This tune is from their recently-released CD Усміхнися Сонечко which means "smiling sun" in rough translation.The CD is a collection of seasonal songs including Миколай (St. Nicholas Day), Mother's Day, Shevchenko, summer, a kolomeyka and a western.
It is an exceptional recording and an absolute delight to listen to. It is on par with any recording of adults and the best ones at that.
The singers are all students of the Metropolitan Andrei Sheptycky Ukrainian School of Montreal. The school has about 100 students ranging in age from 4-17. The singers on this recording were from 4-13. The CD also comes with a pdf of all the song lyrics (in Ukrainian Cyrillic).
The school's singing/music teacher is Vera Kulycky who is well known on Montreal's Ukrainian music scene. She also directs a young girls' trio/sextet who have performed at many local functions as well as the Montreal Ukrainian Festival.
Vera's husband Yourko Kulycky (formerly of the Montreal band 1945) programmed the music, recorded, and mixed the children's album, while Vera arranged and conducted the children in the vocals.
Many thanks to Roman Kostyk of Pryvit for connecting us and making this fabulous CD found its way into the Nash Holos music library.
If you'd like a copy for your own music library, send Vera an email or order through Yevshan.
The CD is $15 and all proceeds go to support the school.
6 comments:
Again, I am sure promo of this CD would go much smoothly providing access to sound tracks short previews.
Maybe. It depends on a lot of things. Their target market may not be online, or maybe they don't feel the expense involved is justified. At any rate, it's not for us to judge.
Personally I think it's great that the CD was made, and is available and easy to purchase. There are some wonderful CDs that aren't available anymore ... and can't be bought for love nor money!
As for sound track previews, entire tracks of great CDs can be heard on Nash Holos ... along with commentary. :-)
There is a website also Paulette
http://www.ukemonde.com/shkola/
just pushing a plug for ukemonde
As always politics get in the way, we never got info to plug the CD. Nasha Khata z krayiu!!! POMAN
Well you are always welcome to plug ukemonde on this site, Roman. :-)
I suspect the issue was probably not "politics" so much as lack of a publicist to make sure all bases are covered. You and I both know how hard it is to self-promote. Never enough hours in the day!
However, the more of us who do our little bit for ourselves and each other, the faster and farther good info like this will get around.
At any rate, you know I am hugely in favour of "shameless self-promotion." :-)
As always there is no Ukrainian distribution system for Ukrainian music outside the borders of Ukraine.
A couple of weeks ago I went to Zolotij Klen in Acton and the one music vendor was not even promoting the bands that were playing at the Festival. Go figure.
The only way to get new and cutting edge Ukrainian music is to go online to a couple of sites that I know of and they offer pretty much anything that you may want. You can let your conscious decide whether it is right or wrong.
Ukrainian musicians do not make their living by the sales of CDs. It is done on the basis of live performance just like it used to be in the old days.
Hi Orest,
Nice to hear from you again!
Yes, distribution. We've been down this road before and unfortunately not much has changed, despite the advent of accessible new technology.
Distribution is an industry, and as in any industry, doing it well requires trained professionals.
You know as well as I do, when it comes to professionals doing their job, be it a concert pianist, a computer programmer, or a hair stylist, the good ones just make it look easy. But in reality, doing it right requires considerable financial resources, skill and experience.
And yes, I agree that about the only way musicians can make a living making music now, in the era of The Long Tail, is like in the old days, i.e. live performances. Gone are the days of the blockbuster!
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