Columbia residents were recently treated to a spirited performance by a group of Ukrainian klezmer musicians performing for a good cause.

Kommuna Lux, the self-described “Odesa Gangsta Folk” group, put on a show at the Abiding Savior Lutheran Church as part of their summer U.S. tour, where they took donations to be used for humanitarian aid in their home country.

The band, which has raised over $11,000 so far, was first formed in 2014 and started out doing small performances in restaurants. But Kommuna Lux rebranded in 2021, shortly before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“2021 was the first year we felt that we could play with the same energy,” said Volodymyr Gitin, Kommuna Lux’s clarinetist, who is Jewish. “From 2022, we started to play in Europe. Our first big concert was in Budapest. But because of the war in Ukraine, it was a big question if we could even perform abroad. But it happened, and it was very special that it did.”

Once the band was cleared to travel, manager Victor Lykhodko proposed the idea of making their concert tours into charitable events, raising money for people affected by the war in Ukraine.

They have since partnered with the Rotary Club of Kyiv, officially supporting its Hospital Beds for Kramatorsk project. Since the start of the invasion, Kramatorsk has been the victim of several missile strikes, and the project helps to treat victims of severe burns and injuries.

“Our whole nation stood up, ready to fight. But for each of us, the fight is different, and we have to contribute in our own ways,” Lykhodko said. “People from the music and art industries may not be on the front lines, but we want to be able to help through our performance.”

With the amount of money they have raised so far, the band has been able to fund one hospital bed through this partnership, but they acknowledge that there is still more they intend to do to help.

The band also publishes its own annual newspaper, where its members go into more detail about their artistic process and the history of their chosen genre. Gitin notes that Odesa folk music and its history is deeply intertwined with the history of the city’s Jewish community and its culture.

Odesa was also the originator of the “Urban Chanson” genre of music, which blends traditional Ukrainian folk songs with more urban elements. While the Soviet Union attempted to ban this kind of music many times during its rule over Ukraine, the genre persists to this day.

Kommuna Lux concerts are often an exciting affair that include comedy, audience participation and live dance. The band has even won the prestigious Eisernen Eversteiner award, which is the only award for folk music in Germany.

“We feel inside that we are doing something special, and want to continue,” he said. “The situations in Ukraine and in Israel right now are similar, and that’s something that makes us closer.”

This is actually Kommuna Lux’s second U.S. tour, and their second time performing at Abiding Savior. Due to the success of the Summer 2024 concerts, the band has extended their tour to run through the fall and will be performing across the West Coast and in Canada. The band’s members want to not only spread awareness of the war in Ukraine, but of their local culture.

“The music of our city, you cannot hear it anywhere in the world from any other band, because it’s only in Odesa,” Lykhodko added. “You won’t see any other band perform in the United States with such music. We want to spread the music of our city all over the world.”