MUSIC CULTURE OF THE WESTERN UKRAINIAN PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC

Abstract

The article outlines the existence of the main components of the polynational musical culture in the WUPR. Its feature is instrumental and vocal folklore of Ukrainians, Poles, Jews, Germans, Hungarians, Romans, and other ethnic groups, and also peculiarities of music of ethnographic regions (Boikivshchyna, Bukovyna, Hutsulshchyna, Zakarpattia, Lemkivshchyna, Opillia, Pokuttia). Musical art successfully performed its social and cultural functions in the life of civilians and military, social strata, believers of different denominations. It helped to live and fight, to educate and mobilize, to create stronger ukrainian society spirit and popularize ukrainian nation in the world, to heal. The legislative actions of the newly created state in the field of culture, particularly of art, attested to its significance. The article specifies isolated facts from biographies of musical artists, authorship of some of their works.

The purpose of our work is to systematize sources of information about the various national music of  the WUPR. The urgency of this is enhanced by the fact that for a long time, due to the Communist taboos, such notes were unknown to the public. The article helps to highlight the manifestations of the components of musical culture, the development of its separate genres. The feature of WUPR music was the instrumental and vocal folklore of the ethnographic regions (Boikivshchyna, Bukovyna, Hutsulshchyna, Zakarpattia, Lemkivshchyna, Nadsiannia, Opillia, Pokuttia), as well as the music-making of different ethnic groups (Poles, Jews, Germans, Romans, Hungarians, etc.), which were predominantly part of the urban population. The peculiarities of music were also influenced by the place of residence of the people, most of which lived in villages and were engaged in agriculture. The complicated living conditions caused by the First World War, and later by Ukrainian-Polish armed struggle, devastation, hunger, diseases, outbreaks of epidemics, have not suppressed music-making completely. Church music retained its prevalence (liturgical singing, bell-ringing, organ playing). The proclamation of the Ukrainian state on the territory of Eastern Galicia caused a general elevation of Ukrainians prompting the surge of their public music-making. Among the genres of music, the most popular and common one was a song. Military music was developing further, including brass bands;

singing of sacred works, in particular those that were performed at the funeral of slaughtered soldiers or those who died from the wounds. Musical and theatrical life awakened. Music-making was an urgent need to compensate for the living difficulties of all the ethnic groups at that time. At the beginning and end of the WUPR’s existence, such a style trend as the Galician musical Biedermeier manifested in a peculiar way. The significance of music is reinforced by the persecution of its leaders, in particular Ukrainian priests, by Polish interventionists. Numerous newspapers contributed to the development of musical criticism. The results of our scientific research are useful for better understanding of the functions of music in different situations of the Galicians’ life, its essential role in satisfying certain spiritual needs.

songs of the Ukrainian Sich Riflemen gained popularity; new vocal productions appeared. Military chaplains arranged, if necessary, group