The 1980s
In the 1980s,the era of stagnation reached its peak. A confluence of factors — suppressionof activists, the arms race with NATO, economic and later political crises, intensifiedrussification of the population, the Chornobyl nuclear disaster and subsequentsilence on the part of the authorities — fostered widespread discontent withthe all-Union political course during the perestroika1 era. These dynamics culminated in the dissolution ofthe Soviet Union and the republics gaining independence. Both stagnation and perestroika significantly affected allaspects of life.
As for the Ukrainian art of the time, despite repressive measures, constant censorship, and the overall push for russification, Ukrainian music persisted in the underground scene. Performers who played ‘in basements’ had only a small circle of supporters. It was a music of protest and psychedelia, bands did not follow the rules and regulations of the era searching instead for a new sound and creating at the intersection of diverse styles and images. Prominent underground bands from this period include Tsukor — Bila Smert, 999, Zhaba v dyryzhabli and others.
Serhii Edemskyi, accordion player of the Zhaba v dyryzhabli band
The pinnacle of the Ukrainian musical revival was the 1989 Chervona Ruta festival in Chernivtsi. Anatolii Kalenychenko, Ivan Malkovych, Taras Melnyk, Oleh Repetskyi, and Kyrylo Stetsenko developed the festival’s concept and miraculously organised it under the guise of ‘cultural and educational work with youth’. This national-scale event posed an unprecedented challenge to the authorities. Furthermore, it marked one of the first steps towards Ukraine’s cultural independence, free from the Soviet-imposed narratives of Ukrainian music as inferior, suitable only for comedic repertoires and primitive folkthemes.
The 1989 Chervona Ruta festival in Chernivtsi was the culmination of the Ukrainian musical revival, demonstrating the independence of Ukrainian music and becoming the first step towards Ukraine’s cultural freedom.
In 1989, songs with clear political undertones echoed from the stage in Chernivtsi. The Chervona Ruta festival paved the way for the popularity of bands such as Sestrychka Vika, Braty Hadiukiny, Vopli Vidopliasova, Komu Vnyz, and artists like Marichka Burmaka, Andrii Mykolaichuk, Viktor Morozov, Taras Chubai, and many others. Their repertoires featured original and popular songs, with genuine modern rock also appearing. A landmark moment occurred when kobzar2 Vasyl Zhdankin publicly performed Ukraine’s national anthem for the first time. Anti-Soviet slogans and Ukrainian symbols were widespread at the festival, leading to concern from the state apparatus, the confiscation of blue-and-yellow symbols, and the violent suppression of Lviv students by militsiia.This unrest ultimately led to the cancellation of the final concert.
Vasyl Zhdankin, the Grand Prix winner of the Chervona Ruta youth music festival. Chernivtsi, September 1989
Despite everything, the 1989 Chervona Ruta festival brought together talented musicians. People not only in Ukraine but also around the world heard a modern Ukrainian song full of deep patriotic meaning.
1. Perestroika is the political, social, and economic changes that happened in the Soviet Union during the late 1980s. The literal meaning of perestroika is ‘restructuring’.
2. Kobzar is a traditional Ukrainian bard, often blind, who performed epic ballads (dumy) and folk songs, accompanying themselves on the bandura or kobza. They played a key role in preserving Ukrainian culture and history through oral tradition.
Kyiv, 6-A Pyrohova St
