Dear e-friends,
I'm unusually proud to inform you that Edward Drach, fine Ukrainian
composer, cobza player, singer (and physician...) has made available one of
his best songs "im volkston" for you perusal and delectation in an
arrangement that includes a prelude and postlude by yours truly.
It may be found on both
http://polyhymnion.org/lieder/lieder.html
http://polyhymnion.org/torban/torban4.html
and the latter page has the midi illustration.
The song is based on a historical incident from the mid-17th century.
Ukrainian cossacks under colonel Ivan Sirko (who later served with the
French forces in Flanders during the 30-year War) during their attack on
Ismail (then in the Ottoman territory) liberated a group of Ukrainians who
had previously been taken prisoner by the Turks and settled there. Some of
these didn't want to return to Ukraine because they now had families. Sirko
has let them go, but after some heavyhearted contemplation he ordered his
cossacks to kill them, saying that he cannot bear the responsibility of
breeding more Turks, who would cause more bloodshed to Ukraine in the
future.
RT
