The other day, I had the chance to go to my first Ukrainian concert.
Because my host sister Ira lives in Kyiv and works as a music journalist for Kyiv FM, she knows pretty much everything there is to know about Ukrainian music and artists. She also gets tons of free tickets and backstage passes… really cool stuff!
She recently visited Khmelnytskyi, and gifted me a ticket to see Marina Krut, a Ukrainian singer and bandurist, in concert.
(If you don’t know, a bandura is a traditional Ukrainian folk instrument that features 65 strings.)
Anyway. I got to the concert a little bit late because I was running on Ukrainian time, and I figured that would be fine. Well… apparently Ukrainian time does not apply to concerts. I was the last person there and I had to sit on a very uncomfortable slanted stair rail for the duration of the concert.
However, it was totally worth it, because Marina Krut (who goes by her last name, “Krut,” or “KRUTЬ” in Ukrainian) was incredible.
I couldn’t understand a lot of the Ukrainian songs, of course, but the way she played was mesmerizing. The venue (The Kut Monotheater) was very small and I was very close to the stage, so I got an incredible view.
She performed a few songs solo, and a few with the help of her accompanying band.
I wasn’t the only one mesmerized. The rest of the small crowd loved her as well.
Luckily enough, Krut did play a song in English: “Hallelujah.”
I feel like this almost gave me a taste of what it was like for the rest of the audience members, who — of course — could understand all her original songs that were written and performed in Ukrainian.
I guess it’s just more motivation to keep working on my language skills. Hopefully, I’ll be able to understand my next Ukrainian concert a little better!
This post was originally published Feb. 3, 2021. Its timestamp has been updated to better reflect the timeline of my Peace Corps service.
