In 1863, the Branch of Imperial Russian Musical Society was established in Kiev. This year was a very important milestone in the history of the musical life of Ukraine and Kiev which blossomed during the first half of the 19th century.
In 1881, the Council of Elders of the Kiev Merchant Assembly obtained a permit from the Kiev City Council to construct a stone building for their meetings. It was erected a year later by the Kiev architect Vladimir Nikolayev. The two-storied building of the Merchant Assembly is situated at the top of Vladimirsky (then Aleksandrovsky) Descent down to the European (then Tsarskaya) Square.
Since the first day of its foundation, the Merchant Assembly had been very popular. Hordes of people visited various entertainments including dramatic performances, concerts, masked balls, charitable lotteries, and literature and music events. Many Ukrainian and foreign actors and singers performed there.
Vladimir Nikolayev was not just a talented architect but also a very good musician. He managed to design a colonnaded auditorium with great acoustic properties highly valued by musicians and conductors.
One of the best and brightest periods in the history of the Philharmonic Hall is associated with Mykola Lysenko. This man of great scholarship, a prominent composer and musician, can be called a founder of the professional musical culture of Ukraine. He took part in creation of the Imperial Musical Society, the Literature and Artistic Association, the Philharmonic Society of Accordionists, the Ukrainian Club in Kiev and various other cultural establishments which had great impact on the development of the culture and education of Ukraine.
Even during the First World War and the 1917 Russian Civil War, the musical life of Kiev did not stop. Concerts were held on a regular basis and such legendary musicians as Sergei Rachmaninoff, Alexander Scriabin, Antonina Nezhdanova, Leonid Sobinov, Fyodor Shalyapin and many others appeared on the Merchant Assembly's stage.
The Soviet Government was not kind to the anti-communist Merchant Assembly and banned this institution. The building was handed over to the Proletarian Art Centre. Later, the Centre of Political Education, then the Club of Bolsheviks, and the Republican Palace of Young Pioneers and Schoolchildren occupied the building.
In 1923, the State Philharmonic was founded. It started working with a concert orchestra conducted by L. Steinberg.
From 1927 to 1937, the State Philharmonic Society was based in the city of Kharkov, a capital of Ukraine at the time. Finally, the Philharmonic settled in Kiev which became the main city of the country. For several years, the Philharmonic's team did not have a permanent stage and performed concerts in different theatres and clubs of Kiev.
During the Second World War, the State Philharmonic Society suspended its activity because Kiev was occupied by fascist troops.
In 1944, the Kiev Philharmonic was given the building of the former Merchant Assembly, which was in terrible condition but was not as ruined as other buildings situated along Khreshchatyk Street.
With the passing of the years, the State Philharmonic Society developed and its reputation increased. The public was delighted to come to listen to world known music stars.
In the late 1980s, the building of the State Philharmonic, which was awarded landmark status, was reconstructed. However, all acoustic characteristics of the colonnade auditorium were kept. Moreover, it was equipped with up-to-date equipment, telecommunication and light systems. The reconstructed colonnade auditorium of the National Philharmonic of Ukraine was opened to the public in December of 1996.
Today, the National Philharmonic of Ukraine still offers a wide choice of various programmes including a complete season of concerts by symphony and chamber philharmonic orchestras, quartets of guitarists and accordionists, trios of bandura players, as well as chamber and folk ensembles of the National Philharmonic of Ukraine. The Philharmonic also supports international competitions and festivals (the Competition of Young Pianists of Vladimir Kraynev, the Competition in Memory of Vladimir Gorovits, and others).
Druzhba Cinema (the Cinema, for short) was opened to public on 16 February 1956.
Two cosy and almost chamber auditoriums are situated in the Kiev down town, 25 Khreshchatyk Street.
The Cinema has never chased after premieres but chosen the best films only. The repertoire includes 5 or 6 films of different genres simultaneously. This is why pe...
The Kiev State Puppet Theatre (the Puppet Theatre or the Theatre, for short) is Ukraine's oldest puppet theatre; it was founded on 27 October 1927 as part of the Kiev Franko Theatre for Children (later known as the Young Spectators' Theatre on Lipki) at the initiative of Ukraine's People's Artist Aleksandr Solomarsky and Irina Deyeva. The Theatre's...
The building of the former kenesa (the Karaite synagogue) was constructed by the architect Vladislav Gorodetsky, in an unusual Moorish style, on commission by the Kiev community of the Karaites, who are considered to descend from the ancient Khazar people.
In 1896, the community consisted of 800 people. Solomon Cohen, the leader of the community...
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