Ukrainian folk songs
Sung by: Kateryna Artemenko, artist of the Ivan Franko National Academic Drama Theater
There’s no dance in all the world like the kolomyika —
It pulls the soul straight out of my heart.
When I play, when I sing, my sorrow fades away —
Our kolomyika holds such wondrous power.
Play for me, musicians, with your white, slender fingers —
Let me dance awhile with my dark-browed darling.
Oh, musician, your hands are made of gold —
You draw my soul into distant worlds.
Oh, fiddles carved of linden wood, with strings of periwinkle —
When I play, the sound will reach clear to Ukrainka.
Now I’ll play for myself, now I’ll sing like a bird,
And when misfortune comes — I’ll fly away on wings.
The guelder rose blooms white and bears red fruit,
Great love so often leads the heart to grief.
The blackthorn blooms because its roots run deep —
Who’s never loved has never known sorrow.
I thought, so young, that the sun was rising —
But it was my dark-browed love walking through the garden.
I thought it was a falcon soaring in the sky —
But it was my dear black-browed one riding by on horseback.
