UKRAINIAN VOCAL AND POP REPERTOIRE IN THE “INTERIOR” OF POSTMODERNITY

Abstract

The article analyzes the “images” of the Ukrainian vocal and pop repertoire, which testify to the main artistic ambitions of the postmodern quality in the phases of the “first” (90s of the twentieth century) and “second” (20s of the twenty-first century) postmodernity. A special emphasis is placed on the intentions of the vocal and pop repertoire in wartime, which are powerfully stated in the performance practice of Oleksandr Ponomaryov, Mykhailo Khoma, Artem Pyvovarov, Nadiia Dorofeeva, Antonina Matvienko, and others, as well as in the vocal ensemble projects of these performers. After all, wartime pop culture is also a continuation of its existence in the “interior” of postmodernity, when there are certain priority attitudes that were formed at the turn of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries and continue to exist today in the new coordinates of the modern worldview. First of all, it is a sincere desire to prove one's own ethno-national identity; and at the same time, it is a rather successful assimilation with the most modern world-class pop styles. In this regard, a differentiated assessment is made of the first sprouts of postmodernity in the Ukrainian variety and vocal repertoire of “soft” and “hard/heroic” kitsch, which relate to its samples of the 60s–90s of the twentieth century (for example, “The Hadyukin Brothers and their sister Vika”) and continued until the 20s of the twenty-first century (for example, “Dzidzio” clowning and “Ukrainian rock”). It is concluded that in fact the “images” of the Ukrainian vocal pop repertoire of the “first” postmodernity literally evolved from the model of “kitsch” as a “caricature” into a truly intelligent song repertoire full of sincere lyricism and a powerful patriotic modality (for example, Artem Pivovarov's project “Your Poems, My Notes”). A special attention was paid to the peculiarities of postmodern vocal pop repertoire in its symbiosis with jazz and rock stylistics – in the model of vocal and instrumental improvisations, which requires performers to have a great deal of skill in singing technique. The final result of the study is formulated as a high degree of stylistic integration of the postmodern Ukrainian vocal pop repertoire, which is undoubtedly among the world's top pop culture.