At the Kharkiv Philharmonic, a concert recording titled “Uprising of the Organs — Art Unbroken by War” took place, featuring the first-ever performance in Ukraine of five organs playing simultaneously — the Alexander Schuke pipe organ and four digital organs brought from different regions of the country.
The ensemble was conducted by Senior Lieutenant Serhiy Lykhomanenko, a Ukrainian Armed Forces serviceman and head of the communications unit of the 5th Separate Assault Brigade.
The event was officially recorded in the National Register of Records of Ukraine in the category “Largest Organ Ensemble,” the 5th Separate Assault Brigade reported.
The concert program featured symbolic works by Ukrainian composers — the National Anthem of Ukraine, Mykola Lysenko’s Prayer for Ukraine, Leontovych’s Shchedryk, Viacheslav Nazarov’s White Symphony, and others.
The performance brought together different generations of the Ukrainian organ school on one stage:
• Stanislav Kalinin, a master of the Kharkiv tradition;
• Iryna Kalynovska, People’s Artist of Ukraine;
• Olena Bolyukh, international award-winning soloist;
• Polina Chorna, a young organist.
The unique arrangement for the five-organ ensemble was created by composer and organist YevheniнZhaku.
“‘Uprising of the Organs’ became a true cultural assault on Kharkiv — a city that stands strong every day. Here, the organs sounded like voices of memory, prayer, and resilience. The recording will become part of a multimedia archive of ‘organ music of wartime’ and will be presented to both Ukrainian and international audiences,” the 5th Assault Brigade reported.
The project was implemented with the support of the Ukrainian Cultural Foundation.