Petro Drevchenko: A Kobzar of the Kharkiv School at the Turn of an Era
Petro Semenovych Drevchenko (born Drevkin; nicknamed Dryhavka; c. 1863—or c. 1871 according to other sources—in the village of Semenivka, Poltava Governorate; died 1934 in the village of Zaliutyne, now part of Kharkiv) was a Ukrainian kobzar and lirnyk (hurdy-gurdy player), and a representative of the Kharkiv school of bandura playing. He performed at the 12th Archaeological Congress in Kharkiv in 1902 and took part in kobzar concerts during the early 20th century. Folk music researchers recorded his repertoire and recollections, making him a key witness to the tradition of kobzarstvo.
Origins and Loss of Sight
Information regarding Drevchenko’s early years is scarce and somewhat contradictory. Encyclopedic sources cite the village of Semenivka in the Poltava Governorate as his birthplace. There are two versions regarding his year of birth: circa 1863 and circa 1871. The musician's real surname was Drevkin, but he became known as a kobzar under the name Drevchenko.
According to available data, he came from a family of domestic servants. He arrived in Kharkiv during his childhood and lived in the Zaliutyne area—then a suburban village that was later incorporated into the city. His entire subsequent life was linked to Zaliutyne, and it was there that he passed away.
At the age of 13, Petro fell ill and lost his sight. In the Ukrainian village of that era, such an event often determined a person's destiny. Blind children often became apprentices to kobzars or lirnyks, as itinerant singing offered them one of the few ways to earn a living and secure a place in the community.
Apprenticeship under Hnat Honcharenko
Drevchenko learned to play the bandura from Hnat Honcharenko, one of the most renowned Kharkiv kobzars of the late 19th century. Sources cite varying dates for this apprenticeship; the Encyclopedia of Modern Ukraine indicates the period from 1883 to 1897. Other sources state that he began his apprenticeship at the age of fourteen, studied for about four years, and upon completion, received permission to perform independently.
Such training followed the rules of the kobzar guilds—brotherhoods of blind singers that operated under their own organizational structures. An apprentice would live with the master for several years, mastering the instrument and learning the lyrics to dumy (epic ballads), psalms, and songs, as well as the brotherhood's customs and code of conduct. At the end of his training, he underwent the vyzvilka (initiation/release) rite, after which he became a full-fledged member of the guild and could perform on his own.
Contemporaries noted that the apprentice adopted many traits from his teacher. The ethnographer Ye. Kryst, who documented the kobzars and lirnyks of the Kharkiv Governorate in the early 20th century, observed that Drevchenko resembled his mentor. Due to his restless, energetic nature, he was nicknamed "Dryhavka" (meaning "Fidget" or "Twitcher").
A Representative of the Kharkiv School
Researchers distinguish several regional schools of Ukrainian kobzar tradition: the Poltava, Chernihiv, and Kharkiv schools, among others. They differed in terms of instrument construction, playing techniques, performance style, and repertoire. The Kharkiv school, to which Drevchenko belonged, had its own traditions regarding playing technique and the manner of performing dumy.
Drevchenko accompanied himself on an "old-style" bandura—that is, a traditional folk instrument rather than the later, modernized versions. He played a twenty-string bandura, featuring four bass strings and sixteen treble strings. This type of instrument was consistent with the folk performance practices of the late 19th century and allowed for the accompaniment of dumy (performed in a recitative style) as well as songs and dance melodies.
In addition to the bandura, Drevchenko is also remembered as a lirnyk (hurdy-gurdy player). This points to the breadth of his performance skills within the tradition of itinerant minstrels.
Performance at the 12th Archaeological Congress (1902)
The most notable event in Drevchenko’s creative career is associated with the 12th Archaeological Congress held in Kharkiv in 1902. The program of performances by folk singers at the congress was organized by Hnat Khotkevych—a writer, bandura player, and researcher of the kobzar tradition. For the first time, participants—including scholars from various countries—were presented with a wide-ranging showcase of live kobzar and lirnyk performances. This event marked a significant milestone in the study and popularization of the kobzar tradition.
Drevchenko performed at the congress both as a soloist and as part of an ensemble with other folk musicians. A group photograph of the performers from that event has survived, featuring Drevchenko among them. This performance brought his name to the attention of folk culture researchers, who subsequently turned to him as an expert on the tradition.
Concert Activities (1910–1912)
In the early 20th century, the art of the kobzar began to be heard increasingly on concert stages, moving beyond its traditional settings of fairs, churchyards, and village squares. Between 1910 and 1912, Drevchenko actively participated in kobzar concerts across cities in Ukraine, Russia, and Poland.
