About Us

Seventy years ago, Roman Soltykewych and a group of fellow devotees of Ukrainian choral music founded the Dnipro Male Chorus whose primary concern was to promote and perpetuate the finest elements of Ukrainian choral music. In 1971, Dnipro became a mixed choir, and in 1974, with the addition of an orchestra and dance troupe, the mixed choir became the Ukrainian Dnipro Ensemble of Edmonton. Over four hundred Edmontonians have been members of this choir throughout its history.

In the late 1970's, Dnipro Choir expanded upon the original mandate of promotion and preservation by commissioning new works and performing widely. Under the direction of Maria Dytyniak, who assumed the baton in 1976, the choir pursued an increasingly ambitious course which included annual concerts, countless community appearances, fundraising activities, vocal workshops, the staging of two full-scale operas, international tours, numerous collaborative performances with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, and the privilege of a 19-year-long artistic relationship with Maestro Wolodymyr Kolesnyk, the former conductor and artistic director of the Kyiv State Opera and Ballet Theatre.

In 2011, Irena Szmihelsky became Dnipro Choir’s third conductor. She has continued the outstanding work of the choir rooted by her predecessors, Roman Soltykewych and Maria Dytyniak. I. Szmihelsky takes great pride in providing choristers and audiences with rich musical experiences of various genres. Together with her artistic team, Gloria Zaharia, assistant conductor, long-time Dnipro Choir accompanist and collaborative pianist, Irena Tarnawsky, and Susan Romaniuk, she has planned unique full length concert programs that have included original compositions and arrangements of Ukrainian classical and contemporary composers including those of Ukrainian-Canadians. She led the choir on tour to Ottawa, Montreal and New York in 2014 and on the uplifting and emotionally memorable tour to Ukraine in 2018.