The Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra, formed in 2022 and aiming to defend Ukraine’s cultural legacy, performed a concert in Warsaw on Tuesday to mark the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
“I’ve turned into a soldier. I was a conductor, a musician making wonderful music around the world,” Keri-Lynn Wilson, the orchestra’s conductor, told TVP World. “But this has given me an opportunity to fight for freedom, to fight for the rights of a nation that has been victim of something so horrible from the beginning of the invasion.
“I created this orchestra as a direct response. So my baton is my weapon,” she added.
Peter Gelb, the general manager of the Metropolitan Opera in New York, which is part of the initiative behind the orchestra, said: “No matter what the outcome of the war, I think it’s very important that Ukraine's cultural identity, its cultural legacy, continue.”
The initiative is a collaboration involving the Metropolitan Opera, the Polish National Opera and the Ukrainian Ministry of Culture. The orchestra’s honorary patron is Ukraine’s First Lady, Olena Zelenska.
“I created this orchestra as a direct response. So my baton is my weapon,” she added.
Peter Gelb, the general manager of the Metropolitan Opera in New York, which is part of the initiative behind the orchestra, said: “No matter what the outcome of the war, I think it’s very important that Ukraine's cultural identity, its cultural legacy, continue.”
The initiative is a collaboration involving the Metropolitan Opera, the Polish National Opera and the Ukrainian Ministry of Culture. The orchestra’s honorary patron is Ukraine’s First Lady, Olena Zelenska.
