Victor Mishalow

Biography

Born 4 April 1960, in Sydney, Australia, Mishalow began studying the bandura in 1970 initially with Peter Deriashnyj playing in the Hnat Khotkevych Ukrainian Bandurist Ensemble and from 1974 with Hryhory Bazhul in Sydney. He was the first in Australia to do his practical HSC music performance exam at Carlingford High School on the bandura.

In 1978 he received grants and scholarships from the Australia Council for the Arts and the NSW Premier's Department to undertake advanced studies in bandura in North America where he studied under Peter Honcharenko, Peter Kytasty, Hryhory Kytasty, Vasyl Yemetz and Leonid Haydamaka.

In 1979 he received a scholarship to attend the Kiev Conservatory where he studied bandura under Professor Serhiy Bashtan, conducting under Professor Mykola Shchohol, and voice under Professor Maryna Yehorychev.

While in Kiev he also attended evening classes at Kiev University and privately studied traditional kobzar art under Heorhy Tkachenko.

Returning to Australia, Mishalow started to popularise bandura by forming trios and ensembles and organising seminars in Adelaide, Melbourne, Canberra, Sydney. He graduated from Sydney University in 1984 with a double major in Musicology and Ethno-musicology, continuing post-graduate studies at the Sydney College of Advanced Education Dip. Ed. (1986) in music education, and then the Kiev Conservatory (1988) (M.Mus). In February 2009 he successfully defended his Candidate of Science (equivalent to a PhD) dissertation on the "Cultural and artistic aspects of the genesis and development of performance on the Kharkiv bandura" at the Kharkiv State Academy of Culture. His opponents were Dr Igor Matsiyevsky from the Saint Petersburg Conservatory and Dr Mykola Davydov from the Kiev Conservatory.

Mishalow has performed widely throughout Australia, North America and Europe. He has been associated with a variety of artists, and artistic groups such as the Tommy Tycho International Orchestra, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and Orchestra Toronto, the Sydney Theatre Company, the Ukrainian Bandurist Chorus and numerous dance companies. His music has been aired in Australia on ABC Radio and non-commercial stations.

In 1988 he settled in Toronto, Canada where he teaches bandura in musical schools, while also touring and performing as a soloist-instrumentalist. In 1991 he founded the Canadian Bandurist Capella

In 2013 he became an Adjunct Research Fellow at Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.

Awards

Victor Mishalow was awarded the title of Merited Artist of Ukraine by Ukrainian president Leonid Kuchma in October, 1999. In August 2009 he was awarded the Order of Merit 3rd class, by Ukrainian president Viktor Yushchenko and the Medal of "Cossack Glory" from the Hetman of the Ukrainian Cossacks for his services to Ukrainian musical culture.

Solo

Compilations

Videos

Film music

Compositions

Victor Mishalow received the Australian Composers Fellowship Award from the Australia Arts Council in 1986.

Classical works

For bandura solo-

Vocal-

Numerous vocal and choral works.

Selected articles

Other publications