The More druziv (An Ocean of Friends) competition for young pop singers was founded in Yalta in 1996. This year was the third time it was held at Ukraine Palace in Kyiv, the country’s most prestigious stage. During the 12 years of its existence the competition has been supplying talented singers to show business. In 1996 Oleksandr Ponomariov won the Grand Prix and Natalia Mohylevska grabbed First Prize. Today both are leading pop stars. In 1997 the winners were Maryna Odolska and Yurko Yurchenko. In 2004 the jury conferred the Grand Prix on Natalia Valevska.
This year no singer won the Grand Prix, but the first prize went to the Georgian singer Tato, graduate of the Tbilisi Conservatory. This is the second year in a row that the Georgians, who have strong singing voices, won the top prize at this festival of music. Another Georgian singer, Anri Dzhokhadze, a guest at this year’s competition, was the winner of last year’s competition. Viktor Balan (Moldova) won second place this year, while two Ukrainian singers, Kateryna Sheffer and Oksana Pominchuk, shared third place. This year’s contenders came from Bulgaria, Moldova, Georgia, and Transdnistria. The jury included composer Mykola Mozhovy, who is president of the National Television Company of Ukraine; Viktor Nabrusko, president of the National Radio Company of Ukraine, and winners of previous contests. The sequence of numbers was determined by casting lots. In the second round each contestant performed one song in Ukrainian; during the third round, the singers sang their own choice of two songs.
The organizers say that their competition gives each performer a strong creative impetus. Each contestant was highly motivated, as the cash purse of the Grand Prix totaled 10,000 dollars; First Prize netted $5,000; Second Prize, $3,000, and Third Prize - $1,500.
Mozhovy, the head of the jury, told The Day he was satisfied with the way the festival was organized: “We received quite a lot of financial help from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, and the National Television Company of Ukraine and Ukrainian Radio broadcast our concerts live. It was a well-orchestrated performance by all our partners. I would also like to point out that there were a lot of strong contenders. I liked all of them, although I was particularly impressed by Tato from Tbilisi and Kateryna Sheffer from Kyiv. They showed some very good vocal skills and stage presence. Every song was like a min-show. They succeeded in conveying the subtlest nuances of the songs they were performing. Each of them has a creative persona, charisma, and positive energy. When the Georgian singer sang the Ukrainian song Chornobryvtsi, all the members of the jury awarded him first place. Sheffer has great potential. I think that our public should remember these singers’ names, because we will be hearing about them in the near future.”
