Who is considered the first classic of Russian romance? History of romance

A romance is similar to a song, but at the same time differs from it in some features, which, in fact, makes a romance a romance.

But first, a little about the history of romance and the origin of the term itself.

The term "romance", which originated in medieval Spain, originally referred to a common song in the Spanish (Roman) language. Romance –in Spanish. The content of the poem set to music was usually love and lyrical. This term later spread to other countries, but in some there remains one designation for the song and for the romance: for example, in Germany - Lied (song).

As a matter of fact, romance as a genre was formed later, and therefore did not require special term, although it is obvious that it evolved from a song. The first romances appeared around XV century, but the real flowering of the romance began in the second half XVIII V. Moreover, the lyrical creativity of poets contributed to this Goethe And Heine, which in their lyrics expressed the depth of feelings and experiences that could not be expressed in a simple song: to express deep feelings I needed deep music. And such music appeared. National schools of romance also appeared, especially famous in Germany, France and Russia. But we will talk about the authors of romances in the next article, and in this one we will continue the story about the romance genre.

Signs of romance

As we have already said, a romance is similar to a song. But its difference from a song is its special melodiousness and clear, prominent melody. A romance usually does not have a chorus (refrain), although there are exceptions. In romance music, unlike songs, more attention is paid to mood (rather than rhythm, for example); the essence of romance is in the content of the poems and in the melody, and not in the accompaniment. Romances are usually chamber music (singing with the accompaniment of one instrument, usually the piano). But here, of course, there are exceptions - orchestral accompaniment.

Features of the romance genre

In a romance, words, music, and vocals are important at the same time.

A romance is a more intimate work than a song, so it can only be lyrical, while a song can be patriotic, heroic, etc.

Due to the fact that romance usually expresses love feeling, it always contains or implies an addressee, i.e. a romance, in a sense, must have a dialogue, even if it is an internal one.

Close to romance instrumental works“songs without words” in which the melodic line predominates. The most famous are “Songs without Words” by F. Mendelssohn.

Romance verses are usually melodic, melodious, touching and tender, or tragic.

Russian romance

Russian romance emerged as a genre in the first half XIX century, this was associated with the flourishing of romanticism in world, including Russian, literature. Composers played an important role in the development of Russian romance A. Alyabyev, A. Varlamov and A. Gurilev.

Among the best and most famous works Alyabyeva can be called the romance “The Nightingale” (1826) to the words of A. Delvig, “ Winter road", "Two Crows" to the poems of A. Pushkin, "Evening Bells" to the words of I. Kozlov.

A. Varlamov created about 200 romances. Among them, the most famous are “Mountain Peaks” to the verses of G. Heine, “A blizzard is blowing along the street”, “A lonely sail is turning white” to the verses of M. Lermontov.

Romances A. Gurilyova imbued with romantic, sentimental moods, subtle lyricism, they are strongly influenced by Russian folk tradition. The most famous are “No, it’s not you I love so ardently” to the verses of M. Lermontov, “The bell rattles monotonously” to the verses of I. Makarov, “Mother Dove” to the verses of S. Nirkomsky, etc.

I. Yuryeva

Many Russian romances had a gypsy flavor both in content and in music. From classical Russian literature we know that gypsy singing was a favorite pastime of the Russian nobility.

Beginning of the 20th century called the “golden age” of Russian romance. Then listeners were captivated by the talent of A. Vertinsky, V. Panina, A. Vyaltseva, N. Plevitskaya, and later by Pyotr Leshchenko, Isabella Yuryeva, Tamara Tsereteli and Vadim Kozin.

Alexander Nikolaevich Vertinsky (1889-1957)

A. Vertinsky

Outstanding Russian pop artist, film actor, composer, poet and singer, pop idol in the first half of the 20th century. Father of actresses Marianna and Anastasia Vertinsky.

The life of A. Vertinsky is reflected in his era: acquaintance with the artists K. Malevich, M. Chagall, poets V. Mayakovsky, I. Severyanin, actress V. Kholodnaya, participation as an orderly in the First World War. He traveled all over the country with pop performances, and in 1920 he emigrated first to Constantinople, and then began wandering around the world.

