| "Oi, u luzi chervona kalyna" | |
|---|---|
 Image of a 1922 print of the song | |
| Song | |
| Language | Ukrainian |
| English title | Oh, the Red Viburnum in the Meadow |
| Released | 1914 |
| Genre | patriotic |
| Songwriter | Stepan Charnetsky |
"Oh, the Red Viburnum in the Meadow" (Ukrainian:«Ой, у лузі червона калина»,lit. 'Oh, in the Meadow is Red Viburnum') is aUkrainian patriotic march first published in 1875 byVolodymyr Antonovych andMykhailo Drahomanov.[1][2][3] It was rewritten in a modern arrangement by the composerStepan Charnetsky in 1914, and was subsequently used by theSich Riflemen of theFirst World War. The song has many variations.
The song "Oi u luzi" was in the repertoire ofFeodor Chaliapin.[4]
Thered viburnum (Ukrainian:червона калина,romanized: chervona kalyna) is a national symbol of Ukraine. It is a deciduous shrub that grows four to five metres tall.[5] A silhouette of it is depicted along the edges of theflag of the president of Ukraine.
Following theoccupation of Crimea in 2014, and then in 2022 theRussian invasion of Ukraine, singing "nationalist anthems" such as "Chervona Kalyna" inRussian-occupied Crimea became punishable by fines and imprisonment.[6][7]
RedViburnum berries (kalyna) are a symbol that has been a part of the Ukrainian culture since ancient times.[5] The text of the song derives from afolk composition dating from the times of the mid-17th centuryKhmelnytskyi Uprising, which was recorded by Volodymyr Antonovych and Mykhailo Drahomanov during theirethnographic studies in 1875. The song was popularized after being included into Stepan Charnetskyi's playSun of the Ruin (Ukrainian:Сонце Руїни), which premiered in early 1914. After the beginning of the First World War in the same year, it became adopted as one of the anthems of the Ukrainian Sich Riflemen, the first ethnic Ukrainian military formation of the 20th century. In 1925Chervona Kalyna was recorded in theUnited States byMetropolitan Opera singer of Ukrainian origin Mykhailo Zozuliak, also known for making a recording of theNational Anthem of Ukraine nine years earlier. In 1944 the song was issued as a recording for the second time with arrangement ofAlexander Koshetz.[8]
During and after theSecond World War,Chervona Kalyna was also used by theUkrainian Insurgent Army.[9][10][better source needed] Due to the song's association with the Ukrainian people's aspiration for independence, singing it was banned during the period in whichUkraine was a Soviet Republic from 1919 to 1991. Nevertheless, in 1961 a version of the song's text was published in a collection of historical songs issued inKyiv.[11] Open performances of the song became widespread in Ukraine during the late 1980s, when it was frequently used at protest meetings. Around that time a modified version of the text was created by Ukrainian dissidentNadiya Svitlychna.[12]
In March 2022, the song gained international attention when anInstagram video[13] of ana cappella rendition byAndriy Khlyvnyuk, of the Ukrainian bandBoomBox, singing the first verse of the song was remixed by different artists around the world. The melody was somewhat changed. According to Valentyna Kuzyk, in this variant, "the energy of the primordial breath breaks out of stable forms and enters a new life space".[14]
BoomBox wastouring in the United States when theRussian invasion of Ukraine started on 24 February. In response to the invasion, Khlyvnyuk cut the tour short to return to Ukraine to join the armed forces. He recorded the video while wearing army fatigues, standing nearSophia Square inKyiv, and uploaded it to his Instagram account on 27 February, where it became viral.
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The first artist to remix[15] Khlyvnyuk's rendition was South African musicianThe Kiffness in early March.[16] At the end of the same month, Ukrainian ice dancersOleksandra Nazarova andMaksym Nikitin performed to the song at the2022 World Figure Skating Championships in protest of the invasion.[17]
In April 2022,Pink Floyd made use of Khlyvnyuk's recording for the vocal track of "Hey, Hey, Rise Up!", a single and video that the band released in aid of Ukrainian humanitarian relief.[18][19] In the video, Khlyvnyuk's performance is projected behind the band while they are performing and is sometimes shown full screen. The song opens with a sample from another recording of "Oi u luzi chervona kalyna", by theVeryovka Ukrainian Folk Choir.[20][21]
Since then, new versions have appeared onYouTube,[22] including remixes of the original remix.[23][24][25]
Following the2014 annexation of Crimea, and then the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, singing "nationalist anthems" such as "Chervona Kalyna" in Crimea was deemed to discredit the Russian army, and was punished by fines and imprisonment. In September 2022, the Russian occupation authorities in Crimea jailed and fined members of a wedding party for "discrediting" the Russian Armed Forces by playing the song.[26] The singers of the song in an online video were imprisoned and fined.[27][28]
Sergey Aksyonov, the Russian leader of the Crimean peninsula, warned that authorities would punish people harshly for singing such songs. He said that "People who do this are acting like traitors", and that there was a specialFSB security service group working on the matter.[28]
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| Ukrainian original | Ukrainian Latin alphabet | English translation |
|---|---|---|
Ой у лузі червона калина похилилася, | Oj u luzi červona kalyna pochylylasia, | Oh, in the meadowa redkalyna has bent down low, |
Не хилися, червона калино, маєш білий цвіт, | Ne chylysia, červona kalyno, maješ bilyj cvit, | Do not bend low, oh redkalyna, you have a white flower, |
Марширують наші добровольці у кривавий тан, | Maršyrujuť naši dobrovoľci u kryvavyj tan, | Marching forward, our fellow volunteers, into a bloody fray, |
Ой у полі ярої пшенички золотистий лан, | Oj u poli jaroi pšenyčky zolotystyj lan, | Oh in the field of early spring wheat, there is a golden furrow, |
Як повіє буйнесенький вітер з широких степів, | Jak povije bujneseńkyj viter z šyrokych stepiv, | When the stormy winds blow forth from the wide steppes, |
Kalyna (guelder-rose) is a symbol that has been a part of Ukrainian culture since ancient times. Its meanings were transferred through the ages in legends and songs. A broken kalyna tree was a sign of trouble and tragedy; abuse of this tree was a shameful act. Ukrainian people carefully protected it because there was a belief that kalyna grew only next to good people. According to our ancestors, kalyna has a power that brings immortality and can unite generations to fight evil.
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