No matter whether in a good or a bad season, in peace or in war, music helps to mourn and helps to celebrate. As a Christian nation since the ancient times, Ukrainians have always particularly honored Christmas and certainly are famous for a large collection of Christmas carols. The prominent example is "Shchedryk", the song which after getting an English arrangement became the universally loved "Carol of the Bells".

Until recently, not so many knew the background story of "Carol of the Bells", which came into being as a result of an outstanding cultural diplomacy effort of a Ukrainian choir in 1920s.

This year marked 100 years since "Shchedryk" was first performed in the U.S. The recent concert "Notes from Ukraine", organized by the Ukrainian Institute, repeated the century old scene of Ukrainians being met with an outburst of applause after singinging their carol in the Carnegie Hall.

As the holidays are ongoing we invite you to enjoy the recording of the event, delving into the magic of Ukrainian Christmas music.

свернуть