He himself explained the reasons for emigration as follows: “What pushed me to do this? Did I hate Soviet power? Oh no! The Soviet government did nothing bad to me. Was I a follower of some other system? Not either: obviously, it was a passion for adventure and travel. Youthful carelessness." He lived and worked in Romania, Bessarabia, Poland, Germany, Paris, which he called his second home, here he met Charlie Chaplin, Marlene Dietrich, Greta Garbo. During these years, Vertinsky became friends with Anna Pavlova, Tamara Karsavina and Ivan Mozzhukhin. Close friendship bound him to long years and with Fyodor Chaliapin. Then there was the USA, China, Lebanon, Palestine... And only in 1943, after numerous appeals and requests, he was able to return to his homeland, Russia. Here he worked actively on the stage, including at the front. But, despite the singer’s enormous popularity, the official Soviet press treated his work with restrained hostility - soon after the end of the war, a campaign was launched against lyrical songs that allegedly led listeners away from the tasks of socialist construction.

But his numerous songs and romances became a new word in art, laying the foundation for Russian art song. Vertinsky's romances are still popular, but not every performer can convey their charm and aristocracy. Let’s name the most famous: “Your fingers smell like incense”, “Tango “Magnolia”, “Grey-Eye”, “Marlene”, etc.

N. Slichenko

IN Soviet time, especially since the late 1930s, romance was persecuted as a relic of the tsarist era, harmful to the builders of the socialist future. Many famous performers were silenced, some were repressed.

The revival of Russian romance began only in the 1970s. At that time bright performers romances have become Valentin Baglaenko, Nikolay Slichenko, Valentina Ponomareva, Nani Bregvadze, Boris Shtokolov and others.

N. Bregvadze

Varieties of romance

Simultaneously with the Russian chamber-vocal classical romance, the everyday romance, designed for amateur singers. Here we can highlight cruel romance And urban romance.

Cruel romance

I. Pryanishnikov “Cruel Romances”

It arose approximately in the middle of the 19th century, and its heyday was the last quarter of the 19th - beginning of the 20th century.

A cruel romance was born in the urban and suburban environment where the “philistines” lived: peasants, workers, poor traders, artisans. They began to create their own subculture, emerging from ditties, romance, dance (for example, quadrille), popular prints, etc. In the 20th century cruel romance gradually replaced the ancient song and became a favorite genre. Subsequently, the cruel romance served as one of the sources urban romance.

There is no single definition of the cruel romance genre. But it has special features that make it stand out from the genre of classical romance: limited plot, everyday tragedy, ending mainly in murder, suicide, death from grief or unrequited love, etc.

Urban romance

It was formed almost at the same time as the cruel romance. The differences from cruel romance are also insignificant: urban romance is more harmonious from a literary point of view, performed mainly in a minor key. He was more influenced by gypsy romance, as well as operetta.

Evolved from urban romance thug song, author's song, and Russian chanson.

Thieves song

A song genre that glorifies the difficult life and morals of the criminal environment, designed for prisoners and people close to the criminal world. It became widespread in the Soviet Union and subsequently in the CIS countries. For the first time, criminal songs were published on gramophone records in the 1930s. They were performed by the famous Leonid Utesov.

L. Utesov

In the 1930s and 1940s, songs appeared about the suffering of convicts in the Gulag. A song about people held in difficult conditions in camps on Kolyma in the Magadan region, “Vanino Port,” whose authorship has not yet been precisely established, appeared in the late 1940s and became the anthem of prisoners.

Musicologists find individual motives of the criminal song in early works Vladimir Vysotsky And Alexandra Rosenbaum.

A. Rosenbaum

In the 90s in Russia, many musicians and groups performed the criminal song on the stage. Famous songwriter Mikhail Tanich, who was in the camp during Stalin's time, created group "Lesopoval", who performed criminal songs and became popular.

The first composition of the group "Lesopoval"

Over time, songs began to appear in the genre of criminal music that go beyond the criminal theme, but retain it characteristics: melody, jargon, worldview. This kind of music began to be called “Russian chanson”.

Russian chanson

Katya Ogonyok

IN beginning of XXI V. The criminal song that plays on radio and television is usually called Russian chanson. It has become a phenomenon of mass culture. The symbol of the new Russian “chanson” is the song “Vladimir Central” Mikhail Krug, its author has never been to prison, but uses stylization of the genre.

Willy Tokarev

In addition to the above-mentioned artists, performers of Russian chanson include Katya Ogonyok, Vika Tsyganova, Willy Tokarev, the Butyrka group, Ivan Kuchin, Lyubov Uspenskaya, Mikhail Shufutinsky and many others.

In addition to the indicated types of romances, one can also distinguish noble romance, response romance, ironic, acting, White Guard, etc.

