Sylvestrov and Ukraine
New Town Church, Edinburgh, Fringe Venue 111 - 24/08/26
Andrii Kymach (baritone) and Jâms Coleman (piano).
The final production curated by Ian McFarlane for Edinburgh’s festival month at the New Town Church featured a sparkling recital by Ukrainian baritone Andrii Kymach and pianist Jâms Coleman. It both celebrated the work of (beyond his homeland) seriously underrated composer Valentin Sylvestrov and marked Ukraine’s day of independence as the country still struggles to resist Russian aggression.
Fittingly, the concert began with a short speech by the Ukrainian consul in Edinburgh, Andrii Madzianovskyi. “Our culture, like yours, is profound and deeply musical,” he declared, referring directly to Scotland. “I look forward to inviting you to a peaceful and free Ukraine… Thank you for keeping us in your hearts.”
That set the mood for a recital presenting a carefully considered, musically rich programme of short works rooted in Ukrainian art song, alongside solo piano miniatures and a couple of classic Neapolitan vocal works. A compelling exploration of lyricism across national styles.
Valentin Silvestrov’s Postludium Op. 5 opened the concert as a standalone prelude, setting a quiet, reverberant acoustic tone before the main vocal sequence. Sylvestrov’s distinctive harmonic language – built on lingering resonance, subtle piano pedal work, and exquisitely poignant melody – established an introspective foundation.
The Ukrainian composer, whose ‘metamodern’ style bridges modernism and the refreshing of tonality across sacred and secular boundaries, returned mid-programme with the gorgeous fifth movement of Silent Songs (‘Farewell to the world...’), alongside two further solo piano works – Lullaby, Op. 2, No. 1 and Postludium Op. 2 No. 4. Tenderly performed by Jâms Coleman, these centrally positioned pieces provided texture and space, allowing the instrument to clear the aural palate between dense vocal offerings.
The core of the recital paired vocal dexterity with strong literary foundations. Mykola Lysenko’s Reve ta stogne Dnipr shuroky (‘The Dnieper river rages’) provided an immediate display of weight and dynamic expanse, capturing the surging movement implied by Taras Shevchenko’s text. This was followed by the lighter, more fluid contours of Myhailo Zherbin’s Pluve moya dyscha (‘My soul is like an enchanted boat’, a Percy Bysshe Shelley translation) and Yaroslav Lopatynsky’s Dyscha to chaika nad vodoiu (‘A free spirit’), both of which rely on long, expressive vocal arcs over rolling accompaniment.
Yakiv Stepovyi’s Zemle, moja vseplodjushchaja maty (‘O, mother earth’) introduced a sturdier, grounded rhythmic character, while Kyrylo Stetsenko’s dramatic excerpt from the opera Polonjanka (Kriache voron, or ‘The raven caws’) stood out for its darker, theatrical declamation. The inclusion of the ‘Song of Peter’ aria from Natalka Poltavka and Kos-Anatolsky’s Oy kolyb ya sokil (‘If I had been a falcon’) signalled a shift toward lyrical agility and folk-infused melodic lines.
The transition into Italian repertoire via Ernesto Tagliaferri’s Passione and Salvatore Cardillo’s Core ’ngrato shifted the vocalisation from the linear, poetry-driven style of Eastern European art song to open-throated, direct Mediterranean drama. Andrii Kymach has remarkably strong, adaptable voice, demonstrated his control and range across a varied selection of material.
The encores maintained this dual focus: Kos-Anatolsky’s Hey poplars mine grounded the final moments in familiar melodic intimacy, followed by delightful Neapolitan song. Dynamic control and stylistic versatility remained consistent throughout the entire set. A wonderful afternoon in sunny Edinburgh.
