Presents
Mykola Lysenko
(Nikolai Lysenko)
Prayer for Ukraine
For 18 Different Chamber Ensembles---See Below
Mykola Lysenko (1842-1912--sometimes transliterated as Nikolai or Nicolai Lysenko or Lissenko) is considered the father of Ukrainian chamber music much the way that Glinka is for the Russians. He was the first Ukrainian composer to write chamber music. In 1904, he founded the first music conservatory in the Ukraine in Kiev, which today bears his name. Lysenko was born in the Poltava district of the Ukraine. He first studied piano with his mother, then formally with teachers in Kiev. After taking a degree in the natural sciences at the University of Kiev, he attended the world famous Leipzig Conservatory where he studied composition with Carl Reinecke. An admirer of the Ukrainian poet Shevchenko, Lysenko became a nationalist for the Ukrainian cause as a student. He remained one for his entire life and was imprisoned for the cause as late as 1907 after composing a song in support of the Revolution of 1905. The bulk of Lysenko's music is for piano or for voice in one form or another such as opera, hymns, or chorales. His piano music often shows the influence of Chopin whereas his vocal music is almost always based on Ukrainian folk music such as his opera Taras Bulba. Lysenko spent considerable time trying to demonstrate the differences between Ukrainian and Russian folk melody. The only chamber music he is known to have composed is this string quartet and a string trio.
The music to the Prayer for Ukraine (Ukrainian: Молитва за Україну) is a patriotic Ukrainian hymn published in 1885 It became a spiritual anthem of Ukraine. The text was written by the Ukrainian poet Oleksandr Konysky. Lysenko intended it for performance by a children's choir. The song became the regular closing hymn in services of various Ukrainian churches. It gained national significance when it was performed by mass choirs during the Ukrainian War of Independence during 1917–1920. The hymn was intended to be an official anthem of Ukraine. Over the years, dozens of arrangements ranging from full orchestra to small chamber ensembles have been made. The words to the Prayer are:
Lord, oh the Great and Almighty / Protect our beloved Ukraine,
Bless her with freedom and light / Of your holy rays.
With learning and knowledge enlighten / Us, your children small,
In love pure and everlasting / Let us, oh Lord, grow.
We pray, oh Lord Almighty, Protect our beloved Ukraine,
Grant our people and country / All your kindness and grace.
Bless us with freedom, bless us with wisdom, / Guide into kind world,
Bless us, oh Lord, with good fortune / For ever and evermore.
| (A) String Quartet--Partsg | $11.95 |
 |
| (B) String Quartet--Parts & Score | $13.95 |
|
| (C) 2 Violins, Clarinet & Cello--Parts | $11.95 |
|
| (D) 2 Violins, Clarinet & Bassoon--Parts | $11.95 |
|
| (E) Violin, Viola, Clarinet & Cello--Parts | $11.95 |
|
| (F) Violin, Viola, Clarinet & Bassoon--Parts | $11.95 |
|
| (G) Violin, Oboe, Viola & Cello--Parts | $11.95 |
|
| (H) Violin, Oboe, Viola & Bassoon--Parts | $11.95 |
|
| (I) Violin, Oboe, Clarinet & Cello--Parts | $11.95 |
|
| (J) Violin, Oboe, Clarinet & Bassoon--Parts | $11.95 |
|
| (K) Flute, Violin, Viola & Cello--Parts | $11.95 |
|
| (L) Flute, Violin, Viola & Bassoon--Parts | $11.95 |
|
| (M) Flute, Violin, Clarinet & Cello--Parts | $11.95 |
|
| (N) Flute, Violin, Clarinet & Bassoon--Parts | $11.95 |
|
| (O) Flute, Oboe, Viola & Cello--Parts | $11.95 |
|
| (P) Flute, Oboe, Viola & Bassoon--Parts | $11.95 |
|
| (Q) Flute, Oboe, Clarinet & Cello--Parts | $11.95 |
|
| (R) Flute, Oboe, Clarinet & Bassoon--Parts | $11.95 |
|
| (S) Flute, Oboe, Clarinet & Bassoon--Parts & Score | $13.95 |
|
| (T) All Eight Parts | $24.95 |
|
| (U) All Eight Parts & 2 Scores | $29.95 |
|