But let's return to the classic romance. It was and is included in their repertoire by many outstanding modern singers and actors: Yuri Gulyaev, Evgeny Dyatlov, Sergei Zakharov, Lyudmila Zykina, Alexander Malinin, Lyudmila Ryumina, Valentina Tolkunova, Klavdiya Shulzhenko, Dmitry Hvorostovsky and others.

D. Hvorostovsky

Romance is a very definite term. In Spain (the birthplace of this genre), this was the name for a special kind of composition, intended primarily for solo performance to the accompaniment of a viol or guitar. As a rule, a romance is based on a small lyric poem of the love genre.

Origins of Russian romance

This genre was brought to Russia from France by aristocrats of the second half of the XVIII century and was immediately accepted by the fertile soil of Soviet poetry. However, Russian romances, the list of which is known today to every lover of classical song, began to emerge somewhat later, when the Spanish shell began to be filled with truly Russian feelings and melodies.

Into the fabric new song traditions were organically woven folk art, which has so far been presented exclusively by anonymous authors. Romances were re-sung, passing from mouth to mouth, lines were altered and “polished.” By the beginning of the 19th century, the first song collectors began to appear, driven by the idea of ​​preserving ancient Russian romances (their list by that time was already quite large).

Often these enthusiasts added to the collected texts, giving the lines depth and poetic power. The collectors themselves were academically educated people, and therefore, when going on folklore expeditions, they pursued not only aesthetic, but also scientific goals.

Evolution of the genre

Starting from the turn of the 18th-19th centuries, the artistic content of romance lyrics became increasingly filled with deep personal feelings. The hero’s individual world was given the opportunity for vivid, sincere expression. The combination of a high syllable with simple and lively Russian vocabulary made the romance truly popular and accessible to both the nobleman and his peasant.

The vocal genre was finally reborn and by the middle of the 19th century it became an integral part of a social evening within the framework of “languid” home music playing, beloved by all young ladies. The first romances also appeared. The list that made up their song repertoire included more and more original works.

The most famous in the first half of the 19th century were such famous composers as A. Alyabyev and A. Gurilev, who played an invaluable role in the development of Russian romance and its popularization.

City and gypsy romances

Urban romance absorbed greatest number folklore motifs Russia XIX-XX centuries. Being an author's song, such a song, in its freedom of existence, resembled and was distinguished by its characteristic features:

• the magic of details;
• clearly defined images;
• step composition;
• powerful reflection of the main character;
• the image of ever-eluding love.

The characteristic features of urban romance from a musical point of view are the harmonic construction of the composition with minor tones, as well as its inherent sequence.

The gypsy romance was born as a tribute to Russian composers and poets in the manner of performance of the same name, beloved by many. Its basis was an ordinary lyrical song. However, its lyrics and melody included characteristic artistic expressions and techniques that were in use among the gypsies. It’s not surprising to recognize such a romance today. Its main theme, as a rule, is love experience in various gradations (from tenderness to carnal passion), and the most noticeable detail is “green eyes”.

Cruel and Cossack romances

There is no academic definition for these terms. However, their characteristic features are described quite fully in the literature. The peculiarity of cruel romance is a very organic combination of the principles of ballad, lyrical song and romance. Its individual features include the abundance of main plots, differing only in the causes of the tragedy. The result of the whole story is usually death in the form of murder, suicide or from mental anguish.

The birthplace of the Cossack romance is the Don, which gave lovers of folk poetry a legendary song unknown author“Spring will not come for me...” History also does not know the exact authorship of most highly artistic works that can be described as “classical Russian romances.” Their list includes songs such as: “Dear Long”, “Only Once”, “Eh, Friend Guitar”, “Come Back”, “We Only Acquaintances” and others, written in the first third of the 20th century.

Russian romances: list and their authors

According to one of the main versions, Russian romances, the list of which was given above, belong to the pen of the most popular at the beginning last century songwriters: Boris Fomin, Samuil Pokrass, Yuli Khait and others.

The most devoted connoisseur of classical romance in the 20th century was Valery Agafonov, who was the first to declare the high value of the cultural baggage leaving the Soviet listener. Russian romances, the list of which Agafonov compiled, owed their revival on new soil to the return to their homeland of their legendary performers - Alexander Vertinsky and Alla Bayanova.

Russian romance

You will remember the separation with a strange smile.
You will remember a lot of things dear and distant,
Listening to the incessant murmur of wheels,
Looking thoughtfully into the wide sky...

(I. Turgenev)

For Russian composers, romance has become the sphere of embodiment of the most intimate experiences, sincere feelings and hidden thoughts.

