- Year of foundation – 2004
- City – Kyiv (Ukraine)
- Language – Ukrainian, English, German, Crimean Tatar
- Genre – ethnochaos
Lineup:
- Nina Garenetska – vocals, cello, bass drum;
- Olena Tsybulska – vocals, bass drum, percussion;
- Iryna Kovalenko – vocals, djembe, ukulele, percussion, zhaliyka, flute, bugai, accordion, piano, bass drum;
- Marko Galanevych – vocals, accordion, didgeridoo, harmonica, darbuka, cajon, tabla.
History band
DakhaBrakha is a Ukrainian musical group that creates music in the original style of ethnochaos. The group emerged at the turn of the eras - in the early 2000s, when the director of the Dakh Theater (and now the producer of the group) Vladyslav Troitsky gathered around him young talented folklorists and musicians who were able to breathe new life into the Ukrainian tradition.
The new quartet included students of the Kyiv National University of Culture and Arts Nina Garenetska, Iryna Kovalenko and Olena Tsybulska. Previously, they were singers in the folklore ensemble "Kralytsia". The fourth artist was Marko Galanevych - a former lighting and stage installer of the Dakh Theater. A philologist by education, Galanevych joined the musical group, laying the foundation for the future Ukrainian sensation.
The name Dakhabrakha, according to the members, comes from the archaic Slavic roots “to give” and “to take”. This is a symbolic combination of the processes of receiving and transmitting, which determines the philosophy of the group’s work.
Creative path
At the beginning of their creative track, the members of Dakhabrakha created live musical accompaniment for theatrical productions by Vladyslav Troitsky. The performers became part of the large-scale directorial initiative “Mystical Ukraine”, which included interpretations of “Macbeth”, “King Lear” and “Richard III”. The artists also took part in the performance “Dreams of Abandoned Roads”. Thus, Dakhabrakha gradually turned into an independent project.
In 2006, continuing its movement towards popularity and recognition, the group presented its debut album “Good Night” to a wide audience. The following albums were released: “Yagudki” and “Na različ”. A new stage in the sound of the band began with the release of the studio album Light (2010). The work was produced by Yuriy Khustochka. In 2012, DakhaBrakha teamed up with the Belarusian band Port Mone to record a joint album “Khmeleva project”. The release took place in Łódź, Poland, thanks to the support of the art agency “Art-Pole”.
In 2016, the band presented their fans with the album “Shlyakh”, filled with deep meaning and dedicated to all those who gave their lives for the freedom of Ukraine. As the musicians themselves admitted, the album was born during a difficult period for the country. And this only increased the emotional tension and meaningful weight of each composition.
On March 28, 2019, the band presented a video clip for the song “Plyve choven”. The work became the soundtrack to Roman Bondarchuk’s film “Volcano”. The video organically intertwines footage from the film and footage of the musicians themselves on location. And on March 27, 2020, the long-awaited album Alambari for all fans of the band was released. It was DakhaBrakha's first studio album in four years. The songs on the album embodied the recognizable aesthetics of the band's work, while at the same time opening up new horizons of sound.
Festivals and tours
The DakhaBrakha band has repeatedly represented Ukraine at the world's leading music festivals. Among them are the legendary Glastonbury (Pyramid Stage), Bonnaroo, Lowlands, WOMAD, WOMEX, Sziget, Fusion, GlobalFEST, Helsinki Festival, Mundial, Oslo World Music Festival, Rudolstadt, Cinars, Dublin World Music Festival and many other international events.
In early May 2022, DakhaBrakha completed another tour of North America. As part of the tour, the stars were invited to perform on the iconic independent radio station KEXP in Seattle for the fourth time.
The geography of the group's tours covers dozens of countries on several continents. With concerts, the artists traveled to Colombia and Brazil, the USA and Canada, almost all of Europe, China, Mexico, Malaysia, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand. Such large-scale concert activity brought the group the unofficial status of the main touring ambassador of Ukraine on the world music scene.
