Life in Sweden. Chapter 2. Family Accommodation. Rehearsals at the Church. Tima Becomes the Pianist of a Youth Orchestra. My Arrival.

Our New Accommodation in Gothenburg

Katya, Timofey, and Nikita were given a fairly spacious room.

It even had its own toilet and shower.

Compared with the previous places they had stayed, this was a major improvement.

About a month and a half later, I joined them there as well.

There was a shared kitchen on the floor, and it was there that an acquaintance took place that would have quite a significant influence on Timofey’s musical life in Sweden.

Twice a week, a Swedish man came to the accommodation to help Ukrainians with various practical and organisational matters.

During one of their conversations, he discovered that Tima played the piano.

It turned out that he was a great lover of classical music himself, and that his son played the cello in a youth orchestra.

He immediately became interested and contacted the conductor.

That is how, completely unexpectedly, Tima made his first real musical connection in Sweden.

First Rehearsals in a Swedish Church

At the same time, Timofey began practising at a church near our accommodation.

Later, I started rehearsing there as well.

And once again, I cannot help mentioning the attitude of the Swedish people we met.

Tima was simply allowed to come and practise whenever the room and instrument were available.

For us, this was incredibly important at the time.

A professional pianist can survive without his own apartment, car, furniture, and many other things.

But once there is no instrument, the real problems begin:)

The available hours at the church became practically our only opportunity to practise properly.

Of course, the church was not available all day.

On weekdays, there were usually only a few free hours before lunchtime.

And later Tima and I had to divide those hours between the two of us:)

Still, it was largely thanks to this church that our first concerts, new acquaintances, and contacts with local musicians gradually began to appear.

Tima Joins a Youth Orchestra

The conductor of the youth orchestra listened to Timofey for a while and told him that he could come to the next rehearsal.

For Tima, this was a huge event.

He had never played regularly in an orchestra before, and he immediately became excited about the idea.

There were about six weeks left before the Christmas concert.

The programme included Arcangelo Corelli’s beautiful Concerto grosso in G minor, Op. 6 No. 8 — the famous “Christmas Concerto”.

And that presented us with a new problem.

Tima had never been particularly fond of playing from sheet music:)

He could learn a piece, copy difficult passages directly from my hands, pick out a great deal by ear, and memorise music very quickly.

But chamber and orchestral music are a completely different matter.

You cannot concentrate only on your own part.

You have to follow the other voices, listen to the ensemble, understand the structure, and constantly remain part of the overall musical process.

So he had to start working seriously on reading from the score.

After school, Tima often went straight to the church to practise.

Once he even set a personal record of about seven hours at the piano.

That was only possible once a week, when the church remained open until 9 p.m.

On other days, there was considerably less time available.

Conveniently, the church was located almost directly opposite the school.

So Tima’s daily route was very simple:

school → piano:)

My Departure from Ukraine

Meanwhile, I was still in Ukraine.

I had never served in the army, had no military experience, and for health reasons could not be particularly useful in the military sphere.

At the same time, I very much wanted to reunite with my family.

I was able to leave Ukraine legally.

I found a music competition in Budapest and submitted the necessary documents to obtain permission to travel through the Ukrainian Ministry of Culture.

The permission was approved.

After that, I began regularly giving concerts abroad in support of Ukraine.

There was a direct flight from Budapest to Gothenburg.

And so, at the end of November 2022, I finally arrived in Sweden.

Two Weeks Between Two Accommodations

I went to the Migration Agency and explained that my wife and children were already living in temporary accommodation in Gothenburg.

It seemed logical that I would simply be allowed to join them immediately.

But the system worked a little differently.

I was told that I first had to stay for some time in another accommodation connected with the migration centre, and only afterwards could I officially be transferred to my family.

So for about two weeks, my life looked rather amusing.

I slept in one part of the city.

And every morning I travelled across Gothenburg to see my family in another:)

I did not mind too much, though.

I had only just arrived and enjoyed discovering the city.

Discovering Gothenburg’s Public Transport

One of the first things that impressed me was the local transport system.

Commuter trains, trams, and buses are connected so conveniently that having a car in Gothenburg hardly feels necessary.

In 30–40 minutes, you can reach almost any part of the city.

And the same travel pass works across the entire public transport system.

For someone who had just arrived in a new country and still barely knew where anything was, this was extremely convenient.

Little by little, I began learning my way around Gothenburg, travelling to see my family and practising at the same church.

At the same time, I helped Tima prepare the Corelli concerto for his first orchestral performance.

Timofey’s First Concert with an Orchestra

Naturally, Tima was a little nervous.

After all, it was his first proper concert experience with an orchestra.

But, as often happens, most of the worries turned out to be unnecessary.

A large audience came to the concert.

The programme was quite varied and concluded with Corelli’s Concerto grosso.

After the performance, the conductor introduced Timofey separately and announced that the orchestra had a new pianist.

For Tima, of course, this was a very special moment.

And almost immediately, we already had another project ahead of us.

Our First Concert Together in Support of Ukraine

During our time at the church, we met many wonderful people.

I would especially like to mention one Swedish woman who worked there.

Later, she helped our family a great deal and even wrote a very warm recommendation about us to the Migration Agency. I believe this may also have played a role when we were eventually offered separate accommodation.

It was she who suggested that Timofey and I give a New Year concert in support of Ukraine.

Naturally, we agreed immediately.

After the concert, there was going to be a traditional Swedish fika.

If you do not know this word yet, it is worth remembering:)

Fika is one of the most recognisable Swedish traditions.

It is a meeting over coffee, sweets, pastries, and, most importantly, conversation.

The Ukrainians from our accommodation promised to help with the baking.

Guests from another Ukrainian accommodation nearby were also expected, together with church members and anyone else who wanted to come.

Admission to the concert was free.

Those who wished could make a donation in support of Ukraine.

And so, only a few months after our arrival, music gradually began taking its familiar place in our lives again.

There were our first concerts, new acquaintances, new friends, and the feeling that life was slowly beginning to take shape once more.

In the next chapter, I will write about school, Nikita’s football, and our first larger concert together.

More about our life in Sweden can be found in the private online community Slakva Piano Circle, where I regularly share news, thoughts, work in progress, and things that usually remain outside the website.

Next chapter: “Life in Sweden. Chapter 3. The Children Start School. Concert at Kärra kyrka. Football Club. Conditions for Children in Sweden.”