Kobzars from Kyiv, Lviv, and Odesa performed dumas in the historic Cossack sites of Odesa and in the city center - Kobzar Festival 2024!
The Kobzar Festival was held as part of the Black Sea Steppe festival, which traditionally takes place in Odesa in summer. It was the first day of the festival "Chornomorskyi Step".
Mykola Tovkaylo, a Ukrainian kobzar, archaeologist, PhD in history, and foreman of the Kyiv Kobzar Workshop, sang and played the bandura. He began his career as a bandura player in the 70s and has been actively involved in the dissemination and development of the kobza tradition since then.
Taras Dorotskyi, a historian, ethnographer, kobzar and lyre player from Lviv, a member of the National Union of Kobzars of Ukraine (1995), played the lyre.
Max Troobnikov, an Odesa-based reconstructor of the kobza tradition, Honored Teacher of Ukraine, art teacher, and leader of the band Druzhe Muzyko, played the kobza.
The locations were not chosen by chance:
- Kuyalnyk - here the Cossacks founded a village when they moved after the destruction of the Zaporizhzhia Sich;
- the Cossack cemetery of the Sotnykivska Sich is located on Shkodova Hill, the oldest burial of which dates back to 1791
- Taras Shevchenko Park became the largest venue for kobza songs.
The restoration of the kobza tradition in the south is an important and historic event for Odesa region. We believe this is the beginning of something great!
The Kobzar Festival was held as part of the 3-day festival "Chornomorskyi Step", organized by NGO "The Tenth of April", Odesa Parks, and More Music Club.
Partners: Odesa City Council, Odesa State Administration, UNHCR Ukraine - the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Ukraine, Oxfam Great Britain, UINP: South, Serhiy Hutsalyuk, Kyiv Kobzar Workshop, Lviv Kobzar and Lyrnica Workshop, Odesa Kobzar Workshop, Morshynska TM, SOCAR.