Myroslav Skoryk

Myroslav Skoryk (Ukrainian: Мирослав Михайлович Скорик, born July 12, 1938 in Lviv) is a famous Ukrainian composer of diverse and impressive compositions. His music is contemporary in style and contains stylistic traits from two disparate folk traditions: Ukrainian and American.

Early life

Myroslav Skoryk was born in western Ukraine's main city of Lviv, which at that time was under Polish control. His parents were both educated in Austria at the University of Vienna and both subsequently became educators. His father was a historian and an ethnographer, while his mother was an accomplished chemist. Although his parents did not have special musical training, his mother played piano and his father played the violin. Their son, young Myroslav, was exposed to music in the household from an early age and took a particular liking to it. Although his parents influenced Myroslav's early interest in music, no less important was the fact that in his family was a very famous diva of the 20th century — Myroslav Skoryk's great aunt was the famous Ukrainian soprano Solomiya Krushelnytska.

In 1939 Lviv was forcefully occupied by the Soviet Union as part of the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact. Under the new Soviet regime many Ukrainian intellectuals were persecuted, including the Skoryk family which lost a number of members. In 1940 Lviv was occupied by the Nazis. During the Nazi occupation Skoryk's family vented their opposition to the previous Soviet regime. With the return of Soviet forces towards the end of World War II, Skoryk's family were deported to Siberia, and this is where Myroslav grew up. Myroslav's older brother enlisted in the Galicia division ended up in Rimini at the end of the War and emigrated to Australia.

Graduate studies and early works

In 1955-1960 years Skoryk studied in Lviv Conservatory, he received a solid foundation in composition and theory. Skoryk states "My teachers were well known composers and educators, including Stanislav Liudkevych, a graduate of the Vienna Conservatory, Roman Simovych a graduate from the Prague Conservatory in 1933, and Adam Soltys (1890-1968), a graduate of the Berlin Conservatory." Skoryk’s final exam piece was a Cantata 'Vesna' (Spring), on verses of Ivan Franko for soloists, mixed choir and symphonic orchestra. Skoryk also wrote some piano music during this time, including a cycle of piano pieces 'V Karpatakh' ('In the Carpathian Mountains) and the 'Piano Sonata in C thus evoking a predilection toward this genre that subsequently gave him recognition and, to some extent, determined his creative direction.

In 1960, Skoryk enrolled in the postgraduate research program at the Moscow Conservatory where he studied with the celebrated composer Dmitri Kabalevsky. During this time, Skoryk composed music in a vast array of styles: symphonic, chamber, and vocal. Some works from this period include the 'Suite in D Major for Strings', 'Sonata No. 1 for Violin and Piano', and 'Partita No. 1 for Strings' which soon became a popular piece. In addition, Skoryk also wrote several piano works such as the 'Variations', 'Blues', and the 'Burlesque which gained much popularity and has been widely performed throughout concert halls around the world. His 'Burlesque' came to be a required work in piano competitions, most notably the Vladimir Horowitz Piano Competition in Kiev, Ukraine, and as pedagogical practice.

Teaching career

Skoryk graduated from the Moscow Conservatory in 1964 and took a teaching job at the Lviv Conservatory where he remained until 1966. Shortly after, he accepted a position at the Kiev Conservatory where he said, "Along with teaching composition classes, I also lectured theory classes that focused on contemporary harmony techniques." The subject of Skoryk’s dissertation, which he completed in 1964, concentrated on Prokofiev’s music, its title reads "Osoblyvosti ladu muzyky S. Prokofieva" (The Model System of Prokofiev). Skoryk also authored a book, "Struktura i vyrazhalna pryroda akordyky v muzitsi XX stolittia" (The Structural Aspects of Chords in 20th Century Music) (Kiev, 1983 Musical Ukraine Publishing House) as well as numerous articles.

In 1996 he lived for a time with his family in Australia and received Australian citizenship, but later he returned to live in Ukraine.

Works

Myroslav Skoryk is an accomplished composer, as well as pianist and conductor. Many works by Skoryk are performed by leading ensembles and soloists including Leontovych Quartet, Oleh Krysa, Volodymyr Vynnytsky, Oleg Chmyr, Mykola Suk, Victor Markiw and Alexander Slobodyanik.

The most significant document on Skoryk written in the English language is a book authored by University of New Haven Professor Victor Markiw titled "The Life and Solo Piano Works of the Ukrainian Composer Myroslav Skoryk" published in 2010 by the Edwin Mellen Press.

External links

• Ukrainian Composers Database
• Skoryk's entry from Ukrainian Musicians Directory

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Name	Skoryk, Myroslav
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Date of birth	July 12, 1938
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