The romance genre originated in Spain in the form of a secular song in Spanish (“Romance”), in contrast to church hymns in Latin. Collections of such songs, often united by a common plot, were called “romancero”. Having spread in other countries, the term “romance” began to designate, on the one hand, a lyrical poem distinguished by its special melodiousness, and on the other, a genre of vocal music.

In Russia mid-18th century century, the word “romance” was used to describe a poem in French set to music. Its content was limited to pastoral subjects. At this time, romance as a genre of Russian vocal and poetic culture was called differently Russian song y. In essence, it was an everyday romance, intended for solo one-voice performance accompanied by a harpsichord, piano, gusli or guitar.

By the turn of the 18th-19th centuries, the content of vocal lyrics became increasingly individualized. The world of a person’s personal feelings received a vivid and truthful expression. Combined with a natural, lively literary style, this made Russian songs accessible to everyone - from the noble intelligentsia and urban philistinism to peasants. Vocal genres have become a favorite form of communication within the framework of home music playing.

In the first half of the 19th century, a whole series of talented composers who played an important role in the development of Russian classical romance (A. A. Alyabyev, A. E. Varlamov, A. L. Gurilev). Relying on best samples Russian poetry that had emerged by this time, they created soulful, expressive works. A. S. Pushkin had a particularly profound impact on the development of romance lyrics.

Familiar sounds, wonderful sounds!
Oh, how much power you have been given!
Past happiness, past torment,
And the joy of meeting, and the tears of separation -
You are destined to resurrect everything...

Since the middle of the 19th century, a noticeable evolution has occurred in this area: the areas of “professional” romance and everyday romance have sharply divided. The first of them, created mainly by professional composers, was performed by masters of vocal art; the second usually arose with the collaboration of little-known poets and amateur musicians and became the property of mass music-making. A significant part of the romances that have survived to this day are the result of a merger of these two directions.

The “Russian song” was replaced by the songwriting of poets who abandoned the external, formal imitation of folklore and created works whose national identity and connection with folk poetry acquired a more complex, realistic character (N. A. Nekrasov, I. Z. Surikov, I. . S. Nikitin). By this time, a special type of genre had developed - urban romance, which spread among the poorly educated part of the urban population. The imaginative world of works of this genre is limited to urban and rural landscapes, full of local flavor.

IN late XIX century, classical romance has undergone significant changes: the means of expression and musical and poetic connections have become more complex. These features appeared especially clearly in the work of P. I. Tchaikovsky, who wrote romances throughout his entire creative life. They present a wide palette of vocal genres - from lyrical romances to lullabies, serenades, elegies, ballads, mazurkas, gypsy romances and, finally, children's songs.

And the sounds of romance are a boundless sea,
Alluring and caressing, it circles above me.
There's a hot whisper, there's the sound of a kiss,
And two in a gazebo in a silent garden,
And the heart with romance, loving and yearning,
He either lives in heaven or burns in hell.
Hands of times past are stretched out to us,
They contain feelings of romance, they contain music of souls.
Take it into your heart, take these sounds in,
And having accepted this sacrament, do not violate it!

(E. Matveeva)

High skill and utmost sincerity of lyrical expression made Tchaikovsky's romances popular among the widest audience. When choosing texts, the composer's interest in contemporary poets prevailed. Above all, he valued the emotional and musical side of poetry. Therefore, while passionately loving and respecting Pushkin, having created his best operatic works based on his stories, Tchaikovsky only twice turned to his work in his vocal lyrics. The clarity and accuracy of Pushkin’s poetic speech did not allow for the freedom of interpretation that was given, for example, by the poems of A. A. Fet and A. K. Tolstoy - two poets whose work served as an incentive for the creation of Tchaikovsky’s best romances, which went beyond the chamber genre and approached to vocal and symphonic works.

The broad melodiousness of the melody in Tchaikovsky's romances is always saturated with intonations characteristic of living human speech. This is one of the most famous romances - “Among the Noisy Ball” to the words of A.K. Tolstoy. It is based on a waltz rhythm. Its melody, subtly conveying the gentle lyricism of the mood, seems to grow out of speech intonations and at the same time, thanks to the waltz accompaniment, it has a rhythmic roundness.

The brilliant gallery of Russian romances is completed by Rachmaninov's vocal miniatures, which in their popularity rival his piano works. Most of the composer's romances were written to texts by Russian poets of the second half of the 19th century– beginning of the 20th century.

Often turning to poems of low poetic merit, Rachmaninov interpreted them in his own way, giving them a new, immeasurably more deep meaning. He interpreted the romance genre as a field of expression lyrical feelings and moods.

