Kulyk Yurii Ivanovych (* June 2, 1937 - † October 17, 1988) was a Soviet Ukrainian choral conductor, Honored Artist of the Ukrainian SSR, conductor of the Ukrainian Song Choir of the Kharkiv Philharmonic, professor at the Kharkiv Institute of Arts, head of the Department of Choral Conducting, vice-rector of the Kharkiv Institute of Arts, head of the Kharkiv branch of the Music Society of the Ukrainian SSR.
Biography.
He received his education at the Moscow Choral School. While studying, he began to make choral arrangements of Ukrainian folk songs and national composers: "Letila Zozulya", "Zorya my vespernya", "Shchedryi vesper", "Zaplyuyte zhe, rozhenka mesylya".
After graduating from the choral school, he entered the Kharkiv State Conservatory in the class of Professor Zynoviy Zahranichnyi. In his third year of study, he became the conductor of the Conservatory's student choir.
In 1965, he became the chief conductor and artistic director of the student choir of the Kharkiv State Conservatory. It was the first time that large-scale choral works were performed in Kharkiv:
A. Akhinian's cantata Sayat Nova for soloist, choir and orchestra,
Gounod's Gallia cantata for mixed choir, soloist, and organ,
O. Flarkowski's oratorio "And the world is looking at us",
M. Skoryk's cantata "Man" based on poems by E. Mezelaitis.
After the opening of the House of Organ and Chamber Music in Kharkiv, the program of thematic choral music concerts resumes. For the first time, choral cycles by S. Taneyev, K. Stetsenko, B. Liatoshynsky, works by composers I. Kovach, A. Haydenko, M. Stetsun, V. Drobyazhina, T. Kravtsov, and H. Tsytsalyuk are performed here.
He recorded choral music on the city and republican radio.
Simultaneously with his duties as the head of the Kharkiv Regional Choral Society, he organized tours of the choir of conservatory students and an amateur chamber choir in the cities of the then USSR.
He arranges romances that are included in the collection "The Academic Choir Sings." "I bless you, forests" by P. Tchaikovsky, "For the shores of the distant fatherland" by A. Borodin, "Zhenka's Romance" by K. Molchanov, "Arioso materia" by A. Novikov from the cantata "We Need Peace".
With his support, the following were created:
Chamber Choir of the Slobozhanshchyna Music Society - artistic director Professor V. Palkin,
the folk choir "Vizerunok" of the KHARTSYZSK PIPE PLANT - artistic director, Honored Worker of Culture Ivan Bidak,
Khartsyzsk Pipe Plant folk choir "Serpanok" - artistic director - Vladimir Chichkan.
For several decades, he directed the teachers' choir of the Kharkiv Regional Teacher's House.
Among his students are Honored Artist of Ukraine V. Irkha, Honored Artist of Ukraine E. Kuzma, Honored Worker of Culture of Ukraine Vyacheslav Oparin, Honored Worker of Culture of Ukraine V. Churilov.
On October 21, 2021, a significant and long-awaited event took place at the Kharkiv National University of Arts named after I. P. Kotlyarevsky - the unveiling of a memorial plaque to the famous conductor, choirmaster, arranger, Honored Artist of Ukraine Yuriy Ivanovych Kulyk (1937-1988).
