Kharkiv contemporary

International Classical and Contemporary Music Festival “Kharkiv Contemporary”

Why create it, what is its purpose, what are its repertoire principles, goals and perspectives? These questions arose several times over the years in my conversations with the director of the Kharkov Philharmonic, Yuri Yanko. "Why shouldn’t we, the residents of the first capital of Ukraine, have such a festival in this city? All it is is a symphony orchestra, choir and soloists, a hall. Take it and do it and I'll help with everything," he said. So in 2013 there was the first festival, then the next. Then there were various difficulties and serious trials. But there were also a number of helpers, mainly the National Ukrainian Music Union and the Austrian Cultural Forum (director Yakub Forsbataglia). In spite of all financial, organizational and military complexities over the years, we had the best Ukrainian artists: Kyiv Piano Duo (Kyiv), Lidiya Futorska (Lviv), Oleksandr Perepelytsya, Iryna Serotyuk, Volodymyr Gitin (Odesa), NocturnumQuartet, Kharkiv Guitar Qartet, Denis Bocharov (Kharkiv). Permanent participants of the festival are the Academy Symphony Orchestra of the Kharkiv Philharmonic (conductor Yuri Yanko) and the Academy choir of the Kharkiv Philharmonic (conducted by Andriy Syrotenko).

Of course, the prestige of the festival comes with performances by foreign guests. Over the years at the festival were: Sergiu Carstea (Romania), Ensemble Reconsil Wien (Austria), and Stephan Vermeersch (Belgium). The festival is supported by the Austrian Cultural Forum, the Romanian Cultural Institute, the Polish Institute in Kyiv, and the Embassy of Azerbaijan in Ukraine. The main thing is that we feel the support from people of Kharkov, who with interest come to hear the new Ukrainian and foreign music. I thank all the composers who have submitted their works in concerts of our festival of contemporary music “Kharkiv Contemporary.”

Volodymyr Runchak

Composer and Conductor

Artistic Director of the festival

The second festival “Kharkiv contemporary 2014” has already gone down in history and become a visible and even symbolic cultural event in our city. Such actions make possible a cultural dialogue among past, future and present times. Bravo to the artistic director of the festival, composer and conductor Volodymyr Runchak, bravo to the leadership of the Kharkov Philharmonic."

-- Ukrainian Music Newspaper

"Kharkiv contemporary 2015"