ONE of Guyana’s most popular musicians and a Director of the Rupununi Music and Arts Festival, Gavin Mendonca, was in New York recently, and had the pleasure of reuniting with one of the festival’s favourite performers, Iryna Muha.

Iryna is Ukrainian, and has performed at the festival twice, at the inaugural event at The Rock View in 2014, and at the last show before the COVID-19 lockdown in 2019 at the Theatre Guild in Georgetown.

“I’m in the company of my talented friend from Guyana, Gavin, a passionate ambassador of Guyanese folk music, and we are both in New York! We exchanged loads of musical ideas, and Gavin shared his recent recording with Chucky in the rainforest at Iwokrama,” Iryna recently expressed, adding, “We ventured into Central Park, New York, for a special field recording session. Having lived in New York, myself, for many years, the city still feels like a home to me today, just as it does for Gavin, who’s a seasoned traveller, and knows all the hidden music gems and quirky music venues in the Big Apple.”

Both Gavin and Iryna have been leading workshops, and performing across the UK and USA, and Iryna recently participated in Eurovision 2023, which took place in Liverpool, England.

“My collaborations with Gavin began in February 2014, during my visit to Georgetown, Guyana. I was invited to perform at the Rupununi Music and Arts Festival by Bob Ramdhanie, a revered figure in Birmingham’s arts community in the UK, and one of the co-founders of the festival. After the show, Gavin approached me, and the very next day, we jammed together at a local rooftop bar, and also at another venue outside of Georgetown. The experience was magical, surrounded by music, tropical birds, rainforest sounds, crickets, and flowing creeks. However, amidst this paradise, my heart weighed heavy, as I learned of the violent events unfolding in my homeland, Ukraine.”

“As the world knows today, the conflict in Ukraine has escalated into war, and when I met Gavin in New York recently, it was both a sad but joyous occasion. Given his recent recording experiences, we embarked on a field recording adventure in New York. Despite the turmoil, I felt compelled to sing a Ukrainian folk song, as New York, Guyana, and Ukraine each hold significant memories for me. The song is a Ukrainian folk song, Tuman Yarom, and it’s about longing for love,” Iryna added.

Gavin and Iryna were “instinctively” drawn to the tranquillity and beauty of the woods and a creek in the depths of Central Park, and during their time there, they reflected on their shared love for nature and folk traditions.

“Indeed, the more explosions of these international collaborations, the better the world will be,” Gavin told Buzz.