One of the most beloved carols worldwide is said to have originated in the eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk. But this year, the streets are quiet except for the constant sound of heavy bombardment. While the mood is fear and survival, snow softly covers the empty avenues and skeleton buildings.
Now less than two miles (three kilometers) from the core of the city, Russia’s army targets Pokrovsk. Beyond the physical damage, Ukraine charges Russia with trying to eradicate its cultural identity—including the city’s great link to the eternal hymn, Shchedryk.
How Are Residents Coping Amid Fear and Destruction?
With homes disconnected from gas, power, and water, most of Pokrovsk’s population has departed. For those who stay, life is uncertain. 59-year-old resident Ihor reports ongoing danger: “Living on a powder keg is like to never knowing when or where the next shell will land.”
Echoing the feeling, 43-year-old Oksana says she is too terrified to leave her house. “I simply go out during a lull in the shelling to gather coal and wood to stay warm,” she explains. Her concern about Pokrovsk falling tempers her hope that Ukrainian forces can defend the city. She confesses grimly, “It’s hard to imagine it not happening.”
What Is the Legacy of Mykola Leontowicz?
The city has already prepared for the worst. The Shchedry reasons composer Mykola Leontowicz has Leontowicz’s down for security reasons. The once-vibrant music school bearing his name now stands vacant and boarded off.
Though less well-known in the West, Leontowicz is a cultural emblem of Ukraine. Living and working in Pokrovsk between 1904 and 1908, he produced the first compositions of Shchedryk. Originally a Ukrainian folk chant, the hymn became well-known worldwide after American composer Peter Wilhousky included English words, creating the Hymn of the Bells. Its popularity abroad was reinforced by its presence in the much-loved movie Home Alone.
Former Pokrovsk music teacher Viktoria Ametova says Shchedryk is “a masterpiece—the signature song of Pokrovsk.” For safety, Viktoria moved to Dnipro; many of the displaced people from Pokrovsk now work to preserve their cultural legacy.
How Does Shchedryk Evoke Memory and Longing?
Under a restored Leontowicz portrait in Dnipro, Viktoria watches 13-year-old Anna Hasych perform the carol on the piano. Though they left Pokrovsk in the summer, the Hasych family stayed close to their homeland.
“We won’t forget the history of our town,” Anna’s mother, Yulia, says as she watches her daughters practice. The tune reminds Anna of conflicting emotions. It seemed joyful when I performed it at home. It brought back Christmas and winter, she adds longingly. “Now it’s more of a sad song because it reminds me of home; I really want to go back.”
How Is Shchedryk Inspired Resistance?
For Ukraine’s military band, Shchedryk has evolved into a resiliency and defiance anthem. Playing it even in the trenches, the musicians-turned-soldiers use firearms as improvised instruments. “The beats and rhythms cheer up the guys on the front line and inspire them to fight,” says Colonel Bohdan Zadorozhnyy, their leader.
Roman, a 22-year-old soldier, shakes a rocket launcher casing loaded with rice. He said of the carol, “The pride of our nation, freedom, it’s in our souls. This music causes me to shiver.
“Shchedryk presents Ukraine as a civilized country to the world,” says Colonel Zadorozhnyy. We are fighting for our identity even in war.”
How Is Ukrainian Culture Being Preserved Amid Threats?
Although Pokrovsk might come under Russian control, its residents are resolved to protect their legacy. Angelina Rozhkova, the director of Pokrovsk’s History Museum, has already moved some of Leontowicz’s most prized possessions.
” Russia doesn’t only want to seize territory of Ukraine,” she argues. “It wants to eradicate our culture and everything priceless to us.” The inhabitants of Pokrovsk stick firmly to their motto: “Keeping and saving equals winning,” despite the unknown future.
Angelina notes the agony of possible loss. She says, “Our hearts and souls do not accept that we may never go back.” “That is why we are doing everything we can to preserve the past.”
Why Does Shchedryk Symbolize Resistance and Hope?
Leontowicz’s life was sadly cut short in 1921 following an attack by a Soviet spy. Still, his music is a potent emblem of Ukraine’s struggle for freedom.
Shchedryk connects the displaced people of Pokrovsk and empowers those on the front lines, still inspiring both happiness and grief. The city’s inhabitants reflect the resiliency of their most well-known song, a monument to hope even among devastation.
