International Bard Song Day

The art song as a genre appeared in different countries of the world in the mid-twentieth century. In the Soviet Union, it became one of the forms of self-expression of the “sixties”. Its brightest representatives were Bulat Okudzhava, Yuri Vizbor, Alexander Galich, Veronica Dolina, Katya Yarovaya, Novella Matveeva. The harbinger of the bard song is considered to be an urban romance performed by Alexander Vertinsky. Student and tourist songs had no less influence on the development of the genre. Musical works that were not allowed through censorship are characterized by satire and irony, sharp criticism of the political system, and deep penetration into the themes of friendship and love. December 22 is International Bard Song Day. The Ilmensky festival, held in the Chelyabinsk region since 1973, and the Grushinsky festival, which has been held annually since 1968, are dedicated to this cultural phenomenon. The third most popular is the Znamensky rally, which began back in 1978 as a gathering of student construction teams. In Israel, in honor of the bard song, the Sakhnovka festival is held twice a year, which attracts performers from Russia, Canada and the USA. What is the secret of the popularity of this genre? A distinctive feature of bard songs is that the author of the poems, music and their performer, who usually sings with a guitar, are one person. In the works of the "sixties", the content, which dealt with the most pressing problems of concern to society, always prevailed over the music. The creativity of bards differed from the ideological samples of art of the country of the Soviets, and therefore was banned. In the Soviet Union, at different times, Yuli Kim and Ada Yakusheva, Vladimir Vysotsky and Sergei Nikitin, Evgeniy Klyachkin and Valery Bokov, Oleg Mityaev and Alexander Sukhanov, Alexander Novikov and Willy Tokarev worked in this genre. Their songs were sung around the fire during hiking trips, both by the authors and by their fans among physicists and lyricists. The musical works of the bards were characterized by a lively approach to covering topics that worried their contemporaries, and a personal intonation. Songs were performed publicly in informal settings at “cabbage parties” and “kvartirniks,” which later grew into bard festivals. By tradition, they are still held today in the lap of nature - in camping conditions in a circle of like-minded people. The rallies open with O. Mityaev’s song “It’s great that we are all gathered here today.” International Bard Song Day has been celebrated since 2000 on the initiative of archaeologist and singer-songwriter K. Shlyamov. However, the idea of ​​the holiday arose long before that. For the first time, its establishment was discussed in 1985 by the participants and organizers of the Leningrad festival “Song, Guitar and You”. His guest of honor was Bulat Okudzhava. In addition to the author of the famous “Goodbye, boys” and “We will not stand behind the price,” A. Dolsky, V. Berkovsky, A. Sukhanov, V. Vikhorev, V. Egorov, B. Poloskin, A. Dulov performed their songs at the festival and other bards. The holiday, which is celebrated annually on December 22, is not official. However, in his honor, concerts of bard songs and creative evenings of performers are held in Russia and abroad. Radio stations broadcast musical compositions by Okudzhava, Galich, Vysotsky, Sergei and Tatyana Nikitin, Kim and Rosenbaum. "Good songs - good people." Under this motto, a day is held that unites fans of bards and performers from different countries and continents working in this genre.