PETRO LAKHTIUK AS THE FOUNDER OF BANDURA ART ON THE TERRITORIES OF POLAND AFTER WORLD WAR II

Abstract

The biography of one person, a native of Volyn (now Rivne region), as in the mirror,  reflects the fate of an entire generation of Ukrainian youth - and therefore of our entire nation - throughout the XX century. Ukrainian, a student at Warsaw University Panteleimon Bondarchuk, who, from the time of his participation in the Ukrainian Insurgent Army and until the end of his life, bore the well-known name (alias) Petro Lakhtiuk, is serving a horrific 12-year prison sentence in the tundra of the Arctic Circle, but miraculously - prayer and willpower remain alive. Released after the death of J. Stalin, he is revived physically and spiritually, goes to Poland, where he plunges into cultural and musical activities, creating in this country not yet known the art of bandura. For Christian love in the good heart of Peter Lakhtiuk, God rewarded him with a long and happy creative life: he lived a full 94 years (1907-2001).

Being able to not fail despite the toughest of tests – that is heroism. To maintain dignity and Christian faith in the face of physical torment and psychological abuse – that too is heroic. To avoid anger and not become an outcast in a foreign country and foreign society – that is also heroism. To artfully play an instrument that is not known in the foreign place is selfless. To throw off downcast thoughts and pessimism, and instead to cultivate joy, beauty, song, and art, that is a blessing of the Holy Spirit. Such is the reality of the quiet heroism of Petro Lakhtiuk. It is quiet, because he was never a promoter of his own talents. He pulled his plow quietly, in accordance with his calling, his talent, and his dedication to hard work. He lived in a terrible time in history: during his lifetime there were two world wars – the first during his childhood and the second when he was an adult. In the newspapers, on radio broadcasts, as well as in literature, the 20th century is rightfully called a bloody century.