To rediscover forgotten names and revive lost pages of Ukrainian music; to reveal the depth of the saxophone and dispel clichés about it; to bring back into sound works that have lain in archives for decades while simultaneously initiating the creation of new ones; to form repertory continuity; to present Ukrainian music to the world — and to let the world hear it anew. This is the credo of the duo of Roman Fotuima and Daria Shutko. This autumn, they released the album Crossing the Darkness — the first-ever release of Ukrainian music for saxophone and piano.
The musicians’ joint artistic path began in 2013, driven by their wish to combine the intellectual precision of the academic world with the vivid emotionality of contemporary music. They do not shy away from contrasts: next to the cinematic Sonatina by Serhii Leontiev comes the philosophical depth of Yurii Ishchenko; beside the avant-garde of Volodymyr Runchak stands the chamber lyricism of Zoltan Almashi. All of this creates a multidimensional space in which the duo thinks and makes — the space of Ukrainian music, reclaiming its own history while simultaneously shaping its future.
Their journey from their first meetings to the creation of the program and their first album, from dialogue with composers to the mission of their duo, is shared here in conversation with Roman Fotuima and Daria Shutko.
Roman Fotuima (b. 1991), originally from Crimea, began studying saxophone in Kerch. After four years in music school, he entered the Mykola Lysenko Music Lyceum in Kyiv, and later the National Music Academy of Ukraine. He has lived in the capital ever since.
Roman: Kerch is a small industrial city. There were a few cultural institutions there: music schools, but no music college. So my first steps in music took place in quite modest conditions. My most vivid childhood memory is when we were being introduced to wind instruments at school. One teacher demonstrated the trumpet, and it seemed so loud that I even covered my ears — so I asked for some other instrument, and it turned out to be the saxophone.
The saxophone is actually deeply connected with modern music — even in a relatively broad sense. The instrument appeared in the mid-19th century, and of course, at that time there was almost no repertoire for it. Nearly everything written in the 19th century was composed by friends of Adolphe Sax, the creator of the instrument. Serious works — the ‘standards’ of classical saxophone — began appearing only in the 20th century, so all performers are well acquainted with this relatively new repertoire.
My teacher in the 10-year specialized music school, Mykhailo Mymryk, paid a lot of attention to contemporary music. When I was in the 8th grade, I had my first contemporary work in my program — In Search of a Path… by Ivan Taranenko. Later, I discovered the works of Volodymyr Runchak, particularly A Little Music for the Minibus Beijing–Kyiv (conservatoire).
Roman’s journey into contemporary music continued actively during his studies at the Music Academy. And after graduation, it shifted even more in the direction of searching for chamber repertoire within his duo with Daria.
Daria Shutko (1991), originally from Kremenchuk, studied at the Gliere Kyiv Municipal Academy of Music and at the National Music Academy of Ukraine. She initially performed mostly classical repertoire and approached contemporary music later, during her conservatory years. Her collaborative piano teacher, Olena Sikalova, suggested working on a new program with saxophone students. It included works that pianists had practically never played before. Thus, in 2013, Daria and Roman performed together for the first time.
Daria: In 2019, we went together to one of the world’s most famous and most demanding competitions for classical saxophonists, held in Belgium, in the city where Adolphe Sax was born. I was deeply impressed by the schools of France, Japan, the USA where the saxophone is an integral part of academic culture. It became absolutely clear to me how profoundly the performing school influences the development of the repertoire.
At home we have a constant brainstorming mode: sometimes all we talk about is work. Sometimes we set an idea aside for six months. We aim for the program to be engaging and to carry something more than just a list of pieces. This applies to all types of programs, avant-garde and festival ones, as well as those more ‘comfortable’ for listening, where the music remains more accessible.
The program of the new album Crossing the Darkness was first performed at the Kyiv branch of the National Union of Composers of Ukraine, and in its second version in Lviv two years ago.
The album title came naturally. It was the first difficult winter: the first blackouts, darkness, cold, anxiety. All of this seemed to merge into one image, into a feeling they tried to convey through music. Thus the title Crossing the Darkness emerged, reflecting that time (and the present one), their inner states, and the reality in which they live.
The recording sessions took place in 2023. They worked with sound engineer Oleksii Hrytsyshyn, who enthusiastically supported their idea and provided tremendous help at the mixing console. The recordings were made at the Lysenko Music Lyceum in Kyiv, even during blackouts. Musicians brought a power station for the sessions.
This, in fact, is the mission of the duo: to reveal Ukrainian music in its full breadth, from its early steps to contemporary premieres. Their “distinctiveness” lies in creating an alternative to the limited repertoire for saxophone and piano, in reviving works that almost never sounded, and at the same time inspiring composers to write new music specifically for them.
Roman: The first such work was the Sonatina by Serhii Leontiev, our fellow student and close friend. We’ve been friends for a long time, visited each other often, played together, performed his pieces. Usually these were small works or arrangements.
The Sonatina, written in 2020 (published by the Polish publisher Ars Musica in 2022), became the first work Serhii wrote specifically for our duo. Later came the Concertino (2021) and Nocturne (2022) for saxophone, piano, and orchestra, which we have performed multiple times at the National Philharmonic, as well as in the Rivne and Cherkasy Philharmonics.
