Ukrainian, Kazak, and U.S. music

On Friday, I thought I was going to listen to music at a bar with an ex-pat friend I met through an acquaintance from a literary death match in NYC.

The bar turned out to be an intimate gathering in a small theater room in an Institute for Music. There were as many musicians as there were guests, and I was afraid of getting asked to perform something. I think the show was sort of an after-event for the ongoing Gogolfest.

A young Kazak man sat cross-legged on the floor and rocked out on a mouth harp. A Bandura, an accordion, and a Dombura played the bluegrass hit “Old Joe Clark.”

A group of three women and two men in traditional Ukrainian garb sang about a young woman saying goodbye to her Kozak lover, and a ballad which, if I understood correctly, was both about children saying goodbye to their mothers, and the homeland no longer being free.

The Debutante Hour sang about rejecting a lover, parking in NYC, and wanting to meet the devil.

All the music was fantastic. I felt moved and happy.

We went out after the show. Here’s a picture my friend took with me and 1/2 of 1/3rd of The Debutant Hour: