1. "Praise the name of the Lord" – (Psalm of David 135). Music by monk priest Nathanael (1866-?). Hieromonk Nathanael (Mykyta Bochkalo) was born in 1866 in the village of Sorokatyaga in the Kyiv Governorate. At the age of 16, he fled to the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery (Lavra), where he became fascinated with church music. After some time, he enrolled in the music academy and even sang at the opera house. However, in 1897, he took monastic vows and was ordained a priest. During the purges in the USSR, Hieromonk Nathanael was persecuted and convicted of religious propaganda in 1930, after which his fate is unknown. Most of the composer's musical works remain unpublished and remain in manuscript form in private collections.
2."The Angelic Powers Precede" and "The Mountains Exude Sweetness" – a sticherons for the Forefeast of Christmas from the Orthodox service on December 20. Traditional chant of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra.
The angelic powers precede,/ prepare a manger / in
Bethlehem:/ for the Word is born,/ Wisdom is produced,/
the Church receives a kiss./ To the joy of the Mother of God,/
O people, let us say:/ Blessed is our God who has come,/
glory to Thee!
Let the mountains pour forth sweetness, / for behold, God is
coming from the south, / Gentiles, submit, / prophets,
rejoice / patriarchs, leap up, / people, clap your hands: / the
Mighty and Great Prince / Christ is born, / the King of
Heaven / is coming to Earth.
3. "Oh don't sleep, don't sleep" - Ukrainian folk carol in the arrangement by Oleksandr Koshyts’.
Oh, don't sleep, don't sleep, good people! Today is the holy
night – because of the Nativity of Christ!
God's stars in the sky shine so brightly,
the Holy Christmas Night is illuminated.
Glory to God in the highest and peace on Earth!
With the angels let's glorify peace!
4. "We're Knocking on Your Door, Master" – a modern Ukrainian carol. Lyrics and music by Iya Khodorivska.
We are knocking on your door, master, let us sing you carols,
for today the world received good news: the Blessed Virgin Mary has given birth to a Son.
In the city of Bethlehem, in an old stable, little Jesus slept among the oxen.
And the good news has spread throughout the world:
the Blessed Virgin Mary has given birth to a Son.
Sincerely we're singing, glorifying God!
Wishing everyone happiness and health,
for today the world is filled with good news:
the Blessed Virgin Mary has given birth to a Son.
5. "Oh, high above the fields..." - Ukrainian folk carol.
Oh, a star shone high above the fields.
It floated across the sky above the fields and stopped above a cave.
Winged angels flew to the cave.
They began to sing and play for the Son of God.
May this Little One be honored and glorified!
May both evil and good people live in peace!
6. "Pure Virgin" - 16th century carol (arrangement by Petro Andriychuk).
The Most Pure Virgin gave birth to a son. Oh so, so early!
Rejoice, O Earth! Christ is born! Three glorious kings
obediently follow the star and bring gifts as to offer Christ.
And we will bow to Christ with them. Let us bow, let us glorify
with a sincere pure heart!
7. "Saint Barbara Built a Church" is an ancient Ukrainian carol-legend that contains a spiritual interpretation of the founding of Kyiv, the main center of Christianity among the Eastern Slavs. The very form of this carol is reminiscent of an ancient epic performed by traveling medieval minstrels. Saint Barbara was a martyr of the late 3rd century. A century after the Christianization of Kievan Rus', the Byzantine
princess Barbara-Irene Comnenus, upon her marriage to the Kievan prince Svyatopolk, transferred the holy remains of the martyr Barbara from Constantinople to Kyiv, where they remain to this day. Thus, Saint Barbara became a Ukrainian saint and the patron saint of Kyiv. Her feast day in Orthodox churches that adhere to the old Julian Calendar falls on December 17, or December 4 according to the Gregorian Calendar—the period of preparation for Christmas.
