Kvitka Tsisyk is a Ukrainian-American singer with a unique coloratura soprano, who gained wide popularity in the United States and used her talent to popularize Ukrainian culture in the world.
This was reported by vogue.
The singer was born in 1953 in New York to a family of Ukrainians from Galicia who emigrated during World War II. The rule in her family was to communicate only in Ukrainian. It was thanks to her parents that she maintained a deep connection with Ukrainian culture and language, while integrating into the American environment.
As a child, Kvitka was a scout - she participated in camps where she got acquainted with Ukrainian culture. She studied at a regular school in Queens, attended Ukrainian studies classes and studied music. Her father, violinist Volodymyr Tsisyk, worked with her daughters, and her mother, Ivanka, maintained an atmosphere conducive to learning and a love of art. Her sister, Maria, later became a pianist, directed a conservatory in San Francisco, and gave master classes at Carnegie Hall.
During her studies, Kvitka mastered the violin, took ballet, and sang in a choir. At 17, she graduated from the High School of Music and Art in New York and entered Binghamton University, where she studied violin and singing. After that, she continued her studies at the National Conservatory of Music of America and received a scholarship to study vocals at The Mannes College of Music in Ghent, Belgium, where she chose opera singing.
The singer sought her creative calling through performances in New York clubs, where she performed jazz, pop, and rock. It was there that she was noticed by representatives of the music industry, and she began to collaborate with famous artists, including Quincy Jones, Roberta Fleck, B.B. King and Carly Simon.
In the mid-1970s, Kvitka Cisyk gained fame as a singer of advertising jingles. She recorded songs for Pepsi, McDonald’s, AT&T and the US Army. The jingle “Have you driven a Ford lately” became particularly popular, which was listened to over 22 billion times for the Ford Motor Company. She remained the official voice of the company until the end of her life.
In cinema, she performed the soundtrack “You Light Up My Life” for the film of the same name by Joseph Brooks, which was later covered by other artists, including Whitney Houston.
At the same time, Ukrainian songs became an important part of her work. The singer said:
“I told everyone that Ukrainian music is very beautiful, melodious and that the people are so singing”
She also noted:
“I told everyone that Ukrainian music is very beautiful, melodious and that the people are so singing. And they answered me: if so, then play me something, sing me something… It’s sad, but we didn’t have a single record at a professional level. Because it’s an expensive thing and takes a lot of time. I realized that I had to make one. And not only for my friends, but also for all Ukrainians. Because I couldn’t, I didn’t have the opportunity to do something for our society, but only this. That would be such a gift. And I dreamed that they would hear me in Ukraine.”
To record the Ukrainian album, she attracted leading musicians from New York, as well as her sister and mother. About $200,000 of her own money was spent on the recording. In 1980, the album “Kvitka” (“Songs of Ukraine”) was released, and in 1989 – “Two Colors” (“Two Colors”). About the second album, the singer said:
“This collection of songs is the desire of my Ukrainian heart to weave joyful threads into the canvas torn by life, on which the fate of our people is embroidered.”
Ukrainian records were awarded: the first album received Music Awards, and both discs were nominated for a Grammy Award in 1990. The third album, dedicated to lullabies, was not realized.
Kvitka Tsisyk died in 1998 at the age of 44 from breast cancer. She left behind a creative legacy that combines the American music industry and Ukrainian cultural tradition.
Photo: krivbass.city, vogue.ua,diaspora.com.ua
Author: Danylo Pievchev