Borys Liatoshynskyi and the artists of Lviv: epistolary notes to the biography of the artist

Abstract

The article looks into the cultural and artistic relations of the artists of Kyiv and Lviv based on the letters of Borys Lyatoshynskyi. The role of Borys Liatoshinsky in preserving the cultural significance of these artists despite Soviet cultural narratives is studied. The situation in arts was especially tragic after the 1948 decree “On the opera “Great Friendship” by Vano Muradeli”. The characters of Ukrainian artists of the Galytska school of composers — Vasyl Barvinskyi, Adam Soltys, Roman Simovych, Jozef Koffler, and Tadeusz Siegfried Kassern — have been reconstructed based on the correspondence. The epistolary legacy of B. Liatoshynsky testifies that Lviv runs through his creative path as a red thread, bringing into the orbit of our attention both personal relationships with the city (his visits, social life of artistic elite), and some collisions (often dramatic), which relate to the works of the artist. No city in Ukraine attracted the artist as much as Lviv: there he presented his works to a thoughtful listener and communicated with kindred spirits. The tragic pages of rejection and persecution of B. Liatoshynskyi’s largest works — the Second and Third symphonies — have been described and introduced into scientific circulation. The fate of the former appears to be the most tragic one in the history of Ukrainian musical culture during the Soviet times. Having considered the correspondence of the B. Liatoshinsky, we conclude that Lviv musicians always supported the artist in difficult years, appreciating his extraordinary talent. The feeling was mutual — B. Liatoshinsky felt sincere, tender love for Lviv, its profound intellectual atmosphere, its people, and the ability to maintain the true friendship of spiritually kindred hearts.