From earlier programs, their repertoire also included the avant-garde virtuoso composition Remembering a Forgotten Melody by Volodymyr Runchak. Among Ukrainian composers, Runchak has written perhaps the largest number of works for saxophone. He composes for practically all ensembles, from solo instruments to quartets and various types of ensembles. Saxophonists worldwide regularly perform his works. The duo often returns to his music and has held several composer evenings dedicated to him.
Read also: Volodymyr Runchak: The Defiant Composer
Another important part of their work is reviving little-known pieces that exist on the borderline between memory and oblivion. Such was the fate of Sonatina-Collage by Yaroslav Vereshchagin, a composer still scarcely known. Originally written for clarinet and piano, it was later adapted.
Roman: In the late 1990s–early 2000s, Ukraine hosted the Selmer Paris in Ukraine competitions for saxophonists and clarinetists, supported by the French company of the same name, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of saxophones and clarinets. A mandatory requirement was the performance of a Ukrainian work. At that time, original Ukrainian compositions for the instrument were few, and this was when Yurii Vasylevych created an edition of Vereshchagin’s work for saxophone, becoming the compulsory piece for the 2000 competition.
I first heard this piece while studying in the 10-year school, a student was performing it. Later, this music practically disappeared from concert life. The sheet music was also hard to find. At first, I found only the piano score, and since I wanted to play the piece, I had to cut and paste a saxophone part from the copy so that I wouldn’t have to flip pages constantly. I used that part for the album recording, and even now, out of habit, still play from the part I made myself.
One piece they discovered completely by accident. Roman once opened the electronic catalogue of the library of the Kyiv Music Academy, typed “saxophone” — and among the results was a Sonata by Yurii Ishchenko. Until then, he had no idea it existed. The work had been almost completely unperformed for years. In fact, it is one of the earliest Ukrainian sonatas written for saxophone. They were thrilled by this find.
Roman: Interestingly, the Sonata for saxophone and piano had even been published — Ishchenko submitted the manuscript to the Muzychna Ukraina publishing house in the late 1980s. The print run was small, and now the copies are scattered across libraries.
At first, we simply tried reading through the sonata and set it aside. I remember my first impression was rather strange: the piece seemed ‘incomprehensible,’ and after rehearsal, there remained a heavy, even oppressive feeling. But when we returned to it in 2022, everything came together differently. After our first performance, audience responses were very warm.
It is difficult to imagine combining, within a single program, Ishchenko and Leontiev; they differ so radically in style, aesthetics, and even temperament. But this diversity proved valuable: it formed a holistic panorama of Ukrainian music for saxophone and piano, from academic expressiveness to contemporary lyricism.
The album also includes a piece by Zoltan Almashi — Elegy. In the first version of Crossing the Darkness (at the Composers’ Union), another piece by Almashi was performed — the chamber version of The City of Mary. They tried several instrumental combinations together with the composer, eventually choosing baritone and soprano saxophones. They performed this piece with saxophonist Stanislav Nidzelskyi.
Read also: Cellist and Composer Zoltan Almashi: Ethical Issues are More Important than Music and Art
Daria: After that concert at the Composers’ Union, I asked Zoltan to write a piece for saxophone and piano. He recalled a few works that could also be arranged for this ensemble. Eventually, authorial versions of the chamber cantata From the Green Thoughts of One Fox for mezzo-soprano, saxophone, and piano appeared, as well as the Elegy for alto saxophone and piano. In the end, we replaced The Maria’s City with Elegy, it fit the general concept much more precisely: chamber, pure in sound, and beautifully revealing the potential of both instruments.
The repertoire of Ukrainian works for saxophone remains small. But the problem is not only quantity. An even bigger issue is the lack of systematized information. Often, a composer writes something, it is performed once or twice, and then it disappears into a drawer. This is why it is important not only to perform but also to record these works.
The triptych Sketch of a Vanishing Day by Artem Roschenko also entered their program almost by accident. Until recently, there was almost no information about the piece anywhere. Roman learned about it from pianist Violeta Taran and immediately asked for the score.
There is a curious story involving Roschenko. Once, Yurii Vasylevych handed Roman a score, a neatly assembled manuscript, almost like a published edition. Roman examined it: a piece for tenor saxophone and string orchestra, by Artem Roschenko. He called the composer to ask what this work was — and it turned out Roschenko didn’t even remember having written it.
Such stories are not rare. Works get lost, survive only in fragments, exist in several contradictory versions, or disappear from memory altogether. This is why the duo decided to start this recording project: to gather, organize, and preserve Ukrainian saxophone repertoire.
What’s next?
Roman: We keep experimenting and searching for new formats, so it is hard to say what idea will come next. Sometimes programs appear spontaneously, and pieces seem to find each other. Recently, we prepared an intriguing program, The Aesthetics of the Contemporary, showcasing works by present-day composers from different countries, including Ukraine. The project has already been presented in the Mirror Hall of the Lviv Opera.
We also have ideas for new Ukrainian works. For example, we plan to make a high-quality recording of One Evening in the Village Near Dykanka by Volodymyr Runchak — a diptych for alto saxophone and piano, written at their request. We strive to perform virtually all music by Ukrainian composers that is currently available.
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