CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Calvin Jones is a lifelong composer and pianist who pours his soul into performing. After witnessing first-hand the devastating effects of the Russo-Ukrainian War, his music has taken on a new meaning and purpose.
The South Dakota native moved to Ukraine in 2014 to work as a musician, and returned to the states in February 2022 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He now spends his time playing in venues across the U.S. and raising awareness about his second home. On Wednesday, Sept. 27, he performed a free concert in the Cottonwood Room of the Laramie County Library for a small, yet enthusiastic audience.
Jones played three piano pieces, each accompanied by a video matching the song’s mood, including various shots of nature and destroyed Ukrainian cities. In between, Jones spoke about his experiences fleeing Ukraine and the newfound meaning behind his music.
“Each song really comes from my experiences in life, right from my experiences,” he said. “Of course the songs like ‘Compassion’ have taken on a new meaning and ‘Carol of the Bellz’ has because of the invasion; these songs speak to different elements of that.”
One of his most well-known songs is a rendition of the Ukrainian tune “Shchedryk,” also known as “Carol of the Bellz.” The track appears on his album “Paramount: The Symphony Sessions,” which he recorded in St. Petersburg, Russia in July 2017 with the 55-piece Taurida International Symphony Orchestra. Before playing the song, Jones recalled an “ironic” experience he had with it.
On Feb. 24 at 5 a.m., Jones and his wife were awoken by huge explosions that shook their Kyiv apartment. In an hour, they had packed their most important belongings in a car and headed to the border, where roughly a million other people were attempting to do the same. While driving south of the country to avoid the crowds, they popped a CD into the car’s player. The album happened to be “Paramount,” and the first song to play was “Carol of the Bellz.”
“In that moment my wife and I just looked at each other in the car, because this was just so ironic,” he told the audience. “Carol of the Bellz” is one of the national songs of Ukraine, but [on my] mix it was recorded by a Russian orchestra.”
Jones also spoke about his faith in God and recalled the miracles they witnessed, like being able to find the shortest gas station lines and meet Romanian Christians at the border who housed them. As a young boy, Jones played in his father’s church and now runs a fundraiser called Addictive Pslams, where people can pay to have Jones arrange psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.
“We know that God cares for his people even in the midst of this horror,” he said, before playing his worship song “Compassion.”
His anecdotes and songs moved audience members like Jody Gostas, who heard about the event through a friend.
“The piano pieces were very powerful along with the videos,” she said. [Hearing] him talk about Ukraine makes us feel good that we’re supporting the Ukrainians.”
Nancy McCann, a board member for the library foundation, discovered Jones through the Wyoming Southeast Concert Series. The two groups recently formed a new organization called Music from the Heart, which is aimed at providing music shows all around the city, and invited Jones to play. The musician was originally slated to perform at the Civic Center on Sept. 30, but scheduling conflicts prevented him from doing so.
“We did tentatively had a session set up in the Civic Center,” McCann said. “We were going to do that, but unfortunately we were in competition with so many other entities, like the [University of Wyoming] homecoming game the same day and several other groups.”
McCann said Music from the Heart would like to bring Jones back for future events in the city. He has larger shows happening nearby, including one in Denver on Oct. 20.
