СОЮЗ (SOYUZ) is a creative collective originally from Minsk, Belarus, founded in 2017 by multi-instrumentalist and composer Alex Chumak and Mikita Arlou. After relocating to Warsaw in 2022, they were joined by Polish musicians Albert Karch and Igor Wiśniewski. The band weaves jazz, folk, and Brazilian MPB with Eastern European pop heritage - studio albums are meticulously arranged, while live the quartet reshapes the songs through collective improvisation. Their 2022 album Force of the Wind (Mr Bongo) was named one of Bandcamp's Best Albums of the year.
СОЮЗ released their fourth album KROK (October 2025) on the Mr Bongo label - the first album written almost entirely in Belarusian, recorded in São Paulo, Stockholm and Warsaw.
On the album KROK they collaborated with Brazilian musician Tim Bernardes and Japanese artist Manami Kakudo.
In 2024 the band released two international collaborations: the single 'Spring has sprung' with Sven Wunder and Asha Puthli and the single 'Калі ты запытаеш (If You Ask)'.
СОЮЗ performed at the We Out Here 2026 festival in Great Britain, which was sold out.
After moving to Warsaw, Polish musicians Albert Karch (drums) and Igor Wiśniewski (guitar) joined the founding duo.
