3YAR - is a jazz band presenting music of the famous Ukrainian composer and saxophone player Yuriy Yaremchuk

Musical esthetics of the band contains the elements of different musical genres, combining and synthesizing them in a distinct rational order, which reflects the composer’s worldview in sound and composition.

Composition and improvisation of the band bears the elements of free jazz, contemporary music, academic avant-garde and ethnic music.

The band offers a chance to realize the ideas, which appear in the process of mutual inspiration of Yuriy Yaremchuk and other musicians in this project.

Now present CREATIVE IMPROVISE TRIO (Y.Yaremchuk -sax, M.Tokar -bass, K.Kugel -drums)







Yaremchuk Yuriy Grigorevich was born in 1951 in Novokuznetsk (Russia). Today he resides in Lviv, Ukraine.

In 1978 he completed the Saxophone Class at Jazz Performance Department at Rostov Institute of Art. He performed in Kim Nazaretov’s big band as an instrumentalist.

Yaremchuk is both a composer and an instrumentalist; he plays tenor-sax, soprano-sax, clarinet, percussion, piano; he is a master of voice performance as well. He is working in different genres (free jazz, contemporary music, improvised music), contemporary technique of sax play (multiphone, slap, double staccato). He can be recognized by his bright sound and brisk technique; in his solo concerts he prefers free improvisation with the use of contemporary playing technique.

His music has sufficient rhythm and melody; it is full of humor and philosophy. Yuriy Yaremchuk wrote music for theater, participated in numerous avant-garde performances with artists, actors and modern dancers.

In different projects he performed together with a number of famous jazz musicians: Claudia Binder and Marcus Eichenberger (Switzerland); Jim Menesis, Fred Frith, Ray Andersen, William Parker, Hamid Drake and Rob Brown (USA); Heinz-Erich Godecke and Hans Shutler, Vladimir Chekasin, Alex Nowic, Arkadij Shilkloper, Klaus Kugel (Germany); Vladimir Miller (GB); Dror Feiler (Sweden); Tatashi Endo (dancer Japan); Sainho Namchilak (Ireland); Ezas Mikashys and Vladimir Tarasov (Lithuania); Vyacheslav Nazarov, German Lukyanov, Vladimir Volkov, Vyacheslav Gayvoronsky, Andrey Razin, Sergey Letov, Vladimir Makarov, Mikhail Zhukov (Russia); Alexandr Nesterov (Ukraine);

A participant of numerous jazz festivals, happenings, events, fests of new improvised music.

Here you can find an additional information:
On Heinz-Erich Gödecke’s site: www.avantart.com/music/3ya/ (in English and German)
On Sergey Letov’s site: www.letov.ru/Yaremchuk/ (in English and Russian)

Yuriy Yaremchuk is the author of all paintings presented on this site.

Important festivals








Musicians in this Project



Arkadiy Orekhov (piano, electric piano), b. 1949, Lviv. Musical education: 8 classes of Musical School at Lviv Conservatoire.

Performed in different jazz projects

1988; 1989 – laureate of Jazz Festival Crystal Lion (Lviv) as a member of the band Tender Blues.

1995 – laureate of Kryvyi Rih Festival Jazz Horizons as a member of the band Tender Blues.

1997-1998 –the quartet Tender Blues produced two audio-albums «Solo, duo, trio»; participants of the festival Mikolajki jazzowe (Poland).

Since 1999 works together with Yuriy Yaremchuk



Sergey Zelenskiy (guitar), b. 1953, Lviv. Started playing the guitar and composing at the age of 15. Played in some Lviv popular and rock bands. Finished musical school and musical academy, class of guitar. Later graduated from the conservatoire in composition.

Composed Symphonietta and Search for Music for the orchestra, opera and ballet Children’s Songs and Games; chamber music compositions, choir music, more than 100 songs.

Besides composing Sergey enjoys improvising on the guitar, keyboard, drums, bayan. Participated in the concerts of contemporary music in Lviv and Wroclaw.

Recorded 5 albums together with Yuriy Yaremchuk.



Mark Tokar (contrabass) received higher technical education at the Lviv Polytechnical University. Started his musical career in 1997. Participated in numerous jazz projects and concerts: Yuriy Bonia’s trio; Martin Tverdun’s trio etc.

Mark finished Lviv Musical Academy, classical guitar class.

He regularly trains at Krakow Jazz Academy under guidance of Michael Parkinson (USA).

Since 2002 he has been a member of Dzyga Jazz Quintet, taking part in jazz festivals in Ukraine, Poland, and Germany.

In 2004 at the festival Starzy i mlodzi, chyli JAZZ w Krakowie (The Old and The Young, or Jazz in Krakow), Poland he performed as a leader of Mark Tokar’s Quintet, which consisted of the Ukrainian and Polish musicians.

Art director of Lviv Jazz-bez Festival and Jazz Metro project.

Plays and records together with Yuriy Yaremchuk and in his own projects.



Nastia Yaremchuk (flute), born in Lviv, where she currently resides. Primary musical education received in a children’s musical boarding school named after S.Krushelnytska. At the moment is a student of the Lviv Conservatoire, class of flute.

She is a solo flute player. Performed in different bands at the following festivals of avant-garde music:

Contrasts (Lviv); Theater Fest (Lublin); SKIF (St.Petersburg-Moscow); Deep Voice or Dangerous Vocal Cords (Moscow, Cultural Center Dom); Culturfest (Wroclaw).

Plays in the band 3YAR, as well as in symphonic orchestras with foreign conductors. She is a master of brisk technique and deep sound.



Yulia Yaremchuk (piano), born in Lviv, where she currently resides. She received her primary musical education in a children’s musical boarding school named after S.Krushelnytska. Currently she is a student of the Lviv Conservatoire, class of piano.

As a solo performer she plays grand piano, sings and composes. She performed at the following festivals of avant-garde music:

Contrasts (Lviv); Theater Fest (Lublin); SKIF (St.Petersburg-Moscow); Deep Voice or Dangerous Vocal Cords (Moscow, Cultural Center Dom); Culturfest (Wroclaw).

Plays in the band 3YAR. She is a master of brisk technique and expressive sound.



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Translated by Sofia Skachko.