Oleksandr Saratsky (born 28 January 1961, Kyiv, Ukrainian SSR, USSR) is a Ukrainian composer, musicologist, conductor, teacher, Honoured Artist of Ukraine (2020).
He was born in Kyiv on 28 January 1961 in the family of musicologist and teacher Alla Arkadiivna Saratska and engineer Naum Yefymovych Saratskyi. From 1966 to 1975, he studied at a secondary school and the V. Kosenko Kyiv Children's Music School No. 3, where he was a violinist. In 1975, he entered the Theoretical Faculty of the R. M. Glierya Kyiv State Music College (now the R. M. Glierya Kyiv Municipal Academy of Music). After graduating from the music school in 1979, he served in the army for two years, where he composed 6 overtures and more than 200 arrangements of marches, songs and dances for brass band. Since 1981, he has been working as an artist of the Khmelnytsky, Pskov Philharmonic and Ukrconcert.
From 1983 to 1988, O. Saratsky studied at the Rimsky-Korsakov Leningrad Conservatory at the Theory and Composition Faculty as a musicologist, after which he defended his thesis on "Fusion as a Phenomenon of Contemporary Music" (supervised by Professor Lyudmyla Kovnatska), one of the first studies of jazz in the Soviet Union at that time. In 1987-1991, he played in the Ukrainian rock band of the Cherkasy Philharmonic "XX Century", and in 1989 he became the band's musical director. During this period, O. Saratsky experimented with a combination of symphonic, jazz and rock music, using the intonations of Ukrainian folklore. Under Saratsky's leadership, the rock band XX Century took part in international festivals and won awards in various competitions. During this period, he composed about twenty songs, several plays and a Symphony for a rock band.
Teaching activity
Since 1995, O. Saratsky has been working at the Kyiv Evening Music School named after K. Stetsenko, teaching music literature and ensemble. His school ensemble "SaraBanda" is the winner of numerous city and district all-Ukrainian competitions, participates in festivals. In 2015, O. Saratskyi transformed his own ensemble into the SaraBanda school pop and symphony orchestra and became its artistic director.
Since 2004, O. Saratsky has been teaching the course "History and Theory of Jazz" at the Department of World Music of the Tchaikovsky National Music Academy of Ukraine. In 2017, he organised the Big Band "SaraBanda" and wrote a programme for the subject "Big Band". Under the direction of O. Saratsky, the SaraBanda Big Band took part in the X International Easter Assembly (2018), the Tchaikovsky-Fest Festival (Trostianets, 2019), the First Festival of Contemporary and Classical Music "New Music in Ukraine" (Kyiv, 2019), the XVIII International Jazz Festival "Unity", the First International Festival "Bravo, SAX!" (Kyiv, 2019).
Composing activity
Since 1977, O. Saratsky has been an active composer. His creative interests cover a wide range of performing compositions (from solo to orchestral works) and musical styles (classical, jazz, folk, rock). The arrangements of Ukrainian folk songs published by Musical Ukraine in the two parts of the collection "Tsvite Teren" are performed all over the world (Poland, China, USA, France, Italy, Canada, Kazakhstan, Russia, Mexico, India, Japan, Spain, Romania, etc.) O. Saratsky's arrangement of "Tvite Teren" was performed twice at Carnegie Hall in 2016 by the pianist of Ukrainian descent, Johnson Antonio Brasiliero. This performance was included in the National Register of Records of Ukraine as a solo performance by the youngest pianist (12 years old) in the concert hall.
Performance activity
Every year, since 2001, O. Saratsky gives solo concerts at the National Philharmonic of Ukraine. His original programmes are performed by the best orchestras of Ukraine and internationally renowned artists (Nina Matvienko, Bohdan Beniuk, Igor Slavinsky, Volodymyr Shpudeiko, Kyrylo Stetsenko, Zlata Ognevich, Anastasia Kamenskykh (NK), Tomara Khodakova, Dmytro Todoriuk, Pavlo Tabakov and others). The concerts are held with the participation of the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine, the Symphony Orchestra of Ukrainian Radio, the National Ensemble of Soloists "Kyiv Camerata", the National Ensemble "Kyiv Soloists", the Song and Dance Ensemble of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and the Academic Symphony Orchestra of the Kharkiv Philharmonic, Academic Chamber Orchestra "Virtuosos of Lviv", Academic Symphony Orchestra of the Crimean Philharmonic, symphony and chamber orchestras of Ternopil, Lutsk, Kherson, Kropyvnytskyi, Dnipro, Khmelnytskyi, Vinnytsia, Orpheus Octet, Alibi Duo, Prima Quartet and others. O. Saratsky's performances take place at well-known concert venues in Kyiv, Lviv, Kharkiv, Zhytomyr, Cherkasy, Khmelnytskyi, Sumy, Dnipro, Kherson, Kropyvnytskyi, Ternopil, Uzhhorod, Rivne, Lutsk, Chernihiv, etc.
