About Khreschatyk Academic Chamber Choir
Khreshchatyk Academic Chamber Choir is a bright, original, world-class professional collective that works in various styles and creates new trends in the world of choral music.
Khreschatyk Choir tours the best concert halls in Europe, is a winner of many international competitions and festivals, gives concerts in Ukraine and attracts listeners to interest in choral art.
All singers are extremely mobile in the preparation of new musical material, which allows them to consistently maintain an extremely high rate of release of new concert programs. It is no surprise that since its first performance on April 9, 1994, the Khreschatyk Choir has performed (as of December 31, 2020) – 5,316 new works, including 1,576 world premieres.
The creative credo of the Khreschatyk Academic Chamber Сhoir is the performance of works by contemporary composers, primarily Ukrainian ones. The choir has earned the respect and recognition of the most demanding listeners – authors of music and has chosen the right of a permanent participant of the most prestigious festivals of Ukraine: “Music Premieres of the Season” and “Kyiv Music Fest”. It was in the programs of these festivals, performed by the Khreschatyk Choir , that the works of Lesya Dychko, Eugene Stankovych, Myroslav Skoryk, Igor Shcherbakov, Oleksandr Yakovchuk, Mykhailo Shukh, Iryna Aleksiychuk, Mykhailo Shved, Hanna Rozhdestvenska, Yevhenia Marchykh and many others were performed for the first time ofUkrainian school of composition. Foreign composers are also happy to entrust the choir with the premiere performance of their works, these are: Marek Jasinski (Poland), Krzysztof Penderecki (Poland), Rauf Aliyev (Azerbaijan), Alvie Michael Schronen (Germany), Eva Lopschitz (Argentina).
Khreschatyk Choir has created more than 10 different author’s programs, including:
- choral theater of classical music in the production of "Smiles"
- Ukrainian folk songs in modern jazz arrangements "Necklace of Beautiful Songs"
- African spirituals "O Happy Day"
- a cappella battle of classical and popular music "Stars"
- program of sacred music dedicated to the image of the Virgin "Ave Maria" and "Agni Parfene"
general director
Serhiy DZUBENKO
Serhiy DZUBENKO – General Director of communal concert institution of culture Khreshchatyk Academic Chamber Choir, Head of the public organization “Art Commonwealth”, Member of the Board of the Association of Pop Figures of Ukraine, Honored Art Worker of Ukraine.
Serhiy Dzubenko was born on November 27, 1961 in Mykolayivka, Odessa region. In 1978 he graduated from Mykolayiv Secondary School and Music School (trumpet and piano class), in 1980 from Mykolayiv Culture and Art College, in 1987 from the Kyiv State Institute of Culture, in 2005 from the National University of Internal Affairs (“Jurisprudence”).
He began his career in 1980 as a methodologist, artistic director of the Mykolayiv District House of Culture. After serving in the army and graduating from the institute, he headed the production and mass department of the Palace of Culture of the Kamysh-Burunsky Iron Ore Factory (Kerch), and from 1990 to 1999 he was the director of the institution.
During 1999-2004 – Head of the Department of Culture of the Kerch City Council.
From 2008-2011 – Deputy Head of the Department of Culture and Tourism of the Kyiv Regional State Administration.
In 2015-2019 he held the position of director of the state enterprise “State Touring and Concert Center of Ukraine”. In 2019, based on the results of the competition, Serhiy Petrovich became General Director of the state enterprise “State Theater and Entertainment Agency”, where he worked until September 2021.
From 2015 till present, he has organised a number of national events with the participation of the President of Ukraine, the Prime Minister of Ukraine and the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, including the National TV and Radio Marathon “Fight – win! Shevchenko mobilizes” (2015), “Independence Day of Ukraine” (2015-2021), meeting of the President of Ukraine with heads of diplomatic missions of foreign states and international organizations accredited in Ukraine (2016), All-Ukrainian Festival of Creativity of People with Disabilities “Colors of Life” (2015-2019), the organization of the ceremony of awarding the National Prize of Ukraine named after Taras Shevchenko (2015-2021) and others.
In August 2021 pursuant to the Decree of the President of Ukraine dated 21.10.2020 № 459/2020 “On the celebration of the 30th anniversary of Ukraine’s independence” and the order of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated 31.05.2021 № 583-r “On approval of the action plan for the preparation and celebration of the 30th anniversary of the independence of Ukraine” State Enterprise “State Theater and Entertainment Agency” under the leadership of Serhiy Dzubenko provided preparation and successful holding in Kyiv of such significant and large-scale events as the festival “Ark Ukraine: ten centuries of Ukrainian music in one concert, music event of the year” on Mykhailivska Square, the Crimean Platform Summit in the congress and exhibition center “Parkovy”, charity concert at the Taras Shevchenko National Academic Opera and Ballet Theater of Ukraine and others.
After winning the competition for the position, on October 1, 2021, Serhiy Dzubenko was appointed General Director of the Khreschatyk Academic Chamber Choir.
artistic director, conductor
Pavlo STRUTS
Pavlo STRUTS – artistic director of the Khreschatyk Academic Chamber Choir since 2007, conductor, Honored Artist of Ukraine (2009).
Pavlo Struts was born on November 2, 1976 in Kyiv.
In 1995 he graduated from Kyiv Secondary Specialized Music School named after M.V.
Lysenko. In 2000 he graduated from the Tchaikovsky National Academy of Music of Ukraine and in 2003 finished an assistantship at the Department of Choral Conducting of NMAU.
