Old Ukrainian Tango, 1937 -- Чи справді?/ Is it really so?, B. Vesolovsky

Bohdan Vesolovsky / Богдан Весоловський (1915-1971) was a popular Ukrainian songwriter and composer of tangos, foxtrots, waltzes and rumbas. This particular song was a hit in Lviv in the late 1930s. It was rather prophetic as it dealt with the pain and loss of ending up in exile, something which he himself was soon to experience. Vesolovsky was born in Vienna, studied law and music in Lviv, and performed in the city's celebrated Yablonsky band. After World War II he ended up in Canada where he eventually became head of the Ukrainian Service of Radio Canada International in Montreal. This track is taken from an LP of his songs recorded in North America in the 1960s which I preserved on a cassette. I've translated the song into English and the Ukrainian and English texts are provided below. Чи справді? В далекий світ, за синє море, Веліла доля йти в незнаний край, Покинуть вас, мрійливі зорі, Пахуче поле, ліс, ручай. Прийшлось покинуть все, що миле, I попращать тебе, любов мою, Тобі з далекої чужини Привіт мій щирий вірний шлю... Чи справді вже нам не стрінутись з тобою, Чи справді вже нам не мріять, не любить, Чи може лише вечірньою порою За тим, що було, нам тільки в споминах тужить. Is it really so? Into the far off world, beyond the blue sea, To an unknown land, fate has willed me to go, To leave you behind, dreamy stars, Fragrant field, wood, the certainty I know. I've had to leave behind all that's pleasant, To say farefell to you, o love of mine. From a distant strange land, I send my true and faithful line... Are we really fated never to meet again, Are we really to dream, to love, no more, Or is it just to be in the evening hours, That, remembering, we'll be able to long for all we saw. B.N.