The composer's vocal style is distinguished by its breadth and freedom of melodic breathing. In this case, the piano part plays an extremely important role, which cannot be called simply an accompaniment.

« Spring waters"to the verses of F. Tyutchev - one of the most enthusiastic romances by Rachmaninov. It sounds like a jubilant “song of a liberated land.” Activity and aspiration are characteristic of all musical components of the romance. The melody, permeated with ringing “trumpet voices”, is combined with seething “avalanches” of passages in the piano part, which are then transformed into bell-chord swings.

Rachmaninoff's romances became the culmination and natural result of the evolution of the romance genre in Russian music of the pre-revolutionary period.

Questions and tasks:

1. Listen to old Russian romances. Which of these romances are you familiar with? In what life situations was this the first time you heard them?
2. Why do the melodies and words of popular Russian romances leave a mark on our memory?
3. What experiences, life associations, visual images arise in your imagination under the influence musical images Russian romances?
4. Name the romances that your relatives know or sing.

Presentation

Included:
1. Presentation - 22 slides, ppsx;
2. Sounds of music:
Alyabyev. Nightingale (lyrics by A. Delvig), performed by E. Miroshnichenko, mp3;
Varlamov. Red sundress (lyrics by N. Tsyganov), performed by N. Obukhova, mp3;
Varlamov. At dawn, don't wake her up (lyrics by A. Fet), performed by O. Pogudin, mp3;
Varlamov. Sail (lyrics by M. Lermontov), ​​performed by O. Pogudin, mp3;
Glinka. Lark (lyrics by N. Kukolnik), performed by BDH, mp3;
Glinka. A passing song (lyrics by N. Kukolnik), performed by BDH, mp3;
Gurilev. The bell rattles monotonously (lyrics by I. Makarov), performed by M. Magomaev and T. Sinyavskaya, mp3;
Rachmaninov. Spring waters (lyrics by F. Tyutchev), performed by N. Kopylov, mp3;
Chaikovsky. Among the noisy ball (lyrics by A. Tolstoy), performed by M. Magomayev, mp3;
3. Accompanying article, docx.

For additional listening, audio recordings are included in the archive:
Sheets. I remember the waltz's lovely sound (lyrics by K. Listov), ​​performed by N. Kopylov, mp3;
Bulakhov. Shine, shine, my star (lyrics by an unknown author), performed by N. Kopylov, mp3;
I Met You (music by an unknown author, lyrics by Tyutchev), performed by N. Kopylov, mp3;
Varlamov. Mountain peaks (lyrics by M. Lermontov), ​​performed by BDH, mp3.

Romance is chamber vocal piece, which is characterized by a poetic form and lyrical content of love themes. In other words, this poetic works for singing with instrumental accompaniment.

The form of a romance is close to a song, only with a limited theme of a love-lyrical nature. The romance is usually performed accompanied by one instrument, most often. The main emphasis in works of this kind is on melody and semantic load.

The birth of romance

The term "romance" itself originated in Spain, where it was used to name secular songs in Spanish that needed to be separated from religious hymns sung in Latin. The Spanish word “romance” or the late Latin “romanice” is translated as “in Romance” or “in Spanish,” which is actually the same thing. The term “romance” has taken root in many languages ​​in parallel with the term “song,” although in German and English these two concepts are still not separated, denoting them with the same word (German Lied and English Song).

So, romance is a type of song that took shape in the period of the 15th-19th centuries.

Western European romance

Since the middle of the 18th century, romance has become especially popular in Germany and France and becomes a separate genre on the border of music and poetry. The poetic basis for the romances of this era were poems by such great poets as Heine and Goethe.

Already in the 19th century, national schools of romance were formed in Germany, Austria, France and Russia. During this period, the famous romances of the Austrians Schumann, Brahms and Schubert, and the French Berlioz, Bizet and Gounod were created.

It was also typical for European schools to combine romances into entire vocal cycles. The first such cycle, “To a Distant Beloved,” was created by Beethoven. His example was followed by Schubert (the romance cycles “Winterreise” and “The Beautiful Miller’s Wife”), Schumann, Brahms, Wolf... From the mid-19th century and in the 20th century, national schools of romance were formed in the Czech Republic, Poland, Norway, Finland.

Gradually, in addition to the classical chamber form of romance, a genre such as everyday romance is developing. It was designed for non-professional singers and was widely popular in society.

