“Pervotsvit” Choir is one of the oldest groups in Ukraine, which in 2020 celebrates the 130th anniversary of its founding. This original group was founded in 1890 by the director of the local school, a great choral enthusiast Volodymyr Hrytsyshyn. From 1899 the leader of the ensemble was the conductor of “Stanislavivsky Boyan”, the famous composer Denis Sichinsky (1865-1909). In 1933–1935, the group was headed by Bohdan Hanuszewski (1912–2001, later a priest of the UCC in Canada). With him, the choir took first place in the competition of choirs of reading rooms “Enlightenment” in 1935. In 1937-1940, the leadership of the choir was embraced by a graduate of the Women’s Teachers’ Seminary, a student of J. Barnych Ivanna Lapuk. In the difficult conditions of Austria-Hungary, lordly Poland, and the Soviet government, the choir fought with a song for the establishment of national consciousness, cherished the song and choral traditions of the native land. Later the leaders of the ensemble were Oleksa Malanyuk (shot by the German Nazis during the play “Ball” by J. Barnych in the theater), Vasyl Dzivinsky, Semen Shkurhan (later – professor of vocals at the Krakow Academy of Music (Poland), Mykhailo Kozlenko, Volodymyr Zvarun, Stepan Koval thanks to him, the ensemble was awarded the honorary title of “amateur” in 1976), Ivan Dzombak, Igor Semkiv. Since 1991, the choir is headed by Honored Worker of Culture of Ukraine, Doctor of Arts, Professor of Music Education and Conducting Vasyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University Anna Karas.
The choir is a laureate of the regional festival of sacred music “From Christmas to Easter” (1992), as the winner of the regional competition dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the UPA, participates in the celebrations on this occasion in Kiev (1992), a graduate of the regional festival “Our Thought” , our song “, dedicated to the 180th anniversary of the birth of Taras Shevchenko (1994), the First Galician Choral Academy (Halych, 1997), participant of the creative report of masters of arts and art groups of Ivano-Frankivsk region in the National Palace Ukraine ”(1999), winner of the festival of sacred music dedicated to the 2000th anniversary of the Nativity of Christ (2000), participant of the International Shevchenko Festival (Ivano-Frankivsk, 2001) and the All-Ukrainian festival“ Song over the Dnieper ”dedicated to Kyiv City Day (2018, 2020), graduate of the second degree of the IX All-Ukrainian festival-competition of folk choral singing groups named after Porphyry Demutsky (November 16-17, 2019, Kyiv). The choir is a regular participant of festive concerts in the regional center: the forum of democratic forces of Ivano-Frankivsk region (2003), the report of creative groups of the city of Ivano-Frankivsk (1999, 2003), the opening of a memorial plaque (Ivano-Frankivsk, 1999) and monuments to the leader OUN to Stepan Bandera in the village of Mykytyntsi (2007), Ivano-Frankivsk (2009), writer Stepan Pushyk (2019), multiple participant of the Christmas festival “Kolyada na Maizlyakh”.
“Primrose” solemnly celebrated its creative anniversaries – the 90th anniversary in the hall of the regional philharmonic, the 95th anniversary – in the hall of the regional “Enlightenment”, the 100th anniversary in the regional music and drama theater. I. Franko, the 110th anniversary in the village. Mykytyntsi. For the anniversaries of the choir, two collections of choral works from the repertoire of the group “Pervotsvit” will never fade (1994), “Pervotsvit: with a song to the new millennium” (2009) under the direction of the choir leader Anna Karas, which won the support of many choirs. region and Ukraine. On the occasion of the 130th anniversary of the choir, G. Karas’s monograph “Choral Family” Primrose “was prepared for publication.
Repertoire of the folk amateur choir “Pervotsvit” of the People’s House with. Mykytyntsi of Ivano-Frankivsk City Council
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е-mail: karasg@ukr.net