From a dank Kyiv bomb shelter to the bright stage lights of Europe’s theatres, a Ukrainian youth choir’s hymns in praise of freedom offer a kind of healing balm to its war-scarred members. The Shchedryk ensemble, described as Kyiv’s oldest professional children’s choir, were in the Danish capital this week for a performance, as part of an international tour that also took them to New York’s famed Carnegie Hall.

It was part of a busy year to celebrate the choir’s 50th anniversary. But Russia’s February 24 invasion of Ukraine changed all that, with members scattering inside their homeland and abroad in search of safety. Some members say they have lost friends and family in the fighting.