High Castle Academic Instrumental Ensemble
High Castle Ensemble was founded in autumn 1997. All its members are professional musicians who are united by the idea of promoting Ukrainian classical and folk music. Since August 1999 this unique ensemble has been working in Lviv Philharmonic.
The Ensemble has a unique instrumental structure and its original style. Each participant not only brilliantly plays his main instrument, but a wide range of others thus performing works of different epochs, styles and trends in its authentic sounding.
Thanks to its high performance skills and the diversity of performed works the High Castle Instrumental Ensemble is a welcome guest at various events, conferences, exhibitions, presentations and anniversary celebrations, including the 90th UNR-ZUNR Reunion Anniversary (Opera House), opening of The Sacred Art Museum (Clement Sheptytsky Church, Lviv), opening of the exhibition ” Vasyl Vovkun Dreams”, 100th anniversary of the Lviv Art Gallery, opening of art sale exhibition Kunstmarkt (Rukkersfeld, Germany), the exhibition-presentation of the Lviv region (Kyiv), the exhibition-presentation of a new model «Volkswagen-Transporter» T-5 (Braunschweig, Germany), Lviv Philharmonic concert in honor of Pope John Paul II arrival to Lviv, Lina Kostenko readings in Bonn (Germany), the opening of art exhibition Meeresträume within the EXRO-2000 Hannover (Wilhelmshaven, Germany) and many others.
High Castle Ensemble has been a participant of many joint events with the participation of diplomatic corps and embassies of Ukraine in Germany (Bonn), Belarus (Minsk), Belgium (Brussels) and Poland (Warsaw). The Ensemble has also promoted Ukrainian art in the Russian Embassy in Berlin and in the Russian consulate in Bonn. In January 2001 High Castle performed at the opening ceremony of the Ukrainian Embassy in Berlin (Germany).
The ensemble has collaborated with dance groups from Canada, including Yevshan Ukrainian Folk Ballet Ensemble (Saskatoon) and Barvinok Ukrainian School of Dance (Mississauga); German choirs MAX-REGER(Brand) and ACORDIS (Elsenfeld); Avel Dro (France), Hinterberger Trio and Duo Zeitenklänge ensembles (Austria); art unions Kulturelles Komitee (Eupen, Belgium), Bleibuir and Rheihgauer Kunstverein (Germany); state German theaters in Kassel, Göttingen, Aschaffenburg and private theater in Den Burg.
The High Castle Instrumental Ensemble has toured not only Ukraine (concert halls in Western Ukraine, Poltava region, Vinnytsia and Odessa Philharmonics), but Poland, Belarus, Hungary, Belgium, Holland, Spain and Germany. It has participated in many international festivals, including:
– April 2000. – International East-West Musical Encounters, Zielona Gora, Poland;
– May 2000. – Virtuosos International Festival of Music Art, Lviv, Ukraine;
– June 2002. – National Chamber Ensemble Competition, Warsaw, Poland;
– January 2005. – Political Culture Festival “Maidan”, Kyiv, Ukraine;
– August 2005., 2006. – Young Artists Festival, Bayreuth, Germany;
– October 2006. – Bohdan Veselovsky International Festival, Lviv, Ukraine;
– August 2008r.- ethnic festival “Clean Bug Waters”, Verkhobuzh, Ukraine.
– May 2009. – Virtuosos International Festival of Music Art, Lviv, Ukraine;
– July 2009. – VIII International Folklore Festival “EUROFOLK – ZAMOŚĆ”, Zamosc, Poland
– April 2010. – Carpathian Spring Festival, Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine
– May 2011, June 2013. – Virtuosos International Festival of Music Art, Lviv, Ukraine;
– July 2014. – Lemko Vatra, Zdynia, Poland.
The Ensemble has released 4 CDs: “Pearls of Classical Music”, “Funny trip”, “Christ is born” and “Rebellious Tango”.
In May 2009 the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Ukraine awarded the High Castle Instrumental Ensemble with the honorary Academic status.