Biography Okudzhava Bulat Shalvovich
(1924 – 1997)
That’s what Bulat Shalvovich himself told the “Ogonyok” correspondent Oleg Terentyev about his life:
“Well, I can tell you.” I was born in Moscow, on Arbat in the 24th year. By origin I am Georgian. But, as my Moscow friends say, Georgians of the Moscow spill. My native language is Russian. I am a Russian writer. My life was ordinary, the same as the life of my peers. Well, apart from the fact that in the year 37 my father – a party worker – was destroyed here in your wonderful city (Sverdlovsk). Three years I lived in Nizhny Tagil. Then he returned to Moscow. He studied at school. After the ninth grade at seventeen, he voluntarily went to the front. He fought. Was an ordinary. Mortar. Was injured. I remained alive. He studied at the university at the Faculty of Philology. He graduated. He went to a village school in the Kaluga region. Worked as a teacher. He taught Russian language and literature. Well, like
But I did not believe this man’s taste and continued to sing this song. About three years later I had a song about fools. This person invited me again and said to me: “Listen, you had a wonderful song about Lenka Koroleva.” Why should you sing about fools? ” Well, I realized that time is doing its job. This is the best judge. Weak things, it removes, good things left. Therefore, we do not need to fuss, judge, decide. Everything will be decided by itself. Art is such a thing. Long-suffering. Well, then, after these feuilletons and all the noise began to appear, my friends in the Writers’ Union decided to discuss me. It was very heated discussion. And I was accepted into the Writers’ Union. But after that, it became a little easier for me, books of poetry began to appear. My songs began to sing some singers. Although a very small amount, because the songs were unaccustomed, and they had to go through the art council. And the artistic councils feared these songs and rejected them. But some people sang. Then these songs were heard in films, in some, in performances. Then they became more used to them. I began to go around the country to speak. Then I was sent abroad. I spoke abroad. I started to get records. Then I began to write prose… And they got used to me so much that even on a summer day when, by tradition, tenth graders go out to the embankments of Moscow at night to say goodbye to the school, there was such a case. The television car rushed to the embankment to record the songs of these young people. We drove up to one group. There’s rock’n’roll. We drove up to another group – there is also something of this type. They began to rush about. And finally they saw – near the Cathedral of St. Basil there is such a little pile with a guitar, and they sing my song. They were so happy to hear that they had recorded and broadcasted. And so I was legalized. Well. And then came the normal band of literary life. And now I already have five novels and several books of poems and records. And now the plate with new songs should come out. So I’m happy in my literary life, because I went through fire, and water, and copper pipes. And resisted. And stayed by myself, as far as nature allowed me. And I continue to work. Alive and well. And now I already have five novels and several books of poems and records. And now the plate with new songs should come out. So I’m happy in my literary life, because I went through fire, and water, and copper pipes. And resisted. And stayed by myself, as far as nature allowed me. And I continue to work. Alive and well. And now I already have five novels and several books of poems and records. And now the plate with new songs should come out. So I’m happy in my literary life, because I went through fire, and water, and copper pipes. And resisted. And stayed by myself, as far as nature allowed me. And I continue to work. Alive and well.
Short biography
Bulat Shalvovich Okudzhava was born May 9, 1924 in Moscow in the family of party workers (father – a Georgian, mother – an Armenian). He lived in the Arbat until 1940. In 1934 he moved with his parents to Nizhny Tagil. There, his father was elected first secretary of the city party committee, and his mother – secretary of the district committee. In 1937 the parents were arrested; my father was shot, my mother was exiled to the Karaganda camp. O. returned to Moscow, where he was brought up with his brother from his grandmother. In 1940 he moved to his relatives in Tbilisi.
In his school years from the age of 14 he was an extras and stage workers in the theater, worked as a mechanic, at the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, a turner at a defense plant. In 1942, after finishing the ninth grade of secondary school, he volunteered for the war. He served in the reserve mortar battalion, then after two months of training he was sent to the North Caucasian Front. He was a mortar man, then a radio operator of heavy artillery. He was wounded near Mozdok. In 1945, he was demobilized.
He graduated from the secondary school and entered the Faculty of Philology of the University of Tbilisi, where he studied from 1945 to 1950. After graduation from 1950 to 1955 he worked as a teacher in the village of Shamordino and the district center of Vysokinichi of the Kaluga region, then in one of the secondary schools in Kaluga. Ibid, in Kaluga, was a correspondent and literary employee of the regional newspapers “Znamya” and “Young Leninist.”
