On April 24, the second edition of the European Festival: Ukrainian Spring”.
The first concert event of the festival was preceded by a reception hosted by the German Embassy in Sweden. The opening was attended by representatives of the Swedish government and parliament, ambassadors of foreign countries, as well as cultural and public figures.
“It is a real honor to organize this reception today, and support for Ukraine is very close to our hearts. Every day we think about the terrible ordeal, when the nights are filled with air raids and attacks and many troubles and difficulties. At the Ukrainian Festival, we are talking about how best to support Ukraine in its struggle to define its own history and defend its sovereign state in peace and freedom,” said Joachim Berthele, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Germany to Sweden, at the opening ceremony.
The festival is organized under the coordination of the Ukrainian Institute in Sweden by a number of diplomatic and cultural institutions from different countries working in Stockholm, as well as with the support of the European Commission and the European Union Union National Institutes for Culture (EUNIC).
The concept of the festival is to present Ukraine as an integral part of the common European cultural heritage.
“All our efforts should be aimed at supporting Ukraine. Every cultural event should draw attention to the terrible crime that Russia continues to commit on Ukrainian soil. Music cannot stop the aggressor, but it can be a weapon, and we need to be reminded every day to get it: Ukraine not only exists and has a voice, Ukraine is an integral natural part of Europe,” said Natalia Pasichnyk, director of the Ukrainian Institute in Sweden, pianist.
At the opening concert, she and the Calmus vocal ensemble from Leipzig presented a new vision of Johann Sebastian Bach’s world-famous work “The Well-Tempered Clavier” with religious texts and vocal arrangements.
“Natalia Pasichnyk is a co-author of Bach’s new musical work with the Calmus Ensemble from Leipzig. This is a world premiere on stage, and it is also the first performance for Calmus in Stockholm. So we are looking forward to a very special evening,” said Joakim Berthele before the concert.
Calmus vocalists emphasized that they believe that supporting attention to Ukraine through cultural events is important and effective.
“It definitely works when we keep reminding people about Ukraine at our concerts. From the very beginning of the full-scale invasion, we always sang Mykola Lysenko’s Prayer for Ukraine at our concerts – “God, Great, One”. We sang it to tell people: “There is a war in Europe!” We did this in the United States and everywhere we performed. I’m convinced that it definitely helps when we combine art and people’s awareness of what’s going on,” said Friedrich Brax, one of the members of Calmus Ensemble.
The organizers dedicated the first concert day to the memory of opera singer Vasyl Slipak. He was a soloist at the National Opera in Paris, went to defend Ukraine, and was killed by a Russian sniper near Bakhmut on June 29, 2016. Each day of the festival is dedicated to an artist-warrior who died at the front.
The festival will run until May 7, with the grand finale featuring a performance by world-renowned Latvian violinist and conductor Gidons Kremer and his Kremerata Baltica orchestra.
Photos and videos from the gala reception and concert: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1NUlzjHORdW8qRGtyTC4bhyPl2wY8GfQo?usp=drive_link
The full program is available on the festival’s website: https://www.europeanspring.eu/program
