Chary ukrajins'koho bahatoholossja. Ukrainian folk songs. A cappella. Golden Collection. (Charms of Ukrainian Polyphony)

No music instrument is able to surpass the force of expressiveness of the human voice – or almost unable. At least, it is with voice that they compare sounding of an instrument – when it sounds so beautiful and live that it seems to be a miracle. The cases when a violin cries, a flute sings, a French horn whispers are exactly from this series. And if the voice is the standard of expressiveness – there is also music in which it shows up most brightly. Naturally, this is the music in which voice appears as the only instrument – that is a capella music. Lately, variety and jazz variants of such collectives have become very popular, but, speaking largely, folk songs were initially always performed a capella. Some other instruments could be used afterwards, but at first there always was – just voice. Later this tradition was continued and developed by spiritual music – and only at appearance of jazz such singing made its way to the wide, popular scene. But let’s go back to the start, to folk music – as it is exactly Ukrainian folk songs that have been collected on this disk. This time the performance is not authentic – you will hear songs performed by serious professionals (some of them, as the State Honored Academic Folk Choir named after G.Veryovka, are professionals with the world-known name). You will hear it – and, I am sure, will not for the first time thank in your heart compilers of the "Gold Collection" series, their patience and taste. The ability to select from the whole enormous volume of funds of the National Radio Company of Ukraine such high-quality material, to arrange all that correctly is a great thing to do, tedious work. But the result is also – of the highest quality.