During his military service (1979-1981) in Chernihiv, he performed more than 200 arrangements of songs and dance numbers for the large brass band of O. Saratsky, as well as 6 author's "Overtures" for government events. In 1980, the musical "Cat's House" was staged at the Chernihiv Theatre. In 1981, O. Saratsky took part in 30 concerts as a member of the Tovtry All-Star Vocal Ensemble. During 1982-1986, O. Saratsky gave more than 3000 concerts with the VIA "Kaskad" in the cities of Ukraine and the Soviet Union (Moldova, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Belarus, the Urals, Siberia). In 1987-1990, O. Saratsky made arrangements for the Ukrainian rock band "XX Century". During this period, they toured festivals in Moscow ("Rock Panorama", November 1987), Lisbon (January 1988), Mongolia (September 1988), Barcelona (October 1988), Brno, Ostrava (1989), and Prague ("Intertalent", 1989). During 1997-1999, the XX Century band played more than 1000 concerts in the cities of Ukraine and the Soviet Union. In the 1990s, the repertoire of the Theatre of Drama and Comedy on the Left Bank included a performance with music by O. Saratsky, The Lion in Winter. In 1998, O. Saratsky organised the ensemble "Dva Plus..." (now - "SaraBanda"), which in 2000 became a laureate of the international festival "Jazz Voices 2000" (Moscow).
O. Saratsky's author's concerts:
19.02.2015 - "Jazz Clavier" (with the participation of the "Prima" quartet)
03.02.2016 - "Jubilee Concert" (with the participation of the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine under the direction of Volodymyr Sirenko, as well as the Orpheus Octet, Zlata Ognevich, Anastasia Kamenskykh (NK), Anna Zavalska, Lana Merkulova and others)
16.02.2017 - "Kyiv - New York" (with the participation of Arkady Kofman)
06.02.2018 - "Jazz Fantasies with the Camerata" (with the participation of the National Ensemble of Soloists "Kyiv Camerata", as well as Aniko Dolidze, Anna Zavalska, Lana Merkulova)
21.02.2019 - "Swing at the Academy" (with the participation of the Big Band "SaraBanda" of the Tchaikovsky National Music Academy)
25.02.2020 - "With a Bow on the Keys" (with K. Stetsenko (violin) and the Chamber Orchestra of the Tchaikovsky National Music Academy under the direction of I. Andrievsky)
28.01.2021 - "Oleksandr Saratsky invites..."
Family
Wife - theatre and film actress, teacher Olena Vasylieva (b. 1958).
Son - composer, producer Dmytro Saratskyi (b. 1984).
Grandson: Ilya Saratsky (b. 2015).
