December 26, 2014

New York’s Dumka performs in Boston

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Vsevolod Petriv

Dumka performs in Boston at Christ the King Ukrainian Catholic Church.

BOSTON – The famed Dumka Chorus of New York paid its first visit to Boston in its 65-year history and gave a concert of Christmas carols in Christ the King Ukrainian Catholic Church on Sunday, December 21, following a pontifical divine liturgy celebrated by Bishop Paul Chomnycky of the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Stamford, Conn., and concelebrated by the church’s pastor, the Rev. Dr. Yaroslav Nalysnyk.

The hour-long concert featured 44 members of the chorus, under the baton of director Vasyl Hrechynsky, who made the four-hour trip from New York City that morning. They were accompanied on keyboard by Larissa Gutnikiewicz and a string quartet of local musicians (Oksana Gorokhovsky, first violin; Eve Boltax, second violin; Andrew Wald, viola; and Natalie Helm, cello).

The Rev. Nalysnyk briefly welcomed the ensemble and then chorus president Paul Liteplo gave brief remarks introducing the program, which included a number of the most representative traditional Ukrainian carols including “Boh Predvichnyi” (God Eternal), “Khrystos Narodyvsia” (Christ is Born), “Try Slavni Tsari” (Three Kings), “Schedryk” (Carol of the Bells) and “Ne Plach, Rakhyle” (Weep Not, Rachel), as well as a number of carols traditionally sung in the United States including “Silent Night,” which was sung in German, English and Ukrainian, and “The First Noel/Pachelbel’s Canon.”

The group concluded its performance with a rendition of Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus from the “Messiah” and received a prolonged standing ovation.

Father Nalysnyk then thanked everyone, including performers, the audience, Bishop Chomnycky and guests, including the Very Rev. Roman Tarnavsky, pastor of St. Andrew Ukrainian Orthodox Church, and intoned a “Mnohaya Lita,” which was immediately picked up by the chorus.

The concert attracted an audience of some 300 and was several months in the planning. It was coordinated by Christ the King’s choir director, Ihor Kowal; he was assisted by Vasyl Liteplo, whose father and brother are members of Dumka.

Dumka was founded in New York City in 1949 as a male chorus to preserve and cultivate the rich religious and secular musical heritage of Ukraine. In 1959 it became a mixed chorus. It has performed extensively in major cities throughout the United States and Canada and has toured Europe twice. In 1990 it visited Ukraine, performing to packed concert halls in Lviv, Kyiv and Poltava.

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