In 1955, parents were rehabilitated. In 1956 he returned to Moscow. Participated in the literary association “Magistral”. Worked as an editor in the publishing house “Young Guard”, then – head of the department of poetry in the Literary Gazette. In 1961 he left the service and devoted himself entirely to free creative work.
Lived in Moscow. Wife – Olga Vladimirovna Artsimovich, a physicist by training. Son – Bulat Bulatovich Okudzhava, musician, composer.
June 12, 1997 died after a short illness in Paris. The last interview
The last interview given by Okudzhava to the student of the Faculty of Journalism of the Moscow State University Denis Levshinov in the spring of 1997 and published in Izvestia on June 14 of the same year.
– Bulat Shalvovich, how do you feel about your popularity?
– You know, I’m not a vain person, but ambitious. A vain person tries to be heard, but ambitious to be. I was never interested in the noise around my name. But as an author to me, of course, it’s nice to know that they treat me well.
– Many people consider you almost a hero of the people.
– If I lived on an uninhabited island, I would do the same – this is my profession, my vocation. I can not live otherwise, and then, the real admirers of my work, people who are thinking and serious, they do not flinch at the sight of me. Some, especially earlier, when I started to perform with a guitar, I was perceived as a performer, making noise and squealing, but quickly calmed down and went to other halls, but with me there were not many, but very loyal and thinking people.
“Do you write anything now, I see that you have scattered drafts of poetry everywhere?”
– I write all the time and work all the time.
– Do you write music?
“I never wrote music, in the full sense of the word, I do not know the music. And now I generally have lost interest in it.
– Why?
– I do not know, maybe because the performance of my poems was not the main profession, but I liked the hobby, my friends liked it, well, I sang. Then I did not learn how to play the guitar, maybe this is due to the lack of professional interest, and maybe, with age. In any case, I came up with the last song about two years ago. I can not say that I used to work very actively in this field. Of the one hundred poems that I wrote, a maximum of five turned into songs.
“So you are primarily a poet?”
– First of all, I am a person who writes poetry, but I am a poet or not – I do not know.
– Do you have any special education, musical or literary?
– No, no, I’m a philologist, a Russian philologist, graduated from the philological faculty. Once a child gave me to a music school, but that’s it.
– What are your relations with the cinema now?
– So there were circumstances that I was involved in the cinema, I had wonderful friends-directors, I was connected to writing scripts, I wrote scripts basically incompetent, tortured, resorting to the help of friends. Something turned out well. But then I returned home, I stayed alone and wrote my novels and poems, and this was the main thing.
Now I’m out of this circle. There was a time – they offered me, I refused, it was over. I fulfilled my destiny, I did what I could. Then they ceased to use the songs of this genre, this style. In general, art began to change. Everywhere the level of the restaurant, but the restaurant song is a restaurant song, and God give her health, in the restaurant you will not listen to the aria of Cavaradossi. But when this music becomes a leader, it’s terrible. Recently, some incompetent, voiceless, crooked performers have appeared, they are called stars, they take it seriously about themselves, this restaurant poshlyatina is bad. But I think it will pass.
– Bulat Shalvovich, do you like Yuri Shevchuk or Boris Grebenshchikov?
– In rock music, I do not understand anything. I do not want to say that it’s bad, but I do not understand anything about it, I’m an old-fashioned person. As for Grebenshchikov, I have known him for a long time, and he is interesting to me primarily as a poet, he has several things that fascinated me. The same is Yuri Shevchuk. A person is gifted, bright, peculiar, but I perceive only his poetry.
– Are you annoyed when actors or musicians suddenly become businessmen or politicians?
“No, it’s absolutely indifferent to me and it does not touch me at all, it’s just that sometimes I feel sorry for them.” Actor should not be a politician. Participation in public life is possible, but only at the level of a citizen. And somewhere to be elected, re-elected, to climb into deputies is all ridiculous and many have already understood this.
– What, in your opinion, is an intelligent person?
– An intelligent person is first of all one who aspires to education. This is a person who is against violence. It happens that the academician is a dung, and the worker is an intellectual. They say that Lenin is an intelligent person. He was never an intellectual, because an intellectual is an opponent of violence.
– What is the meaning of “freedom”?
– Freedom is, first of all, something that is unknown in Russia. When freedom is spoken in Russia, they mean will. What does the will mean? Do what you want, and freedom is the will within the law. We have either the will or the complete servitude, that’s why we are suffering now. Freedom is first of all respect for the individual. I live within my own destiny, but I will never allow myself to violate the neighbor’s peace or other person’s way of life for myself – that’s freedom. We are shouting now – democracy, freedom, but we do not have any democracy, democracy is a state of blood, it is produced not even by decades, but by generations, it must be inside the person.
