Dear friends & readers, as the New Year approaches us with hopes new, I'm wishing you and your family a wonderful year ahead.
I take this opportunity to share with you theOkean Elzy greetings card that I created for our favorite rock band's official communication in French. :)
As you probably know, since March 2015 I’m in charge of Okean Elzy’s official communication in French. Thanks to this extraordinary and important experience, I’m since then in contact with some institutional stakeholders and with many French-Ukrainian independent associations.
Early November, I (Okean Elzy France) have been invited to participate to the:
1er Forum
des Associations et Initiatives Franco-Ukrainiennes
23 Jan. 2016 - 11.00 am to 5.00 pm
Centre Culturel d’Ukraine
(Cultural Center of the Ukrainian Embassy)
22 avenue de Messine - Paris
During this event, visitors will have the opportunity to listen to Ukrainian songs, to taste typical Ukrainian meals and to discover the activities of the French-Ukrainian associations that will attend to the forum:
Cultural associations: Literature, music, creation, art…
"It’s not unusual to describe a prominent political figure as a
figurative “rock star.” Well in the case of social activist, Svyatoslav
Vakarchuk, lead vocalist for Okean Elzy (the most successful post-Soviet
rock band in Ukraine), it happens to be literally true. The rock icon
is also a well-known advocate of Ukrainian national identity and was
named one of the 100 most influential people in Ukraine by the magazine,
Korrespondent. During his recent visit to the Wilson Center, we asked
him to explain his vision for the future of his country. That’s the
focus of this edition of CONTEXT.
Guest: Svyatoslav Vakarchuk
is a social activist and lead vocalist for Okean Elzy. He is also a
former member of the Verkhovna Rada parliamentary committee for freedom
of expression and information, supported the Orange Revolution, and
founded the non-profit, Lyudi Maybutnyogo (People of the Future). In
2005 he was named a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations
Development Program and the magazine, Korrespondent, ranked him as one
fo the 100 most influential people in Ukraine." The Wilson Center
Okean Elzy released the official video of their new song "Мить - Myt - The Moment" last Friday...
Okean Elzy - 2015 Photogr. Unkn.
'Мить - Myt - The Moment' -
Svyatoslav Vakarchuk
"I rarely explain how I write my songs... But 'The Moment' is a special song... I feel the weight of its history… maybe more than I can feel the words themselves… February 2015... Terrible news are coming from Eastern Ukraine: a huge number of people are killed or injured. The life of each of them changed dramatically. It is hard to imagine what a person experiences during wartime, what someone who is seriously injured is thinking of when he realizes that these might be the last moments of his life... I could not calm down until I wrote this song...
I wrote it in a few minutes, high on the emotion. I picked up my guitar: melody and words came easily to my mind and, within 15 minutes, it was completed... almost completed. I was missing a few words for a short but important "moment" and I could not find them... It was the last line of the song! I felt that I had lots more to say...
In late May, I visited a hospital. Before entering in a room, the doctor warned me that the guy I would meet had been injured during a battle and and that he miraculously survived after he endured inhumane conditions. A shrapnel ripped off his hand... And with this very serious injury he spent four(!) days in the freezing cold. All alone. All the other soldiers were killed or they died of the cold. Then, doctors had to amputate both his frostbitten feet... but he survived!
I was worried before meeting him, but only for a while, until I came into the room: I saw a confident and smiling man. He shared with me his optimism, his plans for the future and a kind of incredible spirit. In his soul, it was spring! And he was sharing it with the whole world! That evening, I worked on the song again and wrote the last line... the one that was missing until then.
You can not lose hope. You can not give up until the last moment. Maybe this last moment will bring spring... A spring which will be the beginning of a new life. A spring that you would like to share with the whole world."
Please, read the English translation of this song here.
Okean Elzy - « Мить - The Moment » is available on:
They worked on the song: Words & music - Svyatoslav Vakarchuk Producer - Svyatoslav Vakarchuk, Vitaliy Telezin, Vladimir Opsenica Key string arrangements - Milos Jelic Guitar - Vladimir Opsenica Drums - Denis Glinin Bass - Denis Dudko Cello - Yuri Pohoretskyy Violin - Serhiy Okhrymchuk Duduk - Armen Kostandyan
Recorded with the National Chamber Ensemble "Kyiv Soloists" - Conductor: Milos Jelic
Recording, mixing - Vitali Telezin (in 211 and BZZ studios) Mastering - Gateway Mastering Studios; Mastering engineer: Bob Ludwig (USA)
They worked on the video: Production - VGNC NY Director - Misha Korotyeyev | Oleksiy Sobolyev Operator - Misha Korotyeyev | Oleksiy Sobolyev Executive Producer - Anna Sobolyeva Producer - Anna Vladimersʹka Art Director - Anton Kolisnyk Source: Okean Elzy Official
