“One Year Later: Onwards to Victory” Featured Artists
As we lead up to the one-year anniversary of Russia’s full-fledged invasion of Ukraine, we are showcasing the wonderful talent performing at the “One Year Later: Onwards to Victory” Fundraiser.
DUMAI DUNAI - ‘Your favourite uncle’s favourite kitchen party soundtrack’
Montreal-based Dumai Dunai has an eclectic sound. Formed in 2021, they bring the deep grooves of dub and the energy of punk rock to ancient Slavic singing styles and the euphoric fury of Balkan wedding brass bands. This band is on a mission, and the mission is to make you dance.
Lead singers Natalia Telentso and Eli Camilo sing and write lyrics in several languages, including Ukrainian, English, Serbian, French, and the diverse band has members originally from Ukraine, Bulgaria, Canada, and the USA.
Dumai Dunai has been honoured to share the stage with artists including the Barr Brothers, Socalled and Balaklava Blues, and have played festivals such as Pop Montreal, Ashkenaz Festival (Toronto), Mondo Karnaval (Quebec City), and Bloor West Village Toronto Ukrainian Festival.
Featuring past and present members of Boogat, the Lemon Bucket Orkestra, Orkestar Kriminal, and Kaba Horo, Dumai Dunai is currently working on their debut album, to be released mid-2023.
Band members:
Eli Camilo - trumpet, vocals
Natalia Telentso - vocals
Conrad Gluch - saxophone
Emily Ferrel - trombone
Jordan Markov - drums
Kaloyan Mihaylov - bass
Kevin Moquin - guitar
SING WITH UKRAINE
Sing with Ukraine is a grassroots effort started after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb 24th. What began as a gathering of friends processing grief through song, has now become a mission to revive endangered Ukrainian polyphonic singing tradition, wake up the wider community from indifference, and raise vital funds to support numerous Ukrainian humanitarian causes.
BLISK
BLISK is an all-female musical trio that focuses on the synthesis of Balkan and Slavic polyphonic song and dance backed by hypnotic percussion and melodies. It is an ethereal musical journey traveling through Ukraine, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Serbia and beyond. The members of BLISK hail from Canada, Ukraine and Kazakhstan.
ANDREA KUZMICH GROUP (with Jaash Singh on percussion + Michael Herring on bass)
Savour Andrea Kuzmich’s jazz-fusion-eclectic-world musical voice. Whether solo guitar and voice, or accompanied with percussion, horn or more, Andrea features an extensive repertoire of tunes from various musical traditions with fresh arrangements and stylings that “draw her listeners into a world of sensuality” (Rudy Blair 680 News).
As an award winning singer, a teacher, an ethnomusicologist, composer/arranger, and mother, she has performed and/or recorded with numerous artists, ensembles and choirs: from Whitney Smith’s Big Steam Band to the conventional SATB Choir of Trinity-St. Paul's United Church or the exquisite chamber style of the Aradia Ensemble; from the contemporary improvised new music provided for the soundtracks of The Witch and The Tall Grass or the backing vocals to Tanya Tagaq, to the ultra traditional folk musics of Darbazi, ZARI, Ori Shalva, Kalendar and Sing With Ukraine.
ANTONINA ERMOLENKO
Ukrainian-Canadian dramatic soprano Antonina Ermolenko is fast gaining international acclaim for her “diva’s vocal technique and dramatic flair”, along with her sense of “lyricism and emotional depth”. A disciple of Martina Arroyo, Antonina’s musical approach hearkens back to the Golden Age of opera, while infusing her own unique, character-driven approach to the art form.
Antonina has sung all over North America and Europe, with companies such as the Godoni Theatre, the New Opera Lyra Ottawa, Opera Classica Europa, and the New York Lyric Opera; with orchestras such as the National Arts Centre Orchestra, the Johann Strauss Orchestra, and the Thuringian Philharmonic. She has performed in venues such as the Glenn Gould Studio in Toronto, the Danny Kaye Playhouse in New York, and the historical Ekhof Theater in Gotha. Upcoming performances include opera and recitals in Rome, Montreal, Ottawa, and Toronto.
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NASTASIA Y
Born in Ukraine, Nastasia Y [nas-TA-s’yah] blends folk tradition with futuristic ideals. Her music is inspired by the vibrant multicultural city of Toronto, Canada, which she now calls home: fusing elements of pop, jazz, soul, electronica, and ancestral sounds into her work.
Nastasia grew up in Kyiv listening to Ukrainian resistance songs of her late father, Kost’ Yerofeyev from the band Ruthenia, who was at the forefront of the Ukrainian independence movement in the late 80’s. Once in Canada, she completed a jazz piano degree at Humber College, as well as an “Associate of the Royal Conservatory” in classical music. She fell in love with soul and motown music, and released her first album “Set The Water Straight” in English (as Stacey Y) in the style of r&b. She went back to exploring her culture, performing and recording in multiple languages with projects such as DoVira, BLISK, “Sing With Ukraine”, and many other collaborations.
Her main project, Nastasia Y, is a pop-jazz-rock band that combines all her influences, featuring KC Roberts, Rob Christian and other top musicians in Canada. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Nastasia has been fundraising, volunteering in Poland, and speaking out for her country’s struggle of repression. She is currently getting ready to release her new album in 2023 on Lulaworld Records, recorded with the Juno-award winning co-producer Justin Gray.
LEEN HAMO
Leen is a newcomer artist from Syria. Over the past four years, music provided her with a safe space and strength. Singing gave her the power she needed to express her identity. Leen started her music education in Aleppo at the age of 8 years old.
Her passion for classical Arabic led her to the Canadian Arabic Orchestra, where she has been performing as a choir singer. Leen co-founded Diar and was the lead vocalist of the band. She received the newcomer artist award from Toronto Art foundation in 2019.
Her last project is Kazdoura, serves up modern fusion Arabic music, their style is a cross-cultural blend of Eastern and Western music that blends Arabic with jazz, funk and disco. They released their first EP in 2022. In her originals with kazdoura, Leen talks about the struggles of surviving destruction. Recently, she was featured at Sultans of String latest album “Sanctuary”.
ORI SHALVA
Ori Shalva (the Makharashvili singing family) doesn’t just perform Georgian polyphony. When they sing the visceral harmonies of the millenia old singing tradition, they transcend space and time, and take you on a far-off musical journey of Sakartvelo (aka Georgia), a small and ancient mountainous country located on the borders of Asia and Europe.
The singing family unit has played an important role in the preservation of Georgian polyphony, a musical form recognized by UNESCO as an intangible masterpiece of humanity. Singing for Ori Shalva, like most Georgian singing families, is natural, instinctive, and was originally framed by family celebrations, not staged performances. Unlike other Georgian singing families, however, they are based in Toronto, halfway around the world from the source.
Ori Shalva have sung in venues around Toronto, parts of the States, and all over Georgia. The pandemic restrictions raised their grassroots beginnings and they have now become a recognizable name through performances with SING!, Community Folk Art Council, Labyrinth Ontario, BLOKMUSIC, and other music presenters.
MYROSLAVA LUTSENKO
A classical and Jazz-trained pianist, singer-songwriter, DJ and life-long performer, Myroslava Lutsenko (a.k.a Mira Mela), has been fine-tuning her craft by utilizing music’s unifying force to connect people, places and stories through song. Drawing from her rich relationship to the world around her, her mission is to provide a nourishing experience via a mélange of influences, including her Ukrainian heritage.
DJ McHi
DJ who spins original mashups featuring Ukrainian vocals remixed overtop dancehall riddims and hip hop beats.
