Meet the 🇺🇦 Composer: Victoria Vita Poleva

Bearing artistic witness to one of the early atrocities of the invasion, leading Ukrainian composer Vita Poleva was in Bucha as the Russian tanks rolled in. Out of this horrific experience, “Bucha Lacrimosa,” her powerful orchestral poem, was created. It embodies the terrors and the tragedy of the invasion, but also the resistance and hope of her courageous fellow citizens. Vita’s music is a lasting testimony to the horrors of a war that was not deserved. I’m proud to have performed her work both inside and outside of Ukraine. Thanks to Vita, the world shall never forget. This interview took place in Kyiv’s Philharmonic Hall just before I was supposed to conduct the world premiere of one of her latest compositions, “Sophia,” but it was cancelled due to a Russian bomb attack. We’ll be trying to perform it there again on December 2nd.