Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
Moscow, June 26 (Xinhua) — As in previous years, on June 22, the Day of Remembrance and Sorrow, when Nazi Germany attacked the Soviet Union without declaring war in 1941, hundreds of residents and visitors of the capital came to the Belorussky Station in Moscow to honor the memory of the defenders of the Fatherland. It was from here that trains with Red Army soldiers departed during the war, and for many relatives this station became the final place to say goodbye.
Here, “The Sacred War” was performed again – a song that became a symbol of the courage and unbending will of the Soviet people during the Great Patriotic War. The composition, written in the first days of the war, is invariably heard at memorial events in Russia and abroad and has remained part of living historical memory for more than 80 years.
On June 22, hundreds of Muscovites came to the station to honor the memory of the fallen together with veterans. During the Great Patriotic War, trains with Red Army soldiers departed from here to the front. For many relatives, the farewell on the platform was their last meeting. Since 2005, on the initiative of the Moscow City Council of Veterans with the support of the Russian Ministry of Defense and the Moscow government, an annual patriotic event has been held at the Belorussky Station. Its key event is the performance of a song that appeared in the first days of the war.
THE BIRTH AND POWER OF THE “HOLY WAR”
The song “Sacred War” was written in the summer of 1941. As contemporaries recall, composer Alexander Alexandrov saw the poems of poet Vasily Lebedev-Kumach in a newspaper and immediately began composing the music. Rehearsals began the very next day.
“This song was probably needed like air, precisely in those days… Therefore, this power, this strength, this entire meaning that the authors of this song put into their work, lives on today, and is performed today,” explained the artistic director of the Academic Song and Dance Ensemble of the Russian Army named after A. V. Alexandrov, Honored Artist of the Russian Federation Colonel Gennady Sachenyuk.
On June 26, 1941, “The Sacred War” was performed for the first time at the Belorussky Station. It was a one-song concert and its premiere at the same time. According to G. Sachenyuk, after the first chords there was silence, and the composer thought that the song had not been received. However, a few seconds later the station was filled with applause, the soldiers asked to perform it again and again.
KEEPER OF THE PEOPLE’S GENETIC CODE
The Alexandrov Ensemble has preserved the original sound of “The Sacred War” for decades. The song remains recognizable and symbolically important for each generation. According to the musicians, the strength of the work lies in the inseparable unity of poetry and music born of time.
“This song contains the genetic code of our people… something awakens inside, and you feel as one with your country, with everyone standing next to you,” the ensemble’s chief conductor, Honored Artist of the Russian Federation Nikolai Kirillov, shared with