Honcharenko brothers
Encyclopedia
Bandura
Bandura refers to a Ukrainian plucked string folk instrument. It combines elements of a box zither and lute, as well as its lute-like predecessor, the kobza...
-makers (bandura luthiers) and designers in the Ukrainian diaspora
Ukrainian diaspora
The Ukrainian diaspora is the global community of ethnic Ukrainians, especially those who maintain some kind of connection, even if ephemeral, to the land of their ancestors and maintain their feeling of Ukrainian national identity within their own local community.-1608 To 1880:After the loss...
.
Formative years
Peter was born in the village of Olshanytsia near KievKiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, in the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
. His interest, enthusiasm and aptitude towards music were demonstrated at an early age. When he first saw and heard the bandura at the age of 12, he set forth to build his own. With diligence and persistence, Honcharenko mastered playing his wonderful instrument without formal training. Unknowingly, he had dedicated himself to a lifetime of perpetuation of the bandura art.
Bandura design
They first set up a workshop in GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
at the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. They were not just bandura makers, but innovative constructors who developed new types of instruments. In the workshop of the Ukrainian Bandurist Chorus
Ukrainian Bandurist Chorus
The Ukrainian Bandurist Chorus is a semi-professional male choir which accompanies itself with the multi-stringed Ukrainian folk instrument known as the bandura...
and the Leontovych Bandurist Capella
Leontovych Bandurist Capella
The Leontovych Bandurist Capella was a male choir whose members accompanied themselves using a Ukrainian folk instrument known as a bandura. It was established in the displaced persons camps in Germany in 1946 and had an active performance schedule up until 1949.In 1946 Hryhory Nazarenko together...
they designed and developed a new type of instrument which combined the best aspects of both the Kiev and Kharkiv style
Kharkiv style
The Kharkiv Academic Style of Bandura Playing is a specific way of playing the Ukrainian folk instrument bandura.The instrument is held in a way that allows both hands equal access to all the strings...
banduras. In the worshops they made over 50 instruments.
Initially they spent their time repairing instruments, and then began making new instruments for chorus members whose instruments were no longer salvageable. After making a few Kiev style instruments and a copy of a Hryhory Paliyivetz instrument for Josyp Panasenko a conflicting question arose - "What type of instrument was the best to make?"
The Kiev style players insisted on Kiev style instruments which had a longer and louder sound because of their longer strings and larger body and had chromatic strings. The players who had been members of the Poltava Capella insisted on Kharkiv-style banduras - diatonic instruments with a mechanism hich allowed the players to play in different keys easily. The Kharkiv instruments had a shorter sound and both hands could play over the full range of the instrument. The retuning mechanisms however buzzed and were not reliable.
With this information the Honcharenko brothers designed an instrument which suited both playing styles. It allowed the players to play Kharkiv-style and have access to chromatic strings. They also designed a number of different mechanisms which were more reliable and did not buzz. These new instruments became very popular and were more sophisticated than the previous instruments. In time the whole Chorus received a full complement of new instruments.
The brothers established a workshop in Ingolstadt
Ingolstadt
Ingolstadt is a city in the Free State of Bavaria, in the Federal Republic of Germany. It is located along the banks of the Danube River, in the center of Bavaria. As at 31 March 2011, Ingolstadt had 125.407 residents...
which served the Shevchenko Bandurist Chorus. They made a large number of instruments and this meant that much experimentation in internal strut design was possible. At that time the brothers would get a carton of cigarettes for a bandura.
This Kiev-Kharkiv style bandura is often referred to a the "Poltavka" in recognition of the input from the members of the Poltava Bandurist Capella
Poltava Bandurist Capella
The Poltava Bandurist Capella was vocal-instrumental ensemble who accompanied themselves on the multi-stringed Ukrainian bandura. It was initially established in February 1925, based on a male church choir who sang in the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Cathedral in Poltava under the direction of...
.
In time the brothers both left the Shevchenko Bandurist Chorus (they were upset because they had not been paid for instruments which they had made for the Chorus) and together with Hryhory Nazarenko
Hryhory Nazarenko
Hryhory Pavlovych Nazarenko was a bandura player....
established a second Bandurist Capella named in memory of the Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych
Mykola Leontovych
Mykola Dmytrovych Leontovych was a Ukrainian composer, choral conductor, priest, and teacher of international renown. His music was inspired by Mykola Lysenko and the Ukrainian nationalist music school, along with Kyrylo Stetsenko, Alexander Koshetz, and Yakiv Stepovy...
in the British occupational zone. They established another workshop in Goslar
Goslar
Goslar is a historic town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the administrative centre of the district of Goslar and located on the northwestern slopes of the Harz mountain range. The Old Town of Goslar and the Mines of Rammelsberg are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.-Geography:Goslar is situated at the...
once again making banduras and in addition, trained craftmen in the art of making high quality concert banduras. In Goslar, the Honcharenko brothers also developed bass and contrabass orchestral banduras.
After the war they rejoined the Shevchenko Bandurist Chorus and moved to Detroit where they continued to train bandura craftsmen such as Vasyl Hirych, Pavlo Stepovy and William Vetzal
William Vetzal
William "Bill" Vetzal Born in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada, Vetzal is a full-time bandura designer and manufacturer.Vetzal studied the art of bandura making from the Honcharenko brothers in Detroit in the 1970s...
.
The instruments and mechanism designed by the Honcharenko brothers were used by bandurists in the Ukrainian Bandurist Chorus and became a standard design made by most bandura makers in the West.
In 1980, Olexander retired from his tool and die business and returned to bandura construction. He designed an updated version of their instrument with a more elaborate mechanism and soundbracing system. This design was the design used by Bill Vetzal.
Administration
Mykola Kaharlytsky, writing in (1995) cites Petro Honcharenko as saying that the UBC had become his beloved wife. As president and administrator he had endless responsibilities, ranging from soliciting sponsors and operating funds, to planning concerts and tours; from acquiring costumes and instruments to producing records and audio cassettes. Petro Honcharenko was quoted as saying: "I think I succeeded, for our concert performances were successful with rave reviews from the press. I invested my health and energy in the best interest of the UBC's tradition of instrumental and choral excellence."Mr. Honcharenko dedicated over 40 years to the Ukrainian Bandurist Chorus. From 1949 to 1989 he oversaw 34 concert tours on three continents and arranged 550 concerts. But Mr. Honcharenko's dedication and vision did not concern itself only with the present, but also the future. To assure that the UBC had future generations of instrumentalists and vocalists, he supported and encouraged the organization of bandura camps. He provided instruction, and shared his engineering skills in bandura construction with academics and future bandura builders, among them Yukhym Pryjmak, Pavlo Stepovy, Vasyl Hirych and Bill Vetzаl, who still continues the tradition of crafting the chromatic Kharkiv style bandura.
In 1992 Ukraine's Ministry of Culture recognized Petro Honcharenko for furthering the refinement of the bandura instrument, and the propagation of "the art of the kobzari" by naming him Merited Artist of Ukraine
Merited Artist of Ukraine
Merited [Performing] Artist of Ukraine is a state honorary title of decoration awarded by the Ukrainian SSR and later Ukraine for outstanding achievement in the performing arts...
. With this decree, the government of Ukraine underscored Petro Honcharenko's lifetime achievements as important and significant in the annals of bandura development and artistry.
Bandura types
- Early Kiev bandura
- Diatonic Kharkiv bandura
- Semi-chromatic Kharkiv bandura
- Peter Honcharenko's bandura
- Alex Honcharenko's concert bandura
- Orchestral Bass bandura
- Honcharenko mechanism