Sons of the Steppes (), a Canadian–Ukrainian pop band from

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Canada, performed in the 1970s and early 1980s. Like the popular Canadian band ''

Rushnychok Rushnychok ( Ukrainian: РУШНИЧОК) was a Ukrainian-Canadian four-person music ensemble from Lachine, Quebec, Canada actively performing from 1969 to 1980 and later for small audiences. Considered the best Ukrainian diaspora ensemble of the ...

'' at the time, the quartet used a set of instruments and a combination of

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

and

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be ca ...

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

and other styles. The band's repertoire included Ukrainian folk songs and (at that time) modern songs in their own arrangement, as well as their own songs. The band's first album made "Sons of the Steppes" popular throughout the North American continent. All three of their albums were quite successful and popular not only in Canada and the US, but also in Europe and

Soviet Ukraine The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, abbreviated as the Ukrainian SSR, UkrSSR, and also known as Soviet Ukraine or just Ukraine, was one of the constituent republics of the Soviet Union from 1922 until 1991. Under the Soviet one-party m ...

(where they were distributed illegally through tape recordings). Musicians performed on stages decorated with traditional Ukrainian motifs, in traditional Ukrainian

folk costume Folk costume, traditional dress, traditional attire or folk attire, is clothing of an ethnic group, nation or region, and expresses cultural, religious or national identity. An ethnic group's clothing may also be called ethnic clothing or ethnic ...

. The musicians themselves possessed a diverse number of instruments and repeatedly joined other bands directly during performances. At the peak of their popularity, Sons of the Steppes performed many performances, concerts and shows. At the beginning of the 1980s, the ensemble ceased its activities, three of its members organized a new band "Вечірній дзвін" (''Evening Bell'')".

Band members

* Тарас Дідусь (Taras Didus) – accordion, vocals * Тіно Папа (Tino Papa) – drums * Адріан Альбощий (Adrian Alboschy) – guitar, vocals (album II and III) * Ярослав Воркевич (Yaroslav Vorkevych) — guitar, vocals (albums I and II) * Ярослав Гудзьо (Yaroslav Gudzo) – guitar, vocals (albums I and III)

Discography

Сини степів I (Sons of the steppes I)

1974, DUMY Productions – DU 7406 (LP) # Черевички (''Boots'') # Ганю, моя Ганю (''Ganyu, my Ganyu'') # Галичаночка (''Halychanochka'') (Yu. Vovk – M. Krasiuk) # А калина (''A viburnum)'' # Понад Прутом (''Over the Prut)'' (D. Tsygankov – M. Khromey) # Під вишнею (''Under the cherry tree)'' (T. Didus) # З сиром пироги (''Pies with cheese)'' # У вишневому садочку (''In the cherry orchard)'' # Чекання (''Waiting)'' (P. Protsko-O. Bohachuk) # Встиду ти не маєш (''You have no shame)'' (T. Didus) # Лебеді материнства (''Swans of motherhood)'' (A. Pashkevich – V. Symonenko) # Нині (''Currently)''

Сини степів II (Sons of the Steppes II)

1975, Yevshan Records – YFP 1001 (LP) # Чи це тая криниченка (''Is it that Krynychenka'') (words – folk, music – T. Didus) # Ой там в полі жито (''Oh, there's rye in the field'') (words – folk, music – T. Didus) # Прощання (''Farewell'') (words – T. Didus, music – T. Didus) # Чи були ви у нас на Десні (''Have you been with us at Desna'') (words by Ye. Ulytskyi, music by V. Nesterenko) # Раз у похід козак собирався (''Once a Cossack gathered for a campaign'') (words – folk, music – T. Didus) # Рідна мова (''Native language'') (words – folk, music – T. Didus) # Я люблю (''I love'') (words by P. Voronko, music by B. Vesolovsky) # Тай орав мужик (''Tai plowed a man'') (words are folk, music is folk) # Віра, Віра (''Faith, Faith'') (words – S. Kovalevsky, music – V. Kondratovych) # Зіронька (''Zironka'') (words by O. Galabutskyi, music by Ya. Tseglyar) # Час додому (''Time to go home'') (words – folk, music – T. Didus)

Сини степів III (Sons of the Steppes III)

1977, Yevshan Records – YFP 1006 (LP) # Не жонатий ходжу (''Unmarried Khoju'') (folk) # За нашим явором (''Behind our sycamore'') (Lemki folk) # Не співайте мені (''Don't sing to me'') (words – L. Ukrainka, music – T. Didus) # Зачарована Десна (''Enchanted Desna'') (words by D. Lutsenko, music by I. Shamo, prelude by Ya. Gudzo) # Ой на ставі (''Oh on the pond'') (folk) # Без тебе, Олесю (''Without you, Olesya'') (words – folk, music – T. Didus) # Позволь мені мати (''Let me have'') (folk) # Сиджу я край віконечка (''I'm sitting by the window'') (folk) # В горах живе Марійка (''Mariyka lives in the mountains'') (words by R. Savytskyi, music by Ya. Gudzo) # У милого очі сині (''The cute one has blue eyes'') (words by O. Strelets, music by D. Tsygankov) # Пісня про Надвірну (''Song about Nadvirna'') (music by P. Terpeliuk)

References