Martin Scorsese and Vera Farmiga will host a concert for the Shchedryk’s anniversary in New York
The year 2022 marks one hundred years since the North American premiere of Mykola Leontovych’s “Shchedryk” (known today as “Carol of the Bells”) at New York’s Carnegie Hall. On December 4th, the same hall will host the concert “Notes from Ukraine”. Co-hosted by Academy Award-winning director Martin Scorsese and Ukrainian-American actress Vera Farmiga, the concert showcases world-famous choral artists from Ukraine and North America. Free Livestream is available.
Martin Scorsese is one of the most influential directors of our time, and his participation in the concert proves his support for Ukraine during the Russian invasion. His work includes such tapes as Taxi Driver, The Departed, Casino, Goodfellas, and The Irishman. The director won Oscar, Grammy, Emmy, the British Film Academy prizes, the Directors Guild of America, and many other awards.
Unlike Scorsese, for Vera Farmiga, Ukraine also has a personal dimension. Her ancestors came from Ukraine; from childhood, the actress maintained a connection with Ukrainian traditions: she spoke Ukrainian, danced folk dances, and visited Plast. As an actress, Vera became best known for the series of films The Conjuring, and for the central role in the comedy-drama Up in the Air, she was nominated for an Academy Award in the category “Best Actress in a Supporting Role”.
The “Notes from Ukraine” concert showcases world-famous choral artists from Ukraine and North America, including Ukrainian Chorus Dumka of New York (as featured on SNL), Kyiv-based Ukrainian Children’s Choir Shchedryk, The Choir of Trinity Wall Street. The performance of the “Schedryk” choir is the debut performance at Carnegie Hall, and it is also the first performance by a Ukrainian ensemble in this hall since February 2022. Along with special guests, soprano Janai Brugger and Toronto-based Ukrainian folk singer Marichka Marczyk.
The program features a world premiere by composer Trevor Weston, setting the words of Ukrainian Nobel Prize-nominated poet Serhiy Zhadan, commissioned specifically for the concert. There will be performances of such composers’ music as Eric Whitacre, Leonard Bernstein, Valentyn Sylvestrov, George Gershwin, and others.
Watch the concert live on the Vimeo platform. Beginning at 9 pm EET.
More about “Notes from Ukraine” here.
The concert is organized by the Ukrainian Institute, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Razom for Ukraine, and Ukrainian Contemporary Music Festival with the support of the Embassy of Ukraine in the USA, the Permanent Mission of Ukraine to the UN, and the Consulate General of Ukraine in New York. Part of the funds from the purchased tickets will be directed to President Volodymyr Zelensky’s Initiative: United24 Rebuild Ukraine campaign.