Since 2005 he has been the head of the Golden Gate National Chapel Choir of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine.
Since 2009 he has been working as a teacher, and since 2018 – as an acting Associate Professor at the Department of Choral Conducting of the NMAU.
The collectives led by Pavlo Struts have won and received awards at the leading competitions in Europe, including: “Mendzinarodowj festiwal – Hajnowskie Dni Muziki cerkiewnej-2007”, Hajnówka, Poland, І prize; competition in Tours (France) in the category “Chamber Choirs”, 2008; “XXIII Internacionalnih horskih svechanosti” Nis, Serbia, 2010 – І prize; 30th International Choral Festival of Preveza – 18th International Choral Competition Preveza Greece, 2012 – II prize; І Prize of the XXVI International Orthodox Music Competition in Bialystok, Poland, 2017.
Under the direction of Pavlo Struts, the Khreschatyk Choir became a regular participant of national and international festivals: Kyiv Music Fest, Musical Premieres of the Season, Easter Assembly, many philharmonic concerts, joint programs with the best orchestras and soloists of Ukraine and Europe, as well as many solemn and official events of the state and capital levels.
16 CD programs were also recorded, in particular: “The Second Liturgy of John Chrysostom” by Lesya Dychko (2011), “The Liturgy of John Chrysostom” by Oleksandr Yakovchuk (2007), “Psalms to David” by Vasyl Haiduk based on Taras Shevchenko lyrics (2015), “Cycle of choirs a cappella based on T.G. Shevchenko lyrics” by Valery Antonyuk (2008), Antonio Vivaldi – “Magnificat” and “Gloria” (2008), 4 discs from the cycle “Annual Solstice of Ukrainian ritual singing” – “Heaven and Earth” , “Virgin-Spring”, “Kupala God” and “Wedding Bread” (2008-2009), “Ukrainian Folk Song” (2007), “Anthology of Leopold Yashchenko’s Choral Works” (2009-2010), “Viva la Musica” by Alvin Michael Schronen (Germany, 2013), “Todes Fugem” Cantata-requiem by Anna Segal (Israel, 2016), “Necklace of Beautiful Songs” arrangement of Ukrainian folk songs in modern and alternative versions (2017).
One of the important achievements of Pavlo Struts in the direction of the choir’s development is the creation of concert programs and choral performances, which are formed on the combination and symbiosis of different art genres. The creation of the “Choral Theater” in Ukraine is a unique phenomenon. In particular, programs of such productions were prepared: “Annual solstice of the Ukrainian ritual singing”, 2007-2008; “Romance for a Beloved”, 2009; “Café-shantant du Khreschatyk”, 2010; “Ave Maria – Pure and Immaculate”, 2011; “Hits from everywhere” and “Hits from everywhere II”, 2013 and 2015; “Necklace of Beautiful Songs”, 2016; “Choir Smiles – Classic Jokes”, 2017; “Hits of the Cosmic Era 1956-2016”, 2018; “Oh, Happy Day” 2018; “Christmas song”, 2018; “Stars”, 2019; “Parfine Lights”, 2021; “Melodies of our inspiration”, 2021.
Pavel Struts’s exceptional ability to work and uncompromising professionalism allow him to prepare the most complex programs of modern music in an incredibly short time, maintaining a rich concert schedule of the collective.
choirmaster
Oksana DONDYK
Oksana DONDYK – ocalist and conductor, Honored Artist of Ukraine (2012), laureate of All-Ukrainian and international vocal competitions, participant of the “IV International Competition of Opera Singers named after Solomia Krushelnitska” (2009), International competition “Art of the XXI-th century” (2009).
Oksana Dondik was born on December 4, 1978 in Ivanovo, Russia.
In 1998 she graduated from Cherkasy State Music College named after S.S. Gulak-Artemovsky. In 2003 she graduated from the Kyiv National University of Culture and Arts qualified as an academic choir conductor and vocalist (soloist). In 2008 she finished the apprenticeship at the National Music Academy of Ukraine named after P.I. Tchaikovsky and received the qualification of “Concert performer, teacher at higher educational art institution of the IV level of accreditation”.
Since 2000 she has been working in the Khreschatyk Academic Chamber Choir. Over the years she has come a long way of development – from student to master and professional (artist of the highest category (2000), leading master of the stage (2003), member of the artistic council (2005), Head of the primary trade union organization (2006 – 2014), choirmaster (2010).
During her work in the choir she had a huge creative practice as a soloist and conductor-choirmaster, performed on various prestigious stages of Ukraine and the capital, abroad (Poland, Czech Republic, Germany, France, Spain, Italy). She changed her main place of work in 2013 but remained a part-time choirmaster in the Khreschatyk Choir. In 2020 she returned to the collective as to her main place of work. Since 2021 she holds office as a chief conductor.
At the same time she continues concert activities as a soloist, participates in concerts and festivals, such as “Kyiv Music Fest”, “Season Premieres”, where she has performed a large number of works of contemporary Ukrainian composers. She is also a permanent performer of the project “Classics in Ukrainian”.
She is a member of the jury of the All-Ukrainian vocal competition “World Classics in Ukrainian”.
From 2012 to 2020 she worked as a senior lecturer, and later as an associate professor at the Department of Academic Choral Arts of the Kyiv National University of Culture and Arts.
In January 2014, on the basis of junior students of the Ukrainian School of Arts (Ukrainka) she created a children’s choir “Veselyy Aktsent”.
Under her leadership, the collective has reached a high professional level and now is on a par with the leading children’s collectives in Ukraine.
