Among the many links between the Soviet Union and Post-Soviet Russia maybe the national anthem is the most symbolic one – here in the 1977 version sung by the Ukrainian group 5’Nizza live on RenTV shortly after midnight on January 1st, 2004: When Stalin in 1943 wished to replace the “The Internationale” which had until…Continue reading The national anthem lyricist Sergei Mikhalkov (1913-2009)
Category: music
Popular Music and Society on Popular Music in the Post-Soviet Space
A happy summer announcement: The journal “Popular Music and Society” (32:3 2009) titled “Popular Music in the Post-Soviet Space: Trends, Movements, and Social Contexts” of which Yngvar Steinholt and I were guest editors is now out. Concluding about two years of editorial work (and a lot of really interesting submissions) the journal includes the following…Continue reading Popular Music and Society on Popular Music in the Post-Soviet Space
Of spectacles and marmots – Televizor’s Ochki
The group Televizor (Television) based around its vocalist Mikhail Borzykin has been around since 1984 and can be considered the 3rd generation of Leningrad Rock Club bands. The group’s first album “Shestvie Ryb” (Fish parade) was released in 1985, followed by “Otechestvo illiuzii” (Fatherland of illusion) in 1987. The latter album included the song “Tvoi…Continue reading Of spectacles and marmots – Televizor’s Ochki
NYTimes portrait: “The Loyalist – Valery Gergiev”
This weekend’s New York Times magazine had an interesting and extensive portrait of the Russian/Ossetian conductor and artistic director of the Mariinskii Teatr Valerii Gergiev. He is – in my opinion – one of the top conductors of Western Art music today and definitively one of the most important musicians promoting Russian art music (that…Continue reading NYTimes portrait: “The Loyalist – Valery Gergiev”
End of an era: Alla Pugacheva to stop giving concerts
Despite that her singing qualities have declined over the last years Soviet Pop-Diva Alla Pugacheva (born 1949) is one of the most popular Russian estrada singers today (she was both 2006 and 2007 ranked 2nd in a popular survey of Russia’s current elite). So it was a small surprise that she at a press conference…Continue reading End of an era: Alla Pugacheva to stop giving concerts
PTVP & Bozhe, khrani Putina eh, Tsaria…
While chopping away some parts of my dissertation I stumbled upon a short paragraph on the Vyborg/St. Petersburg based punk band Posledniye Tanki v Parizhe (Last Tanks in Paris, a.k.a. PTVP). The group was one of the few locally successful (in terms of playing for an audience of 200-400 listeners) St. Petersburg bands who during…Continue reading PTVP & Bozhe, khrani Putina eh, Tsaria…
Bleeping DDT’s Kogda zakonchitsia neft’
Iurii Shevchuk (DDT) is besides Mikhail Borzykin (Televizor) known for being one of the more outspoken musicians within the russkii rok tradition. Following the presidential elections 2008 he has also performed at the Marsh nesoglasnykh and has been featured on the compilations “Muzyka NEsoglasnykh 1 and 2”. On the first compilation the song “Kogda zakonchitsia…Continue reading Bleeping DDT’s Kogda zakonchitsia neft’
Bozhe, Tsaria khrani & MP44
While listening to MP44’s “Avtoritsarizm” (word play on autocracy and tsarism) on the compilation “Muzyka NEsoglasnykh – chast’ 2” this morning it struck me that the melody they sample was very familiar – some quick research confirmed that the group sampled a male choir singing “Bozhe, Tsaria khrani” (God save the Tsar) – the Russian…Continue reading Bozhe, Tsaria khrani & MP44
Eurovision as a new battlefield in the Russian-Georgian war
After the short, but intense military conflict in Georgia last summer the Georgian-Russian conflict which started after the Rose Revolution 2003 has been transported back to Russia – to Moscow and the 2009 Eurovision competition. Unlike some other Eastern European groups (Ruslana…) Georgia’s Stephane and 3G with the song “We Don’t Wanna Put In” decided…Continue reading Eurovision as a new battlefield in the Russian-Georgian war
Berlin, Obama and Russendisko
i just spent 2 1/2/ weeks vacationing in berlin. while primarily uneventful, i did attend obama’s speech at the siegessäule – which was kind of disappointing. after reading about his charisma and aim to overcome partisan divides the reality presented an eloquent politician giving a well formulated speech which main message was for everybody to…Continue reading Berlin, Obama and Russendisko
Prison concert
Just got back from playing with Hotel Desperado in Vestre Fængsel (The Western Prison) in Copenhagen. The concert was in the prison chapel where about 50-60 inmates (both male and female) were present. We were kind of nervous before the gig (we had no idea what the audience would be like and what kind of…Continue reading Prison concert
Vigdal’s Tonereise
In my master’s thesis Signifyin’ Vigdal: Aspects of the Ragnar Vigdal tradition and the revival of Norwegian vocal folk music which I finished in 2003 my main point of focus was the Ragnar Vigdal tradition and how vocalists today interpret him (his style is known for it’s nasal timbre, ornamentals and special tonality). As a…Continue reading Vigdal’s Tonereise