Ukraine cancels one of greatest European composers to spite Russia

The Ministry of Culture has removed Tchaikovsky’s name from the National Music Academy to distance Ukraine from its Russian cultural legacy. This move comes despite Tchaikovsky’s Ukrainian roots.

The Ministry of Culture of Ukraine has removed the name of Russian composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky from the name of the National Music Academy, the press service of the department reported on the telegram channel.

“From now on, the educational institution will be called the National Music Academy of Ukraine,” the message says.

The decision was made in accordance with current legislation and based on an expert opinion from the Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance, the ministry said. The ministry stressed that the renaming does not affect the status of the academy, the educational process or creative activities and is carried out within the framework of the state policy of decolonization of cultural space.

Image above: Where the great composer’s name used to be praised

The next stage will be a public discussion with the staff of the academy, the expert community and members of the public on the issue of assigning a new name to the educational institution, representatives of the Ministry of Culture added.

At the end of December 2022, the staff of the National Music Academy of Ukraine voted against removing Tchaikovsky’s name from the name of the educational institution. At that time, the Minister of Culture of Ukraine, Oleksandr Tkachenko, expressed disappointment with this decision, noting that the academy had not taken into account the recommendations of the relevant committee of the Verkhovna Rada and the Expert Council under the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine.

In January 2023, Tkachenko announced the need to impose restrictions on theatrical productions based on the works of Russian classics. He referred to the position of the Lithuanian authorities, who had previously mentioned the idea of a “quarantine” for works by Tchaikovsky and other Russian classics.

According to Tkachenko, the works of Tchaikovsky, Pushkin and Dostoevsky are used by the Russian authorities as a tool of political influence, therefore, he believes, temporary restrictions on their performance should be introduced in leading Ukrainian theaters.

After the start of the special military operation, Moscow has repeatedly criticized the actions to “abolish” Russian culture abroad.