Andriy Fedorovych Omelchenko (2 July 1926 in Pavlysh,
Soviet Union – 9 May 1981 in Kiev, Soviet Union) was a Ukrainian virtuoso
bandura soloist and composer. He taught bandura at the Ukrainian Institute of Culture and performed outside the Soviet Union.
Biography
Omelchenko initially began to play
bandura from tutelage by Makar Osadchyj in
Dniprodzerzhynsk
Kamianske ( uk, Кам'янське, ), formerly Dniprodzerzhynsk, is an industrial city in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast of Ukraine and a port on the Dnieper. Administratively, it serves as the administrative center of Kamianske Raion. Kamianske hosts ...
and joined the bandura capella there. In 1947 he played bandura in a military ensemble. In his biography he stated that he took some of his first bandura lessons from
Hryhory Kytasty
Hryhoriy Trokhymovych Kytasty ( uk, Григорій Трохимович Китастий) (January 17, 1907 – April 6, 1984) was a Ukrainian émigré composer and conductor. In 2008, he was honored with the Hero of Ukraine state decoration.
...
.
In 1956 he completed both the vocal and orchestral faculties of the
Kiev Conservatory. He continued to study bandura under
Volodymyr Kabachok
Volodymyr Andryievych Kabachok (July 15, 1892 – June 15, 1957) was a well-known bandura player and educator in Ukraine.
Biography
Born in the village of , in the Poltava region, Kabachok became a singer in the Archbishop's choir in Poltava unt ...
and
Andriy Bobyr
Andriy Matviyevych Bobyr (13 November 1915 – 18 May 1994) was a Ukrainian bandurist, teacher, conductor, and People's Artist of Ukraine (1986).
Life and work
Andriy Bobyr was born in the village of , in the Poltava Governorate of the Russi ...
.
From 1952 he worked as a soloist of the Bandura Ensemble of Ukrainian Radio. From 1954 he taught bandura at the special music high school in
Kiev
Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...
, and from 1961 at the
Kiev Music College.
As a soloist he performed in
Czechoslovakia,
Poland,
Finland and
France. He was a laureate of the international competition of performers on folk instruments which took place in
Moscow in 1957.
He published a series of collections of music for the bandura and composed a number of individual works. In 1967 he edited the "Handbook for the bandura" by
Mykola Opryshko
Mykola ( uk, Мико́ла, Mykóla, ) is a Slavic variant, more specifically a Ukrainian variant, of the masculine name "Nicholas", meaning "victory of the people". It may refer to:
People
* Mykola Arkas (1853–1909), Ukrainian composer, wri ...
.
In 1963 he completed post graduate studies at the
Kiev Conservatory and in 1968 he received the title of
Candidate of Arts for his thesis on the development of the bandura.
He continued to work on a Doctoral dissertation on
Ukrainian folk instruments
Ukrainian folk music includes a number of varieties of traditional, folkloric, folk-inspired popular music, and folk-inspired European classical music traditions.
In the 20th century numerous ethnographic and folkloric musical ensembles were ...
while teaching bandura at the
Institute of Culture
Institute of Culture was an institution of vocational education established in the Soviet Union and still existing in some post-Soviet states, aimed at training of workers in various areas of culture and organization of leisure activities.
Histor ...
.
He died of liver cancer on May 9, 1981.
Publications
*1965 - Bandura i mystetstvo bandurystiv za radians'koho chasu - "NTE" #4
*1967 - Mystetsvo bandurystiv na pidneinni - NTE #6 (pp. 33–35)
*1967 - Seminar kerivnykiv kapel ta ansambliv bandurystiv - NTE -
*1968 - Vstup do obr. "Oj poplyvy , vutko" - M. Opryshky. - MTE - #6 (p. 87-8)
*1968 - Razvitie kobzarskgo iskusstva na Ukraine. Avtoreferat K. - (pp. 25)
*1974 - Za tradytsieiu narodnykh spivtsiv - Muzyka - #2, (pp. 24–25)
*1975 - Banduryst Fedir Zharko - in NTE, #3
*1978 - Kobzars'ka dialnist' I. I. Kuchenura-Kucherenko - NTE- #4 (p. 42-49)
*1979 - Poklykannia - Muzyka, - #2 (p. 24)
*1980 - Bandurist Mykola Opryshko - in NTE - #4
*1980 - (with Kyrdan, B.) - Narodni spivtsi-muzykanty na Ukraini - Kiev.
*1989 - (with S. Bashtan) - Handbook for the bandura - Kiev.
Students
K. Novytsky, V. Kushpet
Sources
* Zheplynsky, B. - Kobzari Bandurysty - Lviv, 1999
* Necrolog published in NTE 1981 #4
Bandurists
Kobzarstvo
1926 births
1981 deaths
Ukrainian composers
20th-century composers
{{Ukraine-musician-stub