Renowned musician to play Brandon Tuesday

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This article was published 29/01/2024 (599 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Renowned Ukrainian musician Maryna Krut will play in Brandon for the first time tomorrow at the Ukrainian Orthodox Hall, as she uses her music to help her country during war.

Krut, a well-known singer-songwriter and recording artist, has made performing with her bandura — a traditional Ukrainian instrument — a kind of missionary work for her. Ukraine is coming up on the second anniversary of war with Russia and Krut has been playing in war zones. Now she is on another mission to bring aid and raise money to save lives in her home country with a 20-city, cross-Canada tour. She plays in Brandon tomorrow.

She will bring her Ukrainian Orthodox hall this Tuesday, Jan.30. She says her English isn’t very good, but her passion for sharing Ukrainian culture through her music doesn’t need translation. Now in her late 20s, she had been playing what looks like an oversized guitar, with 65 strings, since she was seven years-old. She has partnered with Kazka Entertainment, a Toronto based group aimed at putting on events to raise money to aid the people of Ukraine, and they have planned a special candle-lit performance.

“My purpose is to introduce you to the incredible Ukrainian instrument, the bandura. I’m bringing you stories from Donetsk region and carols from Galychyna region in the west of Ukraine. We will immerse ourselves in the beauty of Ukrainian song; I will open the unique world of the bandura sound, unraveling it in a new way for each of you. The program will include Ukrainian carols and shchedrivkas, all time favorite songs and my original songs from various albums.”

This is Krut’s first tour of Canada and she hopes to raise money to purchase medical equipment for the front lines in Ukraine and special drones that will alert Ukrainian residents of impending attacks, to allow families to get to safety sooner. Krut herself has played for soldiers in combat zones and lives everyday with the fear of attack in her own neighbourhood.

“There is not fighting yet in the area (I live). But you know, almost every day we have a siren. But sometimes, like once or two times in a week, we have a warning. We have had some drones attack us. Right now, our sky is not safe,” Krut said.

Vadym Goreniuk, founder of Kazka Entertainment out of Toronto, is organizing the fundraising tour. He says their goal is to unite Canadian and Ukrainian cultures with Krut’s concerts.

“This is not like average Ukrainian concert for Ukrainian communities living across Canada. With Maryna Krut, we’re trying to connect Ukrainian and Canadian cultures and bring together the local Canadian audience,” Goreniuk said. “Music doesn’t have any language. This is something you can enjoy and you can feel it. Even without understanding Ukrainian language. This is magical. The atmosphere is super special.”

The evening, which runs from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., will also include an auction.

Tickets for the Brandon event are available at eventbrite.ca/e/krut-brandon-jan-30-first-canadian-tour-tickets.

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