With Sonce u Serci (“Sun in your heart”), the Berlin-based folk-jazz outfit present their debut full-length album, showcasing the highly distinctive style they’ve been mesmerising audiences with in the subsequent years. Leléka, translating to ‘stork’ in English and coincidentally being the Ukrainian folk symbol of love, good fortune and family happiness, consists of an international lineup of four musicians that found each other in Berlin Rooted in jazz, their music reaches beyond the borders of both the genre and the world, embracing singer Viktoria Leléka’s Ukrainian roots and the band’s talent for improvisational freedom. A happy marriage of chamber jazz and Ukrainian folklore, Sonce u Serci connects traditions with emotions and current topics ranging from a heartfelt connection to nature and humanity to feelings such as love and fear. At its core, however, this debut is about confidence – musically, atmospherically, personally – conveyed through the power of melody and the personalities who dedicate themselves to them.
Line Note by Ralf Dombrowsky
It was a special moment. Burghausen in March 2018, Wackerhalle, LELÉKA stepping onto the stage. The previous evening the band had been voted winner of the new generation jazz artist’s competition. After the fireworks of that short concert the musicians were now able to show how in a large hall they could enchant an audience that didn’t yet know them. It was a triumph. As Viktoria Leléka and her three men band delighted people with contemporary modern jazz numbers that have their roots in Ukrainian folk music. Soon further competitions and successes followed, and it became apparent that this band, which came together in Berlin in 2016 and was already winning the 6th Global Creole Music Contest in Berlin by 2017 had gained a place on the European jazz scene.
While jazz only touches on the idea behind the music, through the use of rhythm and form it’s the creative basis for improvisational freedom. Harmonically there are small scale jazz and folk elements. Melodically, in her articulation and phrasing, Viktoria Leléka is clearly following the folk models of her Ukrainian homeland. For her this is the centre of the music and this is what makes it so radiant. It is not about a change of tone colours but rather about a connection between traditions, right down to the subtleties of emotion that her voice conveys beyond the language. From the start, bass player Thomas Kolarczyk and drummer Jakob Hegner supported her in setting up the concept; in 2019 pianist Povel Widestrand became part of LELÉKA (which, by the way, means “stork” in English, a Ukrainian symbol for spring, good fortune).
“As our previous recordings were more like EP’s rather than actual albums”, Viktoria Leléka recalls the origin of “Sonce u Serci” (“Sun at heart”), “including the sometimes rather improvised results, we wanted to do everything properly this time. I wrote many of the arrangements; we rehearsed a lot. This way pieces arise that can reach out further into the future”. Some are about happiness and love, many draw directly on templates from folk music or adapt their esprit. The repertoire covers topics ranging from current concern about nature to memories of human arrogance in Chernobyl. Essentially however, it is about reassurance, conveyed musically, atmospherically through the power of the melodies and through the people who care about them. This way Leléka shows itself to be a band with an overarching sense of the sound world and the tonal nuances of the everyday.
Viktoria Leléka (UA) – vocals
Povel Widestrand (SWE) – piano
Thomas Kolarczyk (DE) – double bass
Jakob Hegner (DE) – drums
Special guest (tack 5:)
Maria Stopnyk (UA) – vocals
Recording Studio – Studio of the Hans-Werner-Henze Music School
Recording- Peer Triebler (DE)
Mix/Production – Jakob Hegner (DE)
Mastering – Marcin Bocinski (PL)
English Translation of Lyrics – Christina Austin (UK)
Photos – Dovile Sermokas (DE)
Artwork – Paintings of Svitlana Starodubtseva (UA)
Design – Igor Polischuk (UA)
Supported by Initiative Musik