir of Edmonton is dedicated to the promotion of Ukrainian Choral music. It was organized in 1953 by a group of choral enthusiasts as a male choir under the direction of the late Roman Soltykevych. In 1973, it was expanded into a mixed voice choir. Our present conductor and artistic director, Maria Dytyniak, took up the baton in 1976. The Assistant choirmaster, Orysia Olijnyk, and the pianist/accompanist, Irena Tarnawsky, have provided Ms. Dytyniak with able and valued assistance for more than a decade.

Dripro has played a dynamic role in bringing Ukrainian music to varied audiences, both at home and abroad. It has toured the Philippines (1979), Australia (1979), Hawaii (1979), Alberta (1971/79/80), Spokane, WA (1974/75), and Ottawa (1976/88). Dnipro has also visited Vernon, Kamloops, Calgary, North Battleford, Saskatoon, Winnipeg and performed in Toronto’s Roy Thompson Hall.

In 1978, the choir established a relationship with Maestro Wolodymyr Kolesnyk, past director, of the Ukrainian State Opera in Kyiv. This partnership with our director Maria Dytyniak, led Dnipro to undertake symphonic, operatic and oratorio performances. The first of these was a concert of symphonic music, with the Symphony Orchestra in 1978. This was followed by the staging of operas: “Kupalo” (1981) and “Zaporozhets Beyond the Danube” (1983); Cantata: “Conquerors of the Prairies” (1982) by Edmonton’s own composer S. Eremenko to the poem by Prof. Yar Slavutych. During 1988, as part of the Millennium of Christianity in Ukraine commemoration, Dnipro the oratorio “The Neophytes” by M. Kouzan to the poem by T. Shevchenko.

In 1993, as part of the celebrating our 40th Anniversary, Dnipro commissioned the oratorio “Sviatyj Dnipro” (Sacred Dnipro) by the Ukrainian composer V. Kikta that was presented in Edmonton with the Symphony Orchestra that same year. A repeat performance of this oratorio, in collaboration with the Ukrainian Operatic Choir of Toronto, was staged with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra at Massey Hall in April of 1996 as part of the 10th Anniversary Memorial of the Chernobyl disaster, under the baton of Maestro W. Kolesnyk.

Other works in the choir’s repertoire include Orff’s cantata Carmina Burana; excerpts from Boito’s opera Mefistofele; Bizet’s Carmen; Szymonowski’s ballet Harasie; and Profofiev’s cantatata, Alexander Newvsky.


External Links

Source: CD Cover