Sheltering from bombs, Ukraine’s ‘cellar violinist’ plays on

By PAOLO SANTALUCIA
Associated Press

ROME, Italy (AP) — Vera Lytovchenko has become an internet icon of resilience as images of the accomplished violinist playing in a basement bomb shelter in the besieged Ukrainian city of Kharkiv have inspired an international audience via social media. The 39-year-old musician has been dubbed Ukraine’s “cellar violinist” as her gentle tunes calm a child sheltered in her apartment building’s basement. When heavy Russian bombing of Ukraine’s northeastern city of Kharkiv started two weeks ago, Lytovchenko, her father and neighbors sought safety there. The violinist with the Kharkiv City Opera says she later posted her recitals on social media and the reaction surprised her: more than 40,000 views on Facebook and thousands more on YouTube. Many have extended offers of help, she says.