Russian romance

The Russian school of romance arose under the influence of romantic sentiments in art and was finally formed by the mid-19th century. Its founders are considered to be Alyabyeva, Gurilev, Varlamova, who often turned to gypsy themes in their work.

Alexander Alyabyev

Later, separate trends were formed in the genre of Russian romance - salon romance, cruel romance... Russian romance experienced its apogee of development at the beginning of the 20th century, in the era of the creativity of Vertinsky and Vyaltseva, Plevitskaya and Panina. The traditions laid down by these brilliant musicians were successfully continued by Alla Bayanova and Pyotr Leshchenko, and already in the era of existence Soviet Union- Vadim Kozin, Tamara Tsereteli, Isabella Yurieva.

Unfortunately, in Soviet era The romance genre was not welcomed by the party leadership, since it was considered a non-proletarian genre, a relic of tsarism. and performers of romances were subjected to persecution and repression.

Only in the 70s. In the 20th century, romance experienced a revival when romances performed by Valentina Ponomareva and Nani Bregvadze, Nikolai Slichenko and Valentin Baglaenko gained popularity.

History of Russian romance

Romance in music (Spanish romance, from Late Latin romanice, literally - “in Romanesque”, that is, “in Spanish”) - vocal composition, written on a short poem of lyrical content, mainly love; chamber musical and poetic work for voice with instrumental accompaniment.

In the 18th century, a “romance” was a vocal work in French (even if written by a Russian composer), and a work with text in Russian was a “Russian song.” “Romances” were also called poems by poets like Sumarokov or Trediakovsky, in which folk melodic motifs sounded.

Romances are divided into:
Classic romance - written by professional composers.
Urban romance (everyday) is author's in its method of creation, but folklore in its mode of existence, a prototype of Russian chanson.
Gypsy romance
Cruel romance
Cossack romance - Cossack original songs, on a Cossack theme, originated in the Don. The ancestor of the “Cossack romance” is considered to be the song of an unknown author of the 19th century “Spring will not come for me...”.

The origins of romance in Russia lie in vocal chamber music XVIII century. Kant, aria, Russian song and, finally, romance - the terminology itself reflects the history of lyrical work for voice with accompaniment.

Cants are songs of the most varied content: viva cants, greeting cants, table cants, love cants, pastoral cants, comic cants. Among the authors of the cants were Antioch Kantemir, Mikhail Lomonosov, Alexander Sumarokov, Feofan Prokopovich. The most significant figure in this series was Vasily Trediakovsky, whose songs filled handwritten collections of 1730-1750.

I’ll start sad poems on the flute,
In vain to Russia through distant countries:
For all I need today is her kindness
There is a lot of desire to think with your mind.

Russia mother! My light is immeasurable!
Allow me, I beg your faithful child,
Oh, how you sit on the red throne!
You are a clear sun to the Russian sky!

From the second half of the 18th century, Russian song came to replace the cants. In 1759, the first printed collection of music was published - “Collection of Various Songs” by G. Teplov. The author of these songs, Grigory Nikolaevich Teplov (1711-1779), a prominent dignitary, senator, member of the Academy of Sciences, was well known in St. Petersburg as an amateur composer, violinist, harpsichordist and singer. It was a bold step - to take popular love poems that all poetry lovers read and set them to music. Most of the songs were written to poems by the most brilliant poet of that time - Alexander Petrovich Sumarokov. Teplov’s collection quickly gained popularity, and all the musically educated young ladies sang the mournful and elegiac “My age has already passed as a drag” in the spirit of the French minuet. Sentimental poetry of the 18th century, in the spirit of the then fashionable “sensitivity”, strove for simplicity, sincerity, and sincerity of lyrical expression. She had a very strong influence folk songs. This is how the popular “Russian songs” of Ivan Dmitriev and Yuri Neledinsky-Meletsky appeared. Ivan Dmitriev’s song “The Gray Dove Moans” charmed not only the young ladies of the nobility, but also spread among the people. late XVIII In Russian musical and poetic lyrics, the term “romance” was established. In 1796, it was first used by Gavriil Derzhavin and Grigory Khovansky. At that time, the authors of romances were considered to be poets, not composers. Their plots, vocabulary, figurative structure will be picked up by the future generation of Russian poetry. With the Russian literature of romanticism, the song creativity of Russian poets becomes very diverse both in content and in genre characteristics. The “Russian song” is being replaced by the genre of “Russian song” - a unique type of romance song, focusing on folklore tradition. The founder of this direction was Alexey Merzlyakov, a professor at St. Petersburg University. His most famous song is “Among the flat valley...”

