Ukrainian Callings

Here the singer – who became famous as the ‘Ukrainian Björk’ – collected pagan rituals, traditional wedding songs and bold Carpathian tunes: centuries-old material that could only be preserved by local oral tradition. Sadovska, who has lived for many years in both Ukraine and Germany, collects these important cultural phenomena and puts them into theatre pieces, multi-media projects and concerts.

For her concert at the KunstFestSpiele, Sadovska has invited the young Ukrainian ensemble Shlyakh-dorizhenka to perform with her. This too is a tradition, and a sign that Ukrainian music is alive and well.

The band was founded in the village of Makariv near Kyiv. Because of the Russian invasion, all its musicians were compelled to evacuate to other regions and countries. Some now live in Germany, where they continue to perform and develop traditional song, music and dance.