“Are you a religious man?”
– I’m Orthodox according to my ancestors. But in my heart I’m an absolute atheist and today I will not cunning. And I must say that our Orthodox Church does not cause me trembling, because it is on the same level as our society, and it does not appeal to me. Although I have nothing against the church, I know priests – brilliant people. Here is my wife a true believer, I sincerely respect her passion for faith.
“As far as I know, your wife is a doll collector.”
– No, she is not a collector, she created the Moscow Puppet Museum and it is surrounded by impoverished talented puppeteers.
– Bulat Shalvovich, who are your friends now?
– You know, I was never a broad-minded person. Those who were my friends, they stayed. True, now we see each other very rarely. This age.
– Tell me, Bulat Shalvovich, what is love?
– I can not explain, I can love to see and say – oh, this is love, but I can not classify.
– Do you like people?
– Good – yes, bad – no. You can not love all people, there are subjects that you can not hate and hate. I have such lines in the poem: “I love not the people, but its individual representatives.”
Bibliography
Poetry and Songs
Poems began to write in childhood. For the first time Okudzhava’s poem was published in 1945 in the newspaper of the Transcaucasian Military District “RKKA Fighting Man” (later the “Lenin’s Banner”), where during 1946 other his poems were published. In 1953-1955 poems Okudzhava regularly appeared on the pages of Kaluga newspapers. In Kaluga, in 1956, the first collection of his poems Lyric was published. In 1959, the second poetry collection Okudzhava – “Islands” was published in Moscow. In subsequent years Okudzhava’s poems are published in many periodicals and collections, books of his poems are published in Moscow and other cities.
Okudzhava has more than 800 poems. Many of his poems are born with music, there are about 200 songs already.
For the first time he tries himself in the genre of song during the war. In 1946, a student at Tbilisi University creates a “Student Song” (“Furious and stubborn, burn, fire, burn…”). Since 1956, one of the first to begin to act as the author of poetry and music of songs and their performer. Okudzhava’s songs attracted attention. There were tape recordings of his speeches, which brought him wide popularity. Records of his songs were sold throughout the country in thousands of copies. His songs were heard in movies and performances, in concert programs, in television and radio programs. The first disc was released in Paris in 1968, despite the resistance of the Soviet authorities. Noticeably later, disks appeared in the USSR.
Currently, the State Literary Museum in Moscow has created Okudzhava tape recorder, numbering over 280 items.
Okudzhava verses are written by professional composers. An example of luck is V. Levashov’s song on Okudzhava’s verses “Take Overcoat, go home”. But Okudzhava’s commonwealth with Isaac Schwarz (“Drops of the Danish King”, “Your Honor”, “Song of the Cavalry Guard”, “Road Song”, songs for the television movie “Straw Hat” and others) proved to be the most fruitful.
Books (collections of poems and songs): “Lyrics” (Kaluga, 1956), “Islands” (M., 1959), “Merry Drummer” (Moscow, 1964), “On the way to Tinatin” (Tbilisi, 1964), “March is generous” (Moscow, 1967), “Arbat, My Arbat” (Moscow, 1976), “Poems” (Moscow, 1984, 1985), “Dedicated to You” (Moscow, 1988), “Favorites” (M., 1989), “Songs” (M., 1989), “Songs and Poems” (M., 1989), “Drops of the Danish King” (Moscow, 1991), “Grace of Fate” (Moscow, 1993). ), “Song of my life” (M., 1995), “Tea drinking on Arbat” (M., 1996), “Waiting room” (H. Novgorod, 1996).
Prose
Since the 1960s. Okudzhava works a lot in the genre of prose. In 1961 in the almanac “Tarusa pages” published his autobiographical novel “Be Healthy, Schoolboy” (a separate edition was published in 1987), dedicated to yesterday’s schoolchildren, who had to defend the country from fascism. The tale received a negative evaluation of the adherents of the official criticism who accused Okudzhava of pacifism.
In the following years, Okudzhava constantly writes autobiographical prose, which compiled the collections The Girl of My Dreams and The Traveling Musician (14 stories and novellas), and the novel The Abolished Theater (1993), which in 1994 received the International Booker Award as the best novel of the year at in Russian.
In the late 1960’s. Okudzhava turns to historical prose. In the 1970-80’s. The novels “The Travel of the Dilettantes” (written in the historical material of the beginning of the 19th century) were published in separate editions by the novella “Poor Avrosimov” (The Sip of Freedom) (1969) about the tragic pages in the history of the Decembrist movement, “The Adventures of Shipov, or the Old Vaudeville” (1971). Part 1. 1976, Part 2. 1978) and “Appointment with Bonaparte” (1983).
