Ukolov Diana N., Honored worker of culture of Yamal, the head of Governor’s ensemble of national song “Seetey Yamal”, twice winner of the Governor YANAO for success in creating, preserving and promoting cultural values of indigenous peoples of the North.
“I am happy to know that my creative destiny has developed in this way. That I’ve met people of exceptional talent along the way. I worked, studied, gained experience with Nelly Lebedeva — a great ascetic, a great and serious creator, an outstanding musician. Elena Susoy, who is the embodiment of natural wisdom, folk soul, traditions, Tatiana Lar, Galina Popova, Elena Ufimtseva. And today gave me the opportunity to co-create with Sergey Tsupikov, a musician who managed not only to understand the harmony, culture and depth of the northern song, but also to find today’s voice and modern sound for it.”
For more than 20 years, Diana Ukolova has been the head of the Seetei Yamal team. This is a long time to show leadership skills. But in such a delicate and difficult matter as folk art, it is not enough to be just a leader. It is not enough to have a specialized education and be a high-level musician. It’s not enough to be a great performer. You need to cultivate an unquenchable interest in Northern folklore, a great respect for the work of your predecessors, a fervent desire to move forward, to look for new forms in the material, new opportunities in people. You need to be able to light up with your ideas, creative ideas, and bold projects. You need to know how the main triad is connected – “music, performer, listener”.
Great success of the ensemble “Seetey Yamal” that Diana Nikolaevna possesses all these qualities. During her work, the team has acquired a different look — different arrangements sounded, a complex choreographic design appeared, costumes changed, and the set design became different. You can see that behind every musical number there is a professional direction, every song is a mini-performance, every singer shows excellent acting skills. Now the “Seetey Yamal” comes to the stage not just singing, but to show complete modern show.
Experts and fans of Seetei Yamal’s work note the main thing: the basic tasks of the ensemble — the preservation and development of ethnic art — have only benefited from these changes. The ancient folk song in its current sound becomes closer to today’s audience, since the work and the listener exist in the same cultural paradigm.
“Folklore cannot lose its value, but the further time moves us away from its origins, from the traditional environment of its existence, the more fragile our connection with it becomes. And in this sense, the work of the national song ensemble “Seetei Yamal” becomes a bridge to the younger generation, focused only on modernity, and to those who have no idea about the northern culture ” – says Diana Nikolaevna. Highlighting another important task: educational.