The genre of Russian song reached its highest peak in the works of A. Koltsov and N. Tsyganov. Many people wrote music to A. Koltsov’s poems famous composers- M. Glinka, A. Gurilev, M. Balakirev, A. Dargomyzhsky... The name of Nikolai Tsyganov is not as well known as the name of Koltsov, but his song-romance “Don’t sew me, mother, a red sundress...” (music by A. Varlamov ) has gained worldwide fame. “Russian song” is a unique, but not the only type of vocal lyricism of the 19th century. Already in the first half of the decade, ballads, elegiac romances, freedom-loving songs, and hussar songs appeared. Pushkin had a particularly profound impact on Russian music. His poetry gave impetus to the development of romance lyrics. In the work of the young Glinka, Pushkin's poetry first received perfect expression. Romance gets real big artistic phenomenon. And Glinka’s romance “Do not tempt me unnecessarily...” (1825) to the words of E. Boratynsky became the first masterpiece of the genre of romance-elegy, and the composer’s all-Russian fame began with it. This was Pushkin's favorite romance. Fifteen years later, another brilliant romance will follow - “Doubt”. Pushkin’s poem “I remember a wonderful moment...” became the basis of the romance, uniting the poet, composer and Anna and Catherine Kern. Together with Pushkin’s line, the romance acquired depth, brightness of colors, perfection. It was in Pushkin era a number of talented composers-romanceists are nominated: A. Alyabyev (“Nightingale”, “Oh, if only I knew before..”), A. Varlamov (“Red Sundress”, “What has become foggy, the clear dawn ...”), A. Gurilev (“Sarafan”, “The bell rattles monotonously...”), Verstovsky and others. Photos (from left to right): A.S. Pushkin, M. Glinka, E. Boratynsky, A. Varlamov, A. Alyabyev, Verstovsky, A. Gurilev / Along with chamber vocal classics, in the 19th century, everyday romance appeared, designed for amateur singers. Since the middle of the century, the areas of classical romance and everyday romance have been separated. The first, created mainly by classical composers (P. Tchaikovsky, S. Rachmaninov, M. Balakirev, M. Borodin, S. Dargomyzhsky, etc.) based on poetry major poets, was performed by masters of vocal art, the second, as a rule, arose in the collaboration of little-known poets and amateur musicians and became the property of mass music-making. The romance genre had a huge influence on the work of the gypsies. The founder of professional gypsy performance in Russia was the famous choir of Count A.G. Orlov-Chesmensky, assembled in 1744 and led for many years by the Sokolov dynasty:

Sokolovsky Choir at Yar
Was once famous...
Sokolov guitar
My ears are still ringing.

