HOW DO THE UKRAINIAN CARPATHIANS SOUND
A Hutsul plays the trembita. The southern part of the Ivano-Frankivsk region / wikipedia.org
On the slope of Mount Shveikova, in the village of Verkhovyna in the Ivano-Frankivsk region, stands a small yet vibrant museum of Hutsul life and art called «At the Trembitar». The name speaks for itself — the museum’s founder, Mykola Ilyuk, always greets visitors with a trembita in hand. From the very courtyard, the breathtaking mountain view captivates the eye — with peaks all around and fifty shades of green.
By the way, Mykola Ilyuk is a professional musician and an Honored Cultural Worker of Ukraine. He began learning to play the violin on his own as a child, and after finishing school, graduated from the choral department of the Kalush College of Culture. He worked as the head of a cultural center in the village of Chorna Richka and, for 10 years, played violin and drums with the ensemble Cheremosh. Later, he founded his own music group, Hutsuly, with which he performed across many European countries, as well as in Canada and the United States.
In 2010, he opened a museum in his own home. The tours here are anything but ordinary: Mr. Mykola not only tells stories about Hutsul life, traditions, and customs but also plays traditional Hutsul musical instruments. Each of them holds special meaning — both for Ukrainian culture as a whole and personally for Mykola Ilyuk.
THE TREMBITA: A SOUND THAT UNITES THE HIGHLANDERS
T
he trembita is a vivid symbol of Hutsul culture — and that’s precisely why Mykola Ilyuk was advised to name his museum «At the Trembitar». As the saying goes: a Hutsul without a trembita is no true Hutsul. For centuries, the trembita has been used in the Carpathians as a signaling instrument capable of transmitting messages over dozens of kilometers.
Lookouts would sound the trembita from mountaintops to warn of approaching enemies, while shepherds used it to announce the movement of flocks to the highland pastures. The trembita also marked important life events: it heralded the birth of a child, summoned guests to weddings, and bid farewell to the deceased. Some shepherds even claimed to forecast the weather by its sound, believing it particularly sensitive to rain and thunderstorms.
A trembita is a wooden horn (usually made from spruce) measuring between 2.5 and 8 meters in length. Musicians say the ideal sound comes from trembitas up to 3.5 meters long. Crafting a trembita is a complex process that can take up to two years and demands true skill — each one has a unique sound shaped by the wood and the artisan’s technique.
By the 19th century, as its role in signaling declined, the trembita became a central instrument in Hutsul folk ensembles. In the 20th century, it gained international recognition through performances in Europe, Canada, and the United States. Sadly, the number of trembitas in the Carpathians is gradually diminishing.
THE VIOLIN: BETWEEN FOLK TRADITION AND PERSONAL HISTORY
The violin holds a special place in Ukrainian culture. It became popular in Ukrainian folk music in the 17th century and by the 18th century, had become a staple of the troisti muzyky — folk trios that combined violin, cimbalom, and drum. The violin symbolized continuity across generations: luthiers passed down the craft of violin-making, while musicians preserved and shared melodies.
Mykola Ilyuk’s collection includes around 40 violins — from different countries, makers, and eras. As a child, he borrowed his first violin from a neighbor. It had only one string, but it ignited his passion for music. Today, his favorite is an Austrian Steiner violin (named after the renowned luthier Jakob Steiner), made nearly 200 years ago.
This violin accompanies Mr. Mykola to weddings, concerts, and folk festivities. Its story is a deeply personal one: after a fire destroyed his home, relatives gifted him this instrument. It was in poor condition, but thanks to a skilled restorer, it was brought back to life and now plays with remarkable beauty.
AN INSTRUMENT THAT ASTOUNDS WITH SIMPLICITY AND THE SOUND OF CARPATHIAN MELODIES
The tylynka is a traditional wind instrument considered a type of end-blown flute. It is also known as the telinka, skosivka, or pyschalka. Historically common among the Hutsuls and Boykos, the tylynka has counterparts in neighboring Romanian and Hungarian cultures. In earlier times, it was played during spring rituals and shepherd ceremonies.
