Mykola Lysenko

Mykola Lysenko was born in Hrynky, near Kremenchugsky Uyezd of the Poltava Governorate (now Kremenchuk, Poltava Oblast, Ukraine) on 22 March 1842. His family, an old aristocratic lineage with Cossack roots, was well-educated and wealthy. Lysenko's father, Vitaliy Romanovych Lysenko, was a colonel, and he had two younger siblings.

Lysenko began his music education at a young age, receiving piano lessons from his mother. He continued his studies in Kyiv, later attending the Gymnasium of Kharkiv and studying natural sciences at Kyiv University, where he graduated in 1865. He also pursued music studies at the Leipzig Conservatory from 1867 to 1869.

Lysenko developed a strong passion for Ukrainian music and culture, particularly influenced by peasant songs. In the early 1860s, he began collecting and publishing Ukrainian folk songs, producing seven volumes of arrangements and transcriptions between 1868 and 1911. His early works included settings of texts by Ukrainian poets, notably Taras Shevchenko.

His return to Kyiv in 1869 marked a commitment to musical nationalism, as he aimed to establish an independent Ukrainian music school. During this period, he composed his first opera, Chernomortsy, and worked to promote Ukrainian melodies.

Upon returning to Kyiv in 1876, Lysenko became a leading figure in Ukrainian music. He faced challenges from the government due to his support for Ukrainian culture, including monitoring and censorship. The Ems Ukaz decree of 1876, which prohibited the use of the Ukrainian language in print, forced him to publish some of his works abroad.

Despite these obstacles, Lysenko insisted on using Ukrainian for his opera libretti and refused to allow translations of his works, exemplified by his opera Taras Bulba, which could not be performed during his lifetime due to its ambitious nature.

In his later years, Lysenko focused on establishing a Ukrainian School of Music, now known as the Lysenko music school. His family continued his musical legacy, with his daughter Mariana and son Ostap both involved in music education.

Lysenko's influence extended to later Ukrainian composers, and he is honored through the Mykola Lysenko International Music Competition. Despite his significant contributions to Ukrainian music, he remains less known outside of Ukraine.

Lysenko was a prolific composer, creating numerous operas, art songs, orchestral, chamber, and choral works. His operatic repertoire includes notable pieces such as Natalka Poltavka and Utoplena.

He composed 133 art songs that reflect a blend of traditional Ukrainian music and Western classical influences, setting texts by various poets, particularly Taras Shevchenko. His patriotic composition, 'Prayer for Ukraine,' has become a spiritual anthem for the country.