Books (prose): “The Front Comes to Us” (Moscow, 1967), “A Sip of Freedom” (M., 1971), “Adventures of Adventure” (Tbilisi, 1971; M., 1993), “The Adventures of Shipov, or Ancient (Moscow, 1975, 1992), “Selected Prose” (Moscow, 1979), “The Travel of the Dilettantes” (Moscow, 1979, 1980, 1986, 1990, Tallinn, 1987, 1988), “The Appointment with Bonaparte” (Moscow, 1985, 1988), “Be healthy, a schoolboy” (Moscow, 1987), “The Girl of My Dreams” (Moscow, 1988), “Selected Works” in 2 vols. (M., 1989), “The Adventures of a Secret Baptist” (Moscow, 1991), “The Story and Stories” (Moscow, 1992),
“The Coming Musician” (Moscow, 1993), “The Abolished Theater” (Moscow, 1995).
Abroad
Okudzhava performances were held in Australia, Austria, Bulgaria,
The works of Okudzhava have been translated into many languages and published in many countries of the world.
Books of poetry and prose published abroad (in Russian): “Song of Fools” (London, 1964), “Be Healthy, Schoolboy” (Frankfurt am Main, 1964, 1966), “Cheerful Drummer” (London, 1966), Prose and Poetry (Frankfurt am Main, 1968, 1977, 1982, 1984), Two Novels (Frankfurt am Main, 1970), Poor Avrosimov (Chicago, 1970, Paris 1972 ), “Adventure” (Tel-Aviv, 1975), “Songs” in 2 tons (ARDIS, vol.1, 1980, vol.2, 1986 (1988). Okudzhava published more than 100 articles and speeches. more than 1000 articles and works
Titles and awards
Member of the CPSU (1955-1990)
Member of the Writers’ Union of the USSR (1962).
Member of the founding council of the General newspaper.
Member of the editorial board of the newspaper “Evening Club”.
Member of the Council of the Society “Memorial”.
Founding member of the Russian PEN Center (1989).
Member of the Commission on Pardons under the President of the Russian Federation (1992).
Member of the Commission on State Prizes of the Russian Federation (1994).
Medal “For the Defense of the Caucasus”. …
Order of Friendship of Peoples (1984).
Honorary Medal of the Soviet Peace Fund.
State Prize of the USSR (1991).
Award “For Courage in Literature” them. AD Sakharov Independent Writers Association “April” (1991).
The first prize and the “Golden Crown” prize at the poetry contest “Struga Evenings” in Yugoslavia (1967).
Prize “Golden Guitar” at the festival in San Remo in Italy (1985).
Honorary Degree of Doctor of Humanities at Norwich University in the USA (1990).
Prize “Peno Penev” in Bulgaria (1990).
The Booker Prize (1994).
Okudzhava’s name was given to a small planet (1988).
Okudzhava was named after the Bulgarian-Russian Friendship Club in Yambol, Bulgaria (1989-90).
Honorary citizen of the city of Kaluga (1996).
Theater
According to Okudzhava’s play “The Shot of Freedom” (1966), as well as his prose, poems and songs, dramatic performances are staged.
Propositions:
“A Sip of Freedom” (L., TYuZ, 1967, Krasnoyarsk, Young People’s Theater of Lenin Komsomol, 1967; Chita, Drama Theater, 1971; Moscow, Moscow Art Theater, 1980; Tashkent, Russian Gorky Drama Theater,
“Mercy, or an old vaudeville” (L., Theater of Musical Comedy, 1974);
“Be healthy, schoolboy” (L., TYUZ, 1980);
“Music of the Arbat Court” (Moscow, Chamber Music Theater, 1988).
Movies: Film and Television
Since the mid-1960s. Okudzhava acts as a screenwriter. Even earlier in the films, his songs begin to sound: more than 50 films sound more than 70 songs for Okudzhava poems, more than 40 songs for his music. Occasionally Okudzhava himself is removed.
Screenplay:
“Fidelity” (1965, co-authored with P. Todorovsky, Production: Odessa Film Studio, 1965);
“Zhenya, Zhenechka and Katyusha” (1967, co-authored with V. Motyl, Production: Lenfilm, 1967);
“Private life of Alexander Sergeich, or Pushkin in Odessa” (1966, co-authored with O. Artsimovich, the film is not delivered);
“We loved Melpomene…” (1978, co-authored with O. Artsimovich, the film is not delivered).