Style and development of the group
As is known, the DakhaBrakha group was created specifically for the theatrical project "Mystical Ukraine". Frmat immediately received a key role in conveying Ukrainian color through the prism of universal plots of English drama. However, the goal of the group was not blind reproduction of folklore. On the contrary, instead of preserving museum forms of authenticity, the participants sought to touch the living, vibrating energy of creativity. This is how the band's signature style emerged - ethnochaos. There is a shift in accents, a game with form and canons. All for the sake of aptly conveying meanings that lie beyond words and sound.
DakhaBrakha works with Ukrainian folk songs collected during expeditions to different regions of Ukraine by the members themselves or their colleaguesand folklorists. The compositions sound in a characteristic authentic manner, but are complemented by rare instruments from all over the world. The band skillfully mixes genres - from minimalism to soul, from hip-hop to blues. This is how hits are created that cross the boundaries of cultures, genres and eras.
Generated by the theatrical stage, the music of the DakhaBrakha band is always dramatic. Each composition is like a separate performance. It combines meditativeness and energetic rhythm, deep emotions and a perfectly calibrated structure. The performances of the stars are not just spectacular live shows, but hypnotic performances. In them, their own and others, intuition and clear planning, tradition and innovation, harmoniously coexist.
Social activity
Since the beginning of the hostilities in Donbas, the musicians of DakhaBrakha have become active voices of support for Ukraine on the world stage. At the end of each foreign performance, the performers raised the Ukrainian flag, calling for an end to Russian aggression.
In addition to musical activities, the band has repeatedly participated in charitable initiatives. In particular, DakhaBrakha held concerts in support of children with serious illnesses. The band also actively helps the volunteer organization “Return Alive”, which provides for the needs of the Ukrainian army. The band members do not remain indifferent to the topic of Ukrainian political prisoners in Russia, supporting information campaigns and actions in their support.
In June 2023, the band made a significant contribution to the “We Have to Live Here” project - a special initiative of the “Return Alive” foundation, aimed at helping Ukrainian sappers.
The band's hits:
- "Carpathian Rap";
- "Sho z-pod duba";
- "Monakh";
- "Yagudki";
- "Tarilka";
- "Zamanila" (together with Jamala) and many others.
Awards and distinctions:
- victory in the "Acoustic Music" nomination at the 20th anniversary festival "Chervona Ruta";
- first prize of the Kyiv radio station "Radio Aristocrats" for the best album of the year ("Shlyakh"), 2017;
- Musical Project Award at the ELLE STYLE AWARDS 2018;
- Shevchenkovskaya prize in the nomination "Musical Art" (2020);
- France's highest award in the field of culture "Chevaliers of the Order of Arts and Letters" (2025) and others.
Interesting facts about the band:
- In 2010, Dakhabrakha performed together at the Jazz Koktebel festival with the leader of the electronic band De Phazz, Karl Frierson;
- In 2011, the band reached the final of the national selection for Eurovision. But in order to participate in the European festival, which was important for the band, Dakhabrakha refused to perform at the National Selection;
- During the winter and spring of 2012, the Dakhabrakha band created an original musical accompaniment for Oleksandr Dovzhenko's film "Earth." The project was commissioned by the Dovzhenko National Center;
- the artists became the only representatives of Ukraine in the famous British television program Later… with Jools Holland on the BBC channel, and also performed in the studios of the cult radio stations KEXP and NPR;
- On August 24, 2018, DakhaBrakha performed at the NSC "Olympic" before the concert of the Okean Elzy group;
- in 2022, DakhaBrakha Day was celebrated in the American city of Madison (Wisconsin);
- the soundtrack "Spring" performed by DakhaBrakha can be heard in the cartoon "Mavka. Forest Song";
- the signature element of the stage image of the singers of the group were tall men's sheepskin hats. This recognizable visual code appeared thanks to Tatyana Vasylenko, an actress of the Dakh Theater;
- The song Sho z-pod duba from the band's repertoire is heard in David Beckham's commercial.
