Mykhailo Pavlovych Teliha (Михайло Теліга; 14 (21) November 1900 – 21 February 1942) was an active

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...

community leader and distinguished musician. He was born in the Akhtyrka Stanitsa in the Kuban. It is here that he first became interested in playing the

bandura A bandura ( uk, банду́ра) is a Ukrainian plucked string folk instrument. It combines elements of the zither and lute and, up until the 1940s, was also often referred to by the term kobza. Early instruments (c. 1700) had 5 to 12 strings ...

in 1913. He trained initially as a forester and engineer and later he completed medical studies to become a doctor. In 1918, he moved to

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe. Kyi ...

to aid in the establishment of the newly independent Ukraine. There he became a member of the Kobzar Choir under the direction of

Vasyl Yemetz Vasyl' Kostovych Yemetz ( uk, Василь Костьович Ємець; 15 December or 27 December 1891 – 6 January 1982) (2 August 1890 – 4 January 1982) (also went by Wassyl, Vassyl) was born in the village of Sharivka, 40 km from Kh ...

. He was an active participant in the struggle for Ukrainian liberation where he served as a field surgeon. He was also part of the personal staff of Symon Petlura. In 1921, he was interned in a camp in

Kalisz (The oldest city of Poland) , image_skyline = , image_caption = ''Top:'' Town Hall, Former "Calisia" Piano Factory''Middle:'' Courthouse, "Gołębnik" tenement''Bottom:'' Aerial view of the Kalisz Old Town , image_flag = POL Kalisz flag.svg ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

where he organized an ethnographic ensemble and taught

. When it became known that negotiations had been initiated for the repatriation of those that were interned to

Soviet Ukraine The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic ( uk, Украї́нська Радя́нська Соціалісти́чна Респу́бліка, ; russian: Украи́нская Сове́тская Социалисти́ческая Респ ...

, he moved to

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

. In

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

he lived in

and Podebrady from 1923 to 1929. There he completed his studies in Medicine at the Podebrady Academy. Here he met and married the future Ukrainian poet

Olena Teliha Olena Ivanivna Teliha ( uk, Олена Іванівна Теліга, July 21, 1906 – February 21, 1942) was a Ukrainian poet and Ukrainian activist of Ukrainian and Belarusian ethnicity. Biography Olena Teliha was born in the village of Ilyi ...

and continued his involvement with the bandura being active in the formation of a bandura school and a second Bandurist Capella in Prague. In 1926, he was the editor of a collection of pieces for the bandura published in Prague under the auspices of the "Kobzar" society. The book contained 12 pieces of his pieces printed on 24 pages. It was the first collection of bandura music ever published. In 1929, he and his wife moved to Poland, where he lived in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

until 1939. He performed as a professional musician throughout western

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

during this time and recorded 6 works on 3 records for a Polish record company - "Syrena Electro". In 1939 he moved to Krakow. His repertoire on the records included: # Zaporozhian march # Hej vydno selo # Oj lita orel # Oj ne khody Hrytsiu # Vyklyk # Vstaye khmara # Oj na hori vohon' horyt' In 1941, during the German

occupation Occupation commonly refers to: *Occupation (human activity), or job, one's role in society, often a regular activity performed for payment *Occupation (protest), political demonstration by holding public or symbolic spaces *Military occupation, th ...

of Ukraine he returned with his wife to Kyiv to participate in the rebuilding of Ukrainian culture and a Ukrainian presence in the capital. Teliha was arrested together with his wife 9 February 1942 by the

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one orga ...

. He was not involved in the publication of anti-German materials in the newspaper '' Ukrayinske Slovo'' and was offered his release. He chose not to leave his wife's side and was shot a few days later on the 21st (23rd) February 1942 in Babyn Yar, Kyiv.

Sources

*Entsyklopedia Ukrainoznavstvo- volume 8 *Ukr. Slovo - Mykhailo Teliha - Bandura #51-52,1995 *nn - Mykhilo Teliha - Kubans'kyj Kozak banduryst - Bandura #57-58, 1996 {{DEFAULTSORT:Teliha, Mykhailo Bandurists Kobzarstvo Ukrainian musicians Ukrainian murder victims Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists People murdered in Reichskommissariat Ukraine Ukrainian people executed by Nazi Germany 1900 births 1942 deaths Russian people executed by Nazi Germany Executed Soviet people from Russia Executed people from Krasnodar Krai People executed by Nazi Germany by firearm Deaths by firearm in Ukraine