The Department of Theory and Methods of Teaching Arts Disciplines at BSPU Presents a Creative Project for International Music Day. Igor Shamo: “Music Is My Calling, My Life”

Ihor Naumovych Shamo was a prominent Ukrainian composer, virtuoso pianist, and the author of the music for Kyiv’s official anthem, “How Can I Not Love You, My Kyiv!”

The composer was born in Kyiv in 1925. In 1951, he graduated from the Kyiv Conservatory, where he studied composition under Professor Borys Liatoshynskyi. While still in his third year of study, he became a member of the Union of Composers of Ukraine. His outstanding talent and high level of professional mastery enabled Ihor Shamo to work successfully in a wide variety of musical forms, genres, and styles.

In the field of instrumental music, the composer often gravitated towards genre-based and pictorial forms of musical expression. These include the Moldavian Poem-Rhapsody, the Fluierash Suite, the Festival Suite, and other works for symphony orchestra, numerous pieces for chamber ensembles, as well as piano works such as Painters’ Pictures, Ukrainian Suite, Songs of Friends, and Hutsul Watercolors.

Ihor Shamo was a composer of profound lyrical talent and a gifted melodist. In his works, he drew inspiration from the intonations of Ukrainian folk songs and romances. He placed particular emphasis on programmatic music, vocal, vocal-symphonic, and choral works, turning to outstanding examples of Ukrainian classical and contemporary poetry.    The song, with its melodic and lyrical character, became a leading genre in the composer’s creative work. Shamo brought his own artistic vision to the genre, leaving a legacy of more than 300 songs. Among the best-known Ukrainian songs are “Oh, Little Willow,” “Do Not Rustle, Viburnum,” “Autumn Gold,” “Song of Happiness,” “Kyiv Waltz,” “Dnipro Waltz,” and the legendary “How Can I Not Love You, My Kyiv!” Among the diverse facets of Ihor Shamo’s creative heritage, his a cappella choral music occupies a distinctive place in the history of Ukrainian musical culture.

The composer left behind many fond memories and thousands of pages of sheet music containing extraordinary works that continue to captivate listeners with their beauty to this day. It is impossible to imagine the musical palette of Ukraine without the works of Ihor Shamo. He was described as “one of the most radiant and captivating personalities of 20th-century Ukrainian musical art.”

Halyna Yuriivna Hainetdinova, Accompanist,
Department of Theory and Methods of Teaching Arts Disciplines, BSPU

Viktoriia Akhmadzhanivna Bakum, Accompanist,
Department of Theory and Methods of Teaching Arts Disciplines, BSPU