Opera singer spent 13 months at the front: the story of a veteran from Dnipro.

Serhiy Havrylov – a war veteran who supports comrades with Ukrainian music

Serhiy Havrylov is a war veteran who served for 13 months as a soldier in the 128th Territorial Defense Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Before that, he sang at the Dnipro Academic Opera and Ballet Theater, where he worked for 18 years, according to «Suspilne».

Before the war began, Serhiy quit his job and started giving private music lessons. However, when Russia began its aggression, he decided to defend Ukraine. Despite vision problems, Serhiy fought on the Kharkiv, Donetsk, and Luhansk fronts.

Today, Serhiy Havrylov performs Ukrainian songs to support the morale of his comrades. He accompanies cultural missions to visit the military. He started singing at the age of six and even during his military service, he was part of the army ensemble. He also received a musical education and became an opera singer, performing on the stage of the Dnipro Opera and Ballet Theater for 18 years.

«Psychologically, it's very hard; physically, it's very hard. Although they say: «Oh, what's so hard about singing» – it's very hard. You're alone, there's an orchestra in front of you, and there are spectators, but it was easy for me – I couldn't see anyone», explained Serhiy.

A few years before the war began, Serhiy was forced to end his theater career due to vision problems. But after the war began, he was called up by the military commissariat. On the first day of the full-scale war, when a shell flew over his student's house, he decided to leave everything and go to the military commissariat.

Serhiy became an anti-tank missile systems operator and participated in the war on the Kharkiv, Luhansk, and Donetsk fronts. According to Havrylov, he constantly sang – while digging trenches, before and after combat actions. Even during his service in the brigade, he also voluntarily led a choir in a church.

After 13 months of service, Serhiy was discharged due to health issues. His vision deteriorated to -13 and -10. He spent two months in a hospital undergoing treatment and recently underwent eye surgery. He continues to sing and give private piano lessons. Comrades now reach out to him to learn to play or sing.

By the way, earlier an intelligence officer escaped from captivity from the 58th separate motorized infantry brigade named after Hetman Ivan Vyhovsky – Vadim with the call sign Vados. He returned to his own and continued to fight against the invaders. According to him, the occupiers often discuss him on radio communication.