The repertoire of such choirs initially consisted mainly of Russians folk songs and romances. Fans of gypsy singing were Pushkin and Tolstoy, Fet and Ostrovsky, Leskov and Turgenev, Herzen and Kuprin. The most famous gypsy singer at the end of the 19th century was Varvara Panina. In 1895, composer Cesar Cui wrote a book-research “Russian Romance”, in which he summed up the romance creativity of Russian composers from Glinka, Dargomyzhsky and composers “ Mighty bunch"until the end of the 19th century. The beginning of the 20th century was marked by an increase in technical achievements. Gramophones and records contributed to the popularization of romance. Romance becomes more of a performing art than a compositional and poetic art. Thanks to the surviving recordings, we can hear the voices of the stars of urban romance - Anastasia Vyaltseva, Nadezhda Plevitskaya, Mikhail Vavich, Natalia Tamara. Fyodor Ivanovich Chaliapin was rightfully considered the most brilliant performer of Russian romances. Many everyday romances and songs of that time seem to be divided into two emotional streams: with on the one hand - unbridled fun, bravado, on the other hand - disappointment, breakdown, mental suffering. Let us remember the romance “Coachman, don’t drive the horses...” (Ya. Feldman - N. Ritter), written in 1915. Until now, these heartfelt lines are filled with melancholy, despair, bitterness. But through the sadness, notes of some kind of ecstasy of suffering break through, the rhythm of the movement captures and carries the listener into a fast, bewitching dance. Sometimes the fate of the authors of romances was akin to the elements of their favorite genre. Everyone knows the romance “The Chrysanthemums Have Bloomed...”, but only performers and lovers of Russian romance know the name of the composer who created this masterpiece, Nikolai Kharito. His fate could become the theme of the most cruel romance. Among the performers of Russian romance of the early 20th century, he stands out for his special in a creative manner Alexander Vertinsky. Romance in his interpretation is a whole performance. He performed mainly songs and romances of his own composition in the author’s unique manner, but he also endowed well-known romances with a special sad lyrical meaning (Pierrot’s mask). Through the ostentatious irony and exaltation of the performance, a keen longing for sincere human communication, selfless relationships and deep feelings was conveyed. The most popular romances in the 20-30s of the twentieth century were the romances of Boris Fomin. Among them are such masterpieces as “Only once in a life does a meeting happen”, “Eh, guitar friend”, “Your eyes are green” and, of course, “The Long Road”. Among his romances there were practically no unsuccessful ones. This is not why they are still popular. In the 30s, romance entered the rhythm of tango, which provoked even greater popularity. With the help of the radio and gramophone, romance enters every home. Their inner space absorbed the enormous energy and skill of the performers, as well as the spirit of the times. In every house the voices of Ivan Kozlovsky, Sergei Lemeshev, Klavdiya Shulzhenko, Izabella Yurieva, Vadim Kozin are heard. At the turn of the 20th and 19th centuries, romance seems to be experiencing a rebirth. In cinema, romance serves as an element of stylization for a particular era (“Dog in the Manger”, “Spanish Romances” by G. Gladkov), a designation of a certain cultural layer (“Days of the Turbins”, the romance “White Acacia Fragrant Clusters”), and expresses the lyrical state of modern heroes (" Different destinies", romance by Roshchin, "Irony of Fate", romances by M. Tariverdiev, etc. Music for theatrical productions is written for the same purposes. The most famous theatrical romances are: “You Wake Me Up at Dawn” and “White Rosehip” by A. Rybnikov from the play “Juno” and “Maybe”. Throughout the second half of the 20th century, composers turned to romance traditions and intonations in different musical directions: theater and film music, lyrical pop music, art song, rock music. Music for theatrical productions is written for the same purposes. The genre of “film romance” is developing in cinema. Famous films: “ Cruel romance", "Prison Romance", "City Romance", "Railway Romance", "New Russian Romance". The international competition of young performers of Russian romance "Romansiada" was first organized and held in 1997. The idea of ​​the competition - an appeal to Russian romance as an alternative to the aggressive dominance of pop culture - was born in the newspaper Trud. The competition is held annually from September to December, ending with a final and a gala concert in the Column Hall of the House of Unions, historically associated with the development of the Russian romance genre. Artistic director"Romansiades" Honored Artist of the Russian Federation Galina Preobrazhenskaya.

From the history of the most famous romances.

"In the Moonlight"(also called “Bell” and “Ding-ding-ding”) is a romance related to the so-called coachman songs by the poet and musician Evgeny Dmitrievich Yuryev.

Evgeny Dmitrievich Yuriev (1882-1911) - Russian poet and composer, author of several romances, including: “Bell”, “Hey, coachman, drive to the Yar”, “Why love, why suffer”, etc. More known fifteen romances by E. D. Yuryev, composed by him in the period 1894-1906 to his own words and music, as well as eleven romances and songs, including “gypsy” (that is, similar to a gypsy romance) based on his words, set to music other composers, including A. N. Chernyavsky. Information about the biography of E. D. Yuryev has hardly been preserved. Soon after the October Revolution, the new government declared romance a “bourgeois relic” that interferes with building a bright future, where there is no place for any love experiences. And in Russian culture he was forgotten for several decades.

Only in the second half of the 1950s was romance as a genre “rehabilitated” and gradually began to return to Soviet listeners.
The romance “In the Moonlight” (also known as “Ding-ding-ding” and “Bell”) continues in Russian song culture the coachman theme, begun by the romance “Here is a daring troika rushing...” in 1828, when Alexey Nikolaevich Verstovsky set it to music An excerpt about a coachman from a poem by Fyodor Glinka. Little is known about the history of the creation of the romance; it was just composed - that’s all.

In the moonlight the snow turns silver,

The bell is ringing
This ringing, this ringing
He talks about love.
In the moonlight in early spring
I remember meetings, my friend, with you.

Ding-ding-ding, ding-ding-ding -
The bell rang
This ringing, this ringing
He sang sweetly about love.
I remember the guests as a noisy crowd,
Sweet face with a white veil.

Ding-ding-ding, ding-ding-ding -
The clinking of glasses makes noise,
With a young wife
My opponent is standing.
In the moonlight the snow turns silver,
A threesome is racing along the road.

Ding-ding-ding, ding-ding-ding -
The bell is ringing
This ringing, this ringing
He talks about love.

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