Tylynkas are usually made from elderwood, which naturally contains a hollow core. Other materials used include linden, hazel, sycamore, or willow. The instrument ranges in length from 35 to 60 centimeters. Despite its simplicity — it has only two holes — the tylynka produces a beautiful sound that resonates across mountains and alpine meadows. The pitch is controlled by breath strength and partially covering the open end of the pipe with a finger, allowing the player to produce overtone melodies.
Mykola Ilyuk acquired his first tylynka from the renowned craftsman Mykhailo Tafiychuk, and later made one himself.
«THE MOTHER» AND «FATHER» OF HUTSUL MUSIC
The sopilka has been known in Ukraine since the times of Kyivan Rus, as evidenced by chronicles and frescoes in Saint Sophia Cathedral. During the Cossack era, it became a favorite among folk musicians, and by the 19th century, it formed the backbone of traditional folk ensembles. In Hutsulshchyna, the sopilka accompanied rituals, dances, and shepherds’ melodies.
This wind instrument may have between five and ten holes, depending on the type. Sopilkas are crafted from various types of wood — elder, hazel, sycamore, beech, walnut, plum, or cherry — each lending a unique tone to the instrument.
In the 1970s and 1980s, many musicians turned to craftsman and composer Vasyl Hrymalyuk, known as Mohur. He once created a metal sopilka with a tuning mechanism that compensated for pitch shifts caused by temperature changes. This innovation allowed musicians to use a single instrument with interchangeable tips instead of carrying several.
A particularly special type of sopilka is the dubeletivka, or double-pipe, which the Hutsuls call «double-double». It consists of two joined tubes that symbolize harmony — like a man and a woman — and create a tender dual-voiced melody.
The Hutsuls call the sopilka «the mother of Hutsul music», while its «father» is the drum — an instrument found in many cultures. The drum produces powerful sounds, and during weddings, its beat can be heard echoing through the mountains for 5 to 10 kilometers.
THE JAW HARP: AN INTERNATIONAL INSTRUMENT WITH A HUTSUL SOUL
The drama is a unique and ancient musical instrument, not exclusive to Ukraine — it is found among many peoples, including the Chukchi, Nanai, and Vietnamese, as well as in several European countries. Initially made of wood, the drymba later evolved into a metal version, which enhanced its durability and resonance.
In Hutsulshchyna, the drymba is known for its smaller size and higher pitch, making it an ideal complement to the melodic nature of local music. It was most often played by women, especially during evening gatherings while the men worked in the forests. On long autumn or winter nights, women would gather to spin, embroider, sing — and one of them would play the drymba. This fostered connection and helped preserve singing traditions.
Historically, the drymba has been known in Ukraine since the 9th–12th centuries, as confirmed by archaeological finds. Musicologists suggest it was brought to the Ukrainian Carpathians by the White Croats since modern-day Serbs and Croats have long played a similar instrument in the Balkans known as the drombulje.
WITHOUT THEM, HUTSUL MELODIES ARE INCOMPLETE
The tsymbaly (hammered dulcimer) and bagpipe are two more essential instruments without which the harmony of Hutsul music would be incomplete. The tsymbaly belongs to the string-percussion family and typically has between 140 and 180 strings. Since the 16th century, numerous written sources have mentioned this instrument.
In the mid-17th century, French engineer and traveler Guillaume Le Vasseur de Beauplan, in his Description of Ukraine, portrayed a peasant wedding where, as the bride walked to the church, «ahead of her were the violin, bagpipe, and tsymbaly».
As for the bagpipe, it holds a special place in Hutsul culture. It is also called duda or koza (goat). Unlike the Scottish or Irish bagpipes — which have two chanters — the Hutsul version has three. Additionally, Hutsuls sew the bag with the wool turned inward. This doesn’t affect the sound — in fact, it has benefits. With wool on the outside, the fibers shed more easily and let air through; when turned inward, the bagpipe lasts longer.
Due to the ever-changing weather in the mountains, the koza is hard to tune in harmony with other instruments. That’s why Hutsuls often played it as a solo instrument, enhancing the performance with singing.
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