Songs in the films (the most famous works):
On my own music:
“Sentimental March” (Zastava Ilyich, 1963)
“We will not stand behind the price” (Belorussky Railway Station, 1971)
“Wishing for Friends” (“The key without the right of transfer” “, 1977)
” The Song of the Moscow Militia “(” The Great Patriotic War “, 1979)
” The Happy Lot “(” The Lawful Marriage “, 1985).
To the music of I. Schwartz:
” Drops of the Danish King “(“
“The Song of the Cavalier Guard” (“The Star of Captivating Happiness”, 1975)
Songs for the film “The Straw Hat”, 1975
“Road Song” (“We were not Crowned in the Church”, 1982).
To the music of L. Schwartz:
“The Cheerful Drummer” (“Friend my, Kolka “, 1961)
To the music of V. Geviksman:
” The Old Wharf “(Chain reaction, 1963)
To the music of V. Levashov:
” Take your greatcoat, go home “(From Dawn to Dawn, 1975; – biots, there were soldiers… “, 1976).
Books:
“Zhenya, Zhenechka and Katyusha…” (M., 1968)
“Drops of the Danish King.” Screenplays and songs from movies (Moscow: Kinotsentr, 1991).
Work in the frame:
“Zastava Ilyich” (“I’m twenty years old”), the Film Studio. M. Gorky, 1963
“The key without the right to transfer”, Lenfilm, 1977
“Legal marriage”, Mosfilm, 1985
“Keep me, my talisman”, The film studio. A. Dovzhenko, 1986
Documentaries:
“I Remember a Wonderful Moment” (Lenfilm)
“My Contemporaries”, Lenfilm, 1984
“Two Hours With Bards” (“The Bards”), Mosfilm, 1988
“And Do not Forget About Me” Russian Television, 1992
Music editions of songs
The first musical edition of B. Okudzhava’s songs was released in Krakow in 1970 (there were repeated issues in later years). Musicologist V. Frumkin could not “break through” the release of the collection in the USSR, and, having left for the USA, released it there. In the same year, a large collection of songs was published in our country. Separate songs have been published many times in mass collections of songs.
Bulat Okudzhava. 20 songs for voice and guitar. – Krakow: Polish Muses. Izd-vo, 1970.- 64 p.
Bulat Okudzhava. Songs Musical record, edition, compilation V. Frumkin.- Ann Arbor, Michigan: Ardis, 1989.- 120 c.
Songs of Bulat Okudzhava. Melodies and texts. Compiler and author of the introductory article L. Shilov.- M.: Music, 1989.- 224 p.; 100,000 copies. (The musical material was recorded by A. Kolmanovsky with the participation of the author)
Gramplastinki
The list did not include foreign CDs (the most famous of them was released in Paris, the firm “Le Chant du Mond” in 1968). In the 70s, a very pleasant Bulat recording of his songs was done by Polish dramatic actors with a very careful arrangement. Together with the book about our bards “Poets with a guitar” there was a disc of songs in Bulgaria (“Balkanton”, Bulgaria, 1985. VTK 3804).
Songs of Bulat Okudzhava. “Melody”, 1966. D 00016717-8
Bulat Okudzhava. “Songs”. “Melody”, 1973. 33D-00034883-84
Bulat Okudzhava. Songs (verses and music). The author fulfills. “Melody”, 1976. M40 38867
“Songs on the poems of Bulat Okudzhava.” “Melody”, 1978. М40 41235
Bulat Okudzhava. “Songs”. “Melody”, 1978.
Г62 07097 Bulat Okudzhava. “Songs”. Performed by Bulat Okudzhava. “Melody”, 1981. C60 13331
Bulat Okudzhava. Songs and poems about the war. The author fulfills. Record all-Union recording studio and soundtrack movies 1969-1984. “Melody”, 1985. M40 46401 003
Bulat Okudzhava. “New songs”. Record of 1986 “Melody”, 1986. C60 25001 009
Bulat Okudzhava. “Song, short, as life itself…” Performed by the author. Recording 1986 “Melody”, 1987. C62 25041 006
CDs
Bulat Okudzhava. “While the earth is still spinning.” Records M. Kryzhanovsky 1969-1970 gg. SoLyd Records, 1994. SLR 0008
Bulat Okudzhava. “And as the first love…” Under the license of Le Chant du Mond, record 1968. SoLyd Records, 1997. SLR 0079
Compact cassettes
Bulat Okudzhava. “While the earth is still spinning.” Records M. Kryzhanovsky 1969-1970 gg. Under the license of SoLyd Records. LLP “Moscow windows”, 1994.
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