Creative works
Works for symphony orchestra
Symphony No. 1 in F-dur (2005-2010)
Symphony No. 2 in G-moll (2008)
Symphony No. 3 in C-moll "2014" (2022)
Symphonic picture "Musicians on the Road" (2009)
"Fantasy" on themes by I. Dunayevsky (2005)
Works for instrument and symphony orchestra
for piano and orchestra
concertos
Piano Concerto No. 1 in F-dur (2005)
Piano Concerto No. 2 in G-dur (2006)
Piano Concerto No. 3 in C-dur (2009) (First movement)
Piano Concerto No. 4 in f-moll (2013)
Piano Concerto No. 5 "Beat Heaven" in Es-dur (2016) (I, II, III movements)
Piano Concerto No. 6 in c-moll (2018) (I, II, III movements)
Piano Concerto No. 7 in F-dur (2019) (I, II, III movements)
Piano Concerto No. 8 in D-moll (2021) (in three movements)
suites
Suite for piano and orchestra No. 1 (2004)
Suite for piano and orchestra No. 2 (2007)
for violin and orchestra
Concerto for violin and orchestra in d-moll (2018) (I, II, III movements)
double concertos
Double Concerto for violin and viola and orchestra (2012)
Double Concerto for violin and cello with orchestra (2020)
Works for choir and orchestra
Jazz cantata "Rukh" for choir and orchestra (based on poems by Ukrainian poets)
Works for brass band
6 overtures on patriotic themes (1979-1981)
2 marches (1979-1981)
more than 200 arrangements of songs, dances, marches
Works for instrumental ensembles
Quintet "Enlarged Prima" (2016) (I, II, III parts)
Quintet for wind instruments (1986)
Works for jazz ensembles and big bands
"Swing at the Academy (2018)
Overture on themes by P. Tchaikovsky (2019)
"Kolomyika" (2018)
"Two plus two" (2003)
"Double Breath" (2003)
"Two Views (2003)
Overture on the themes of Gershwin "Carols" (on the themes of carols)
Works for rock bands
Symphony for rock band "Critical Mass" (1988)
Suite for rock band (1988)
more than 20 arrangements for rock band ("Shchedryk", "I walk in the garden", "Galya carries water", "Oh, someone's horse is standing", "Oh, a girl walked along the shore", "A young woman sits", "From Kyiv to Lubny" and others)
Vocal works
A vocal cycle for soprano, baritone and chamber orchestra based on poems by Ukrainian poets in five parts (2004)
"Song about Lviv" (2011),
songs "Olimpo", "Fata Morgana", "Finale", "Chudo-Yudo" (1987-1989)
more than 50 arrangements of Ukrainian folk songs ("Shchedryk", "I walk through the garden", "Oh, someone's horse is standing", "Oh, a girl walked along the bank", "A young woman sits", "From Kyiv to Lubny", "Oh, in a cherry orchard", "Oh, in a grove by the Danube", "Oh, in a field there are three wells", "Vesnianka", "Wedding songs" and others)
arrangements of Chinese, Indian, Jewish, Georgian songs
Works for piano
Sonata for piano "Real-time" (2017)
Three Preludes ("Postlude", "Elena", "Sarabande") (2002-2003)
more than 50 arrangements of Ukrainian folk songs ("The Blackthorn Blossoms", "Halya Carries Water", "Oh, Someone's Horse Is Standing", "Oh, a Girl Walked along the Bank", "Kolomyika", "Unharness the Horses, Boys", "Oh, in a cherry orchard", "Oh, in a grove by the Danube", "Oh, in a field of three wells", "Why didn't you come", "A young woman sits", "From Kyiv to Lubny", Black eyebrows, brown eyes" and others).
Works for children
plays "Hedgehog Blues", "Jazz in the Carpathians", "Ragtime", "New Orleans Mazurka", "Playing Jazz", "Spirituals", "Swinging Together", "Jazz Duet" (2017)
Arrangements.
more than 300 arrangements of Ukrainian, Georgian, Jewish, Chinese, Indian, Russian, Belarusian, Azerbaijani songs for different compositions
Music for theatre
"Cat's House" (1980)
"The Lion in Winter" (1992)
Discography
"Two Plus..." (Symphocarre, 2001)
"Sarabanda" (Symphocarre, 2004)
"Blackthorn Blossoms" (Artwood, 2005)
"Wonderful World" (Symphocarre, 2009)
Publications
Musical compositions
"The Grass is Blooming" (first part), jazz arrangements of Ukrainian folk songs (Musical Ukraine Publishing House, 2010)
"Playing Jazz", pieces for violin and piano (Musical Ukraine Publishing House, 2017)
"The Blackthorn Blossoms" (second part), jazz arrangements of Ukrainian folk songs (Musical Ukraine Publishing House, 2018)
"Jazz. Steps on the keys", jazz pieces for beginners (Musical Ukraine Publishing House, 2021)
Musicological works
Diploma thesis "Fusion as a phenomenon of modern music" (original: "Fusion as a phenomenon of modern music"), supervisor Kovnatska Liudmyla Hryhorivna (1988, manuscript)
Titles, awards and prizes
Honoured Artist of Ukraine (2020)