His playing was highly esteemed by leading figures in Ukrainian musical culture. Among them was the composer Mykola Lysenko, who made significant contributions to the study and popularization of dumy (epic songs) and the kobzar art form. Hnat Khotkevych also spoke approvingly of Drevchenko’s mastery. The folklorist and musicologist Filaret Kolessa classified Drevchenko as belonging to the so-called "concert type" of kobzars. He used this term to describe performers whose style incorporated elements of stage performance designed for a concert hall audience. At the same time, when comparing him to another renowned kobzar, Ivan Kuchuhura-Kucherenko, Kolessa noted that the dumy (epic songs) performed by Drevchenko remained closer to their ancient roots.
Repertoire
Drevchenko’s repertoire was extensive and encompassed the primary genres of the kobzar tradition.
Dumy. Dumy—Ukrainian folk epic songs performed in a recitative style accompanied by the bandura—held a central place in his repertoire. Notable examples include:
"About the Poor Widow" (Pro bidnu vdovu); recorded from Drevchenko in 1910 by the artist and kobzar researcher Opanas Slastion;
"Oleksiy Popovych";
"About Sulyma, Pavliuk, and Yatsko Ostrianytsia" (Pro Sulymu, Pavliuka ta shche pro Yatska Ostrianytsiu).
Spiritual verses and psalms. A significant portion of his repertoire consisted of works with religious themes, which were traditional for itinerant singers. Drevchenko is known to have known 42 such pieces, including "Mount Athos" (Hora Afon).
Folk songs and dance melodies. He also performed Ukrainian folk songs—such as "Chechitka"—and dance melodies. This aspect of the kobzar repertoire was typically performed in social settings and at festive gatherings. Such a blend of epic poetry, spiritual works, and secular music was typical for a professional kobzar of that era, who performed before highly diverse audiences.
An Expert on the "Ustyian Books"
Drevchenko’s familiarity with the inner workings of kobzar brotherhoods is of particular scholarly value. He was well-versed in the "Ustyian Books"—an oral corpus transmitted within the kobzar guilds and brotherhoods that formed part of their shared repertoire and customary heritage. These texts were preserved in the memories of brotherhood members and were not intended for outsiders.
Among the kobzars of the early 20th century, Drevchenko was the one who revealed significant portions of this oral tradition. A recording made in 1928 provided researchers with a rare source for studying the daily life, customs, and organization of the kobzar guilds—subjects for which few documentary records have survived.
Memoirs Recorded by Researchers
In 1928, Hnat Khotkevych and F. Dniprovskyi recorded biographical details about Drevchenko as well as his observations on kobzar life. The accounts of this seasoned kobzar—who had undergone traditional training and witnessed several generations of singers—became valuable material for the history of the kobzar tradition. Khotkevych wrote about Drevchenko in his Memoirs of My Encounters with Blind People (Vospominaniya o moikh vstrechakh so slepymi).
These records, along with the texts of dumy and the "Ustyian Books," are of immense importance: they preserved knowledge that was transmitted solely through oral tradition and might otherwise have been lost forever. The Soviet Period and the "Soviet Duma"
Following the establishment of Soviet power, the kobzar tradition found itself in a new situation. The authorities sought to leverage the prestige of folk singers for propaganda purposes. This gave rise to the artificial genre of the "Soviet duma"—works that mimicked the form of traditional dumy but carried an ideological message.
Drevchenko, alongside fellow kobzars Stepan Pasiuha, Pavlo Hashchenko, and H. Tsybka, was compelled to participate in the creation of such a work. This refers to the "duma" titled "About the Red Army, About Father Lenin and His Loyal Sons" (1923). Encyclopedic sources emphasize that this participation was forced.
Towards the end of his life, Petro Drevchenko was subjected to repression by Soviet punitive agencies. He died in 1934 in Zaliutyne, near Kharkiv.
Significance of the Figure
Petro Drevchenko belongs to a generation of kobzars whose creative work spanned a transitional era: moving from traditional itinerant singing within the framework of guild organizations to the concert stage, and eventually facing the ideological pressures of the Soviet period. His personal story mirrors the fate of the Ukrainian kobzar tradition as a whole.
He holds significance for the history of Ukrainian music for several reasons. First, he was a student of Hnat Honcharenko and a continuator of the Kharkiv school of playing the starosvitska bandura (traditional old-style bandura). Second, as a participant in the 12th Archaeological Congress of 1902, he was among those who first presented the art of the kobzar to the scholarly community on a broad scale. Third, dumy (epic ballads), spiritual works, and songs were recorded from him, as well as fragments of the "Ustiyan Books" and accounts of the daily life of kobzar brotherhoods—material of immense value to the fields of folklore studies and ethnomusicology.
Assessments by Mykola Lysenko, Hnat Khotkevych, and Filaret Kolessa attest to the fact that Drevchenko was not merely a bearer of tradition but also a recognized master of his time. His name stands alongside those of other prominent folk singers who ensured the survival of the ancient kobzar epic tradition into the 20th century.
