Book Talk: Marika C. Kuzma "Carols of Birds, Bells, and Sacred Hymns from Ukraine"

A book talk by Marika C. Kuzma, conductor, choral historian, and professor emerita of music, University of California - Berkeley

Moderated by Emily Frey, Assistant Professor of Music at Brandeis University and recent Visiting Scholar at HURI

About the Book

This anthology of Ukrainian carols, Carols of Birds, Bells, and Sacred Hymns from Ukraine: An Anthology and Cultural Companion, is a prism through which Ukraine’s history, culture, and vibrant spirit are revealed. It includes the original “Carol of the Bells,” music scores, translations, and the gripping narratives of choral activism that helped a nation survive. Ukraine’s abundant heritage of singing includes thousands of carols. This anthology introduces an ancient culture that is nevertheless new to world audiences. In this book, the carols become a prism through which all of Ukraine’s history, culture, and vibrant spirit are brought to light. It includes the internationally celebrated “Carol of the Bells”—in its original version as a winter song of gratitude and resilience, and it covers sacred and secular pieces for the Christmas to New Year’s season: from early chant to elaborate new choral fantasies. Transliterations and translations make the carols accessible to a broad audience. Along with music scores, it shares the stories behind each carol: historical context, biographies of composers, explanations of winter rituals. Written during Russia’s war on Ukraine, the book is also journalistic. These carols often carry gripping narratives of a unique choral activism that has helped Ukraine, its language, and its people to survive. [Source]

About the Speaker

Marika C. Kuzma is a critically acclaimed conductor and choral historian who has performed repertoires from many centuries and diverse countries. She has directed music by composers from the chants of Hildegard and Bach's B minor Mass to premieres of works by leading composers in venues such as Carnegie Hall, NYC, Stephansdom in Vienna, Austria, Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, USA, and the Kyiv Mohyla Academy, Ukraine. As a chorus master, she has collaborated with Gustavo Dudamel, Nicholas McGegan, Kent Nagano, and others. Last year, she prepared choirs for Keri Lynn Wilson in concerts of the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra and is about to lead concerts of these very carols with her chamber choir Ensemble Cherubim. Kuzma is a Professor Emerita of the University of California, Berkeley, USA. Her critical edition of Dmitry Bortniansky’s choral concertos (Carus Verlag, 2016), recording of the concertos (Naxos, 2013) and articles for prestigious journals have become valuable resources for choral musicians internationally. She has given invited talks at universities across North America and at the Kyiv and Moscow conservatories. Her most recent publication is Carols of Birds, Bells, and Sacred Hymns from Ukraine: An Anthology and Cultural Companion (Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2024). Of Ukrainian descent, she is honored to create this bridge to the culture of her forebears.

This event is organized by the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute as part of the Seminar in Ukrainian Studies public event series.

Persons with disabilities who wish to request accommodations or who have questions about access should contact HURI Programs Manager, Megan K. Duncan Smith, at least two weeks in advance of the session.

Watch videos of past HURI events on our YouTube Channel and subscribe to our email list to receive announcements about events and other activities.