Saint Barbara built a church. Rejoice, rejoice, Earth! The Son
of God is born! (This chorus is repeated after each verse).
With three doors and three windows.
The sun shone through the first window.
The bright moon shone through the second window.
A bright angel flew in through the third window.
The bright angel flew in and shed a tear.
And from that tear flowed the Dnieper River.
The Dnieper overflowed, and Kyiv appeared.
Kyiv was built and crowned with the Holy Lavra*.
Rejoice, rejoice, Earth! The Son of God is born!
*The Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra is the oldest, largest, and most famous of Kyiv's monasteries, the residence of the Kyiv Orthodox metropolitans from the 12th century to the present day.
8. “Three Glorious Kings” – Western-Ukrainian carol.
- Three glorious kings, where did you come from? You were
walking from a distant land, following the star, to see the
true god Christ, born of Mary.
- We came here from the Far East, brought gold, myrrh,
incense, so that the Baby would rejoice and bless us. We will
praise him with songs. Christ God was born, incarnated in a
human body. Glory to the born and his mother!
9. "Holy Evening, Good Evening" - a folk carol arranged by Oleksandr Stadnik.
In Bethlehem, in a manger on hay, Christ was born for the
sake of universal salvation. Holy evening, good evening,
good health to all good people!
Rejoice, people, glorify Christ! Give glory to the Son of God!
Holy evening, good evening, good health to all good people!
10. “Oh, which one Son of God was born?” – Ukrainian folk carol.
Oh, who is the Son of God born? Oh, He who created heaven
and earth! The Virgin Mary gave birth to the Child—the
Most Holy Virgin Theotokos. Three kings came from the East,bringing Jesus Christ three gifts. The first king anointed him
with holy myrrh, and the second called him the Messiah.
And the third king called him the Born Holy God: let there be
joy for all the world! Joy to all humanity and to little
children—to this tree and its delicate branches!
11. “The Star Shines in Bethlehem” – the author of this carol is not definitively known.
A star shines in Bethlehem. Angels play there a golden
bandura*. The Most Pure Virgin gives birth to a son. There,
kings are playing a silver bandura. She gave birth to a son and
named him Christ. Shepherds play there on a copper bandura.
She gave birth to a son and laid him in a manger. There, bards
play on an ash bandura.
The carol ends with a prayer from the Holy Virgin to the
newborn God: "Dear son, these are your people! O, God! Give
faith, love, happiness, health to these people, give, o God!"
* bandura is a Ukrainian traditional string musical instrument.
12. "Eternal God..." - Ukrainian folk carol.
The Eternal God is born! He came from heaven today to save
all His people, and He was comforted.
In Bethlehem He was born – our Lord, our Christ,, and our
Savior. He was born for us!
Let us sing – glory to God! Let us honor the Son of God our
King and bow!
This concert program is the result of long-term cooperation and exchange of experience between the Ukrainian Orthodox community in the counties of Kerry and Cork, the West Cork Ukrainian Choir and the community of St. Mary's Church (Church of Ireland) under the rectorship of the Venerable Simon Lumby.
The West Cork Ukrainian Choir was founded in September 2024. Its core consists of the Ukrainians forced to flee the war in their homeland, but today the choir is joined by both Irish citizens and immigrants from other countries. The choir's repertoire is based on traditional Ukrainian choral music, but the singers are now also exploring Irish and other Western European musical works.
Last December, the choir already performed a Christmas concert in Killarney, featuring both the full choir and the male ensemble. This program, however, is our first attempt at preparing a concert for the all-male ensemble — a combined team from the West Cork Ukrainian Choir and Orthodox church choirs from Ireland.
We once again express our gratitude to the people of Ireland for their hospitality and support during this difficult time for the people of Ukraine, and especially to the Catholic and Anglican communities of County Kerry, who have provided their churches for both Orthodox services and Ukrainian creative activities for the past three years.
We hope you will enjoy the concert and get to know Ukrainian culture better!
