The Ukrainian choir ‘Songs for Ukraine’ took part in the annual Christmas address by King Charles III of Great Britain. The choir performed an arrangement of Carol of the Bells, based on ‘Shchedryk’ by Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych, at Westminster Abbey.
The video was posted on the royal family’s YouTube channel.
‘It was a great honour for our choir to take part in the King’s Christmas broadcast. Our choir remains a powerful voice for the Ukrainian community in the United Kingdom, many of whose members have been forced to leave their homes because of the war,’ said Bohdan Parashchak, music director and principal conductor of the Songs for Ukraine choir.
The Ukrainian carol in the British king’s speech was a symbolic gesture of support for Ukraine, as Charles III has repeatedly expressed solidarity with the Ukrainian people.
The Songs for Ukraine choir was founded by the Royal Opera House in 2023 in response to the full-scale invasion by the Russian Federation. The choir brings together 130 Ukrainians, most of whom were forced to leave their homes because of the war.
