When Taras Krysa, director of orchestras at UNLV, arrived in the United States in 1989, it was the first time his parents were allowed to take their family out of the Soviet Union — where Krysa grew up after being born in Kyiv, Ukraine.
Krysa has family on both sides of the ongoing war and attempts to stay in contact with relatives fleeing danger in Ukraine, many of whom are taking refuge in bomb shelters. At the same time, his Russian family members and friends describe their opposition to the increasingly violent war in a country where more than 13,000 Russians have been arrested for protesting Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion.
We spoke with Krysa about his Russian-Ukrainian background, how his family members in both countries feel about the war and what he hopes for in a peaceful future.
Below are excerpts from our conversation, which is edited for clarity and brevity.
What were your first thoughts about the situation in Ukraine?
Well, shock and disbelief because (my family) caught it live on CNN as we were having dinner and just were a little bit in denial. It’s hard to believe. As events (are) unfolding, it’s even harder to believe what’s happening right now. Every second it’s getting worse. … To witness this in the 21st century, European countries being bombed, slaughtered this way, I can’t even describe how many different emotions we have. … I’m half-Ukrainian, half-Russian. It doesn’t make any sense to me. Makes no sense whatsoever.
But I’ll say one thing for sure. (Vladimir) Putin, he’s just like (Adolf) Hitler, and when Hitler invaded Czechoslovakia under the pretext of protecting German-speaking people, or ethnic Germans, that’s exactly what Putin’s doing right now. And he’s denying the existence of the Ukrainian nation as the whole, which, to me … that’s what Hitler and Nazism did. … The situation is escalating. It’s getting worse day by day, and I saw just a minute ago, they bombed a maternity hospital and apparently a lot of children. … U.S.A. and NATO must get involved.
How do you feel about the United States’ response and the world’s response to Russia?
Well, whatever it takes. I mean, all these sanctions are good, but it takes time for them to, you know, get to work. Maybe within the week or two, we’ll see, you know, a huge impact on the Russian economy. But when you think of people who are right there, right now, those sanctions are meaningless when you have a bomb falling on your children. Children are getting killed. … I call to the United States and the powers that be to get involved much stronger than they have so far. Of course, I’m not a politician. I’m just a musician. But to see (those) senseless killings … it’s unthinkable to me.
With your background, you have a foot in both camps. So seeing all this unfold, from both sides of your identity, how does that all feel?
I worked in Ukraine. I was a music director of our Lviv Philharmonic Orchestra from 2016 until 2020. And actually, I combined both UNLV and traveling to Ukraine … so I’m very much familiar with what this young democracy was going through and how difficult it is to build a democracy. … Ukrainians are a freedom-loving people. … I don’t believe Russians want to fight Ukrainians. I think it’s a geopolitical decision, and it makes no sense to me. Whatever the political geopolitical reasons are, it’s not a reason to invade another.
When was the last time you were in Ukraine?
Summer of this year because unfortunately, my grandma passed away. It was the first trip after COVID, and last time I was there, in February of 2020, just right before everything shut down, and that was my last year with the Lviv Philharmonic Orchestra.
Do you have family in Ukraine currently?
I have my uncle and my cousins, and I have my larger extended family. As we speak, they’re sitting in Kyiv. My cousin is in the countryside with the kids, with the family, so it’s a little bit safer. My uncle is older. He can’t follow so easily, so they’re essentially very close to the center of Kyiv. They’re in the midst of it. … I wish we could do something, you know, to stop this madness, and we can’t. … I think the force that can stop this now is United States and NATO, but … what I fear the most is that Putin is unpredictable.
What about in Russia? Do you have any family there?
I do, and I have friends in Russia, and I keep in touch with some of them, but they can’t speak freely. I mean, most of them, of course they are with Ukrainian people and they’re against Putin, but the problem with Russia, you can’t express your views. It’s a highly repressive state. And also, propaganda in Russia is also working just on a such a high level. … The things they’re saying, just outrageous things about Ukrainians, saying the Ukraine invaded, attacked Russia. I mean, look at the armies. Why would Ukraine invade Russia? But the people believe that type of stuff. … Most of my family and my friends are normal, reasonable (thinkers) that do not support Putin, but they cannot talk about it.
Have you been staying in touch with your family (in Ukraine)?
They’re as OK as they can possibly be. What it means, they still have water. They still have electricity. But they can’t really go anywhere, and they (hear) sirens every night, so they have to evacuate. … I think it’s important for people here to understand, as I understand. It seems for many Americans, war still seems remote, somewhere far away. But, you know, Ukraine is essentially fighting for the freedom, for the same values we follow as a country. And if Ukraine falls — which I don’t think it will, but it might — Putin is not going to stop, and eventually … one or another way, it’s going to come to our shores. … And our own internal debates will seem so petty and short-sighted. So the mask mandates, and this, and that, and blah, blah, blah. This is much, much bigger.
Have you spoken with some of your students or other professors about this crisis? And if so, what do those conversations look like?
There’s overwhelming support from my colleagues and in the community. I’m blessed with such a large community here, musicians outside of UNLV. I’m very active in town, playing and conducting Las Vegas Sinfonietta, playing in many other groups and so on. So everyone is very supportive. I’m very grateful for that. … It’s emotionally taxing. … It’s a lot harder for people who are there right now. As we speak, the bombs are falling, … and people spend nights in the bomb shelters. … It’s unbelievable, unbelievable what’s happening. … Whatever we feel, it’s nothing.
What are you hoping the end result for this will be?
The end result, I think, I hope, that Mr. Putin’s regime will eventually be dismantled, and Russia can become a true democratic state and coexist with everyone else peacefully, as most of the world community does. So, yeah, that’s my sincere hope.