MARIANA SADOVSKA: SONGS I LEARNED IN UKRAINE
CD from Global Village Music, 2001.

Mariana Sadovska was born in the Ukraine and has learned all of her songs from traditional informants so one assumes that the style is fairly close to the way they sang them. This is interesting, as her delivery often seems very dramatic compared to the norms for Irish, Scottish, English, or American traditional singers. She judiciously overdubs a second vocal a times, and the instrumental accompaniment is limited to a harmonium. The spare presentation suits the songs, which are varied and evocative. Some have the ardent but doleful quality associated with Russian songs, and others may remind the listener of Bulgarian music, but repeated listening makes it plain that this tradition is very distinct. Sadovska's vocal quality is fragile compared with that of Bulgarian singers, which lends an engaging, vulnerable quality to the singing. Strongly recommended, especially in view of the dearth of recordings of Ukrainian music.
(DB) Dirty Linen June / July 2002 #100

Global Village also tries to record new CD's with artists that still bring music from their own ethnic background. Mariana Sadovska brings songs she learned in Ukraine (cd819). Sadovska makes it very clear that she didn't learn these songs from a book but from specific women she met in her live. She realizes that one day she also has to teach these songs to other people so that the tradition lives on. This CD is a first step to make sure the songs won't be forgotten. She accompanies herself on Harmonium. A friendly CD sung with a strong but sweet voice… I enjoy this CD very much and I'm surprised by the way Sadovska is able to give power to her music.
Eelco Schilder, Folk World/ December 2001

People who love old Ukrainian folk songs will be happy to hear the new CD Mariana Sadovska: Song I Learned in Ukraine. The singer retains the dialect and regional manner of the songs... Mariana's voice is pleasant, flexible and has a wide range. Her training allows her to present the songs with many unusual techniques, including Tyrolean-like yodels. The singer has the talent and delivers the content with emotional colors. She accompanies herself on a harmonium that provides the performance an appropriate characteristic, and its melody enriches the harmonies.
Bohdan Markiv, Svoboda newspaper, August 31, 2001

MARIANA SADOVSKA: SONGS I LEARNED IN UKRAINE

"I do not sing songs I find in books. Each song I sing was given to me by a specific woman I met. I heard the story of the song, I learned the way it should be sung and when. A song can be the way, the map that guides you through life. As I sing I hear these ancient Ukrainian songs live in me and I realize that some day I, too, will have to give these songs to someone."
-Mariana Sadovska

List of songs on CD:
1. Zrodylysia terky za horamy (Thornberries Ripen Beyond the Mountain) (3:19)
2. Cycle of wedding songs from Poltava (7:53)
3. Cycle of wedding songs from Polissia (5:11)
4. Sydyt Halychka (Halychka sits) (1:34)
5. Ide Mationka do domu (Mother Goes Home) (2:57)
6. Strokova (Song of the Indentured Servant) (3:05)
7. Oi davno, davno (It's been so long) (4:31)
8. Three Lullabies (3:34)
9. Oi plyve kacha po Tysyni (Oh a duckling swims on the Tysyna River) (4:04)
10. Pyiemo, pyiemo (We drink and drink) (2:16)
11. Shcho sontse zakhodyt (As the sun sets) (2:13)
12. Oi chy ia tobi matinko ne kazala (Oh, mother did I not say) (2:04)
13. Ivan-Ivan (3:15)
14. Burlatska (The wanderer's song) (3:38)
15. Vdova (Widow) (3:47)
16. Trinity songs (3:16 )
17. Oi voly-voly syvi polovi (Oh lead-gray oxen-oxen in the field) (4:39)
18. Cycle of spring calling songs from Polissia (4:19)


MARIANA SADOVSKA was born in Lviv and studied classical piano at the Ludkevych Music School. She worked with the Kurbas Young Theatre in Lviv, Yara Arts Group in New York and the Gardzienice Center for Theatre Practices in Poland. Since 1991 she has organized expeditions to collect Ukrainian folk songs in the villages of Poltava, Polissia, as well as the Hutsul and Lemko Regions.

Available on compact disk -- CD

To purchase CD: Make check out to: Yara Arts Group for $15, plus $5 shipping
Send to: Yara Arts Group, 306 E 11th St. #3B, New York, NY 10003 USA

for more information on CD or Mariana write to us at yara@prodigy.net.