Four Notes from Ukraine

The exhibition Four Notes from Ukraine is dedicated to the history of the world tour of the Ukrainian Republic Capella (also known as Ukrainian National Chorus), a mixed choir led by the conductor Oleksandr Koshyts, which in 1919–1924 travelled the world promoting the idea of Ukrainian independence. Through the success of the Ukrainian song Shchedryk, which became not only the hit of the tour but also, in the English version Carol of the Bells, a Christmas symbol in the Western world, the exhibition tells the story of Ukraine´s long-standing struggle for independence. Tina Peresunko, the author of the display, has collected rare music records and photographic documents from archives and libraries in Ukraine, the Czech Republic, the United States, and Canada, many of which are presented in Prague for the first time.

The exhibition has been organised by the Institute of Mykola Leontovych in Kyiv and the National Library of the CR – the Slavonic Library on the occasion of the 150th birthday anniversary of the choir leader, Ukranian conductor and cultural diplomat Oleksandr Koshyts (1875–1944). It is held with the support of the Embassy of Ukraine in the Czech Republic. 

The exhibition Four Notes from Ukraine is dedicated to the history of the Christmas carol ‘Carol of the Bells’, which originated in Ukraine and is known in the United States and elsewhere. The music for the piece was composed in 1916 by Mykola Leontovych (1877–1921), a Ukrainian composer, based on the ancient Ukrainian song for New Year entitled ‘Shchedryk’: it is about a swallow that augurs a happy new year. The song was premiered in Kyiv during a Christmas concert in 1916: two months later the Russian Empire collapsed. Between 1919 and 1924, this song was a hit for the Ukrainian Republican Capella (Ukrainian National Chorus) while on a global tour under the direction of conductor Oleksandr Koshyts (1875–1944). This tour aimed to secure international recognition for Ukraine, and also obtain Western support against Bolshevik Russia who had invaded Ukraine in 1917.

On May 11, 1919, the melody was first performed abroad by Ukrainians during a premiere concert in Prague. Later, it was triumphantly performed at Carnegie Hall in New York on October 5, 1922. Unfortunately, a century ago, Ukraine never received the support from the West; and was occupied by Soviet Russia for 70 years. In 1921, Mykola Leontovych, the composer of Shchedryk, was shot dead by a Russian Cheka agent. More than a decade later, in 1936, Peter J. Wilhousky, an American conductor of Ukrainian descent, wrote an English text for Shchedryk; and he named the song ‘Carol of the Bells’. The melody has since become an anthem for Christmas in the United States. It is featured in movies and commercials, and is performed by the most famous musicians from around the world. The song brings joy to the holidays for many people, although little is known about its Ukrainian origin.

For the first time, this exhibition uses archival documents to tell the story of the world-famous carol, Shchedryk, over the last century: from its composition by a Ukrainian composer in 1916; the appearance of an English-language version twenty years later; to the present day, when Russia is once again trying to occupy Ukraine; including also the centenary celebrations of the song’s international premiere in Prague and New York.

The author of the exhibition, Tina Peresunko, is a researcher at the Institute of Ukrainian Archaeology and Source Studies, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine; and she is also founder of the Leontovych Institute. In 2018, she published a book The World Triumph of Shchedryk – 100 Years of Ukraine’s Cultural Diplomacy based on research in the Ukrainian Republican Capella archives. Based on this research, a documentary film Shchedryk Against the Russian World (2022) was made, and anniversary concerts were held in Prague and New York. Peresunko has also created an English-language website entitled the Ukrainian Origin of Carol of the Bells, which was commissioned by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. This website includes a long-read article: From Shchedryk to Carol of the Bells: the untold story of the famous song. In 2022, she organised a museum exhibition, I Sing, Therefore I Exist, in Kyiv. This was the first time the original manuscript of Shchedryk was exhibited in Ukraine. This exhibition also had copies of posters of the Ukrainian Republican Capella European tour: the originals form part of the collection of the Slavonic Library in Prague.

The exhibition Four Notes from Ukraine at the National Library of the Czech Republic in Prague is dedicated to the 150th anniversary of the birth of conductor, Oleksandr Koshyts, and is intended to tell the story of Ukraine’s 100-year struggle for independence through the history of Shchedryk. This exhibition features documents and musical materials from 10 archives and libraries in Ukraine, the United States, Canada, and the Czech Republic that Tina Peresunko has been collecting over numerous years. Many of these exhibits are being presented in Prague for the first time.

Thus, for the first time, a Prague audience will see a copy of Mykola Leontovych’s Shchedryk manuscript composed in 1916. This document comes from the collection of the Institute of Manuscripts of the Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine. The exhibition also features some of the earliest gramophone recordings of Shchedryk in 1922 and of Carol of the Bells from 1942: both recordings come from the collection of the Kyiv-based Leontovych Institute collection. Unique documents relating to the European and American premieres of Shchedryk during the 1919 to 1924 period are also presented. These materials come from the Central State Archives of Higher Bodies of Power and Administration of Ukraine (Kyiv), the Slavonic Library (Prague), the Ukrainian Cultural and Educational Centre (Winnipeg), the Ukrainian Free Academy of Sciences (New York), and the Ukrainian History and Education Center (New Jersey). The exhibition also deals with the Broadway premiere of Shchedryk in George Gershwin’s musical Song of the Flame (1925); and an eponymous American film (1930) where Shchedryk was performed by the Russian Chorus in New York where it was described as being from Russia. The exhibition tells the story of the Americanisation and Russification of the song against the backdrop of the ongoing Ukrainian struggle for independence. A video of Oleksandr Koshyts conducting at the New York World’s Fair (1939) is kindly taken from the collection of the Ukrainian Museum and Library of Stamford (Connecticut, USA).

The poster exhibition is accompanied by a presentation of original documents from the Slavonic Library’s collection. This includes the Memory Book of the Ukrainian Republican Capella containing autographs of Ukrainian and world politicians and cultural figures who attended concerts of the choir in Europe and America. Also on display are posters from the European tour of the Ukrainian Republican Capella, a selection of books on the history of the choir, and some biographies of Oleksandr Koshyts. After the tour of the Ukrainian Republican Capella ended, its archive was transferred to the funds of the Museum of the Ukraine’s Struggle for Independence, established by the Ukrainian exile government in Prague in 1925 following the Soviet occupation of Ukraine. During the bombing of Prague in 1945, this museum was damaged and part of its collections were destroyed. Other parts of the collection were taken to the USSR by Soviet secret services, or were preserved in the Slavonic Library. The exhibition presents these Slavonic Library materials to the public for the first time.

The author of the exhibition, Tina Peresuňko, will give a lecture Олександр Кошиць (1875–1944) – хрещений батько Щедрика / Carol of the Bells [Oleksandr Košyc (1875–1944) – author of the topis Ščedryk / Carol of the Bells] on Tuesday, April 8, 2025 at Faculty of Arts, Charles University, nám. Jana Palacha 2, Praha 1, room No. 313.
The lecture will be given in Ukrainian, interpretation is not provided.