Let us sing you a carol

Kupalo songfolkComposerArranger

Mar 20

Written By andrew waller

Translated Text

Score Ukrainian

Score Transliterated

Let us sing you a carol | Ой, дозволь, пан-хазяїн | Oj, dozvol', pan-khazjajin

Arranger: Vasyl Stupnytskyj | Василь Ступницький

The carollers ask the Master of the House for permission to serenade him and his entire household and courtyard with songs of good cheer and wishes for a prosperous future. The song then addresses various aspects of his estate, including the steel fence that surrounds the grounds and the gold post in the middle of the courtyard on which sits an eagle. At the end, the Master of the House agrees to put on his sheepskin coat to join the singers in the courtyard. Ukrainian Christmas traditions reflect achievements of an ancient culture, impressive in the musical and contextual diversity of its songs and in the number of its carols and epiphany carols. There are two distinct groups of Ukrainian Christmas music. Koljadky (Ukrainian Christmas Carols) are sung in church alongside traditional liturgical texts and hymns from Christmas Eve (January 6, according to the Julian Calendar) to Epiphany (January 19). Shchedrivky (New Year’s songs), being much older and having pagan roots, are rarely sung in a liturgical setting given their secular themes of bounty and prosperity. These delightful and festive new-year folk songs of felicitation, with their charming and rhythmic melodies, reflect sectarian life and express wishes for health, happiness and bountiful harvests.

Koljadky and shchedrivky are an important part of Vesnivka's repertoire and have been sung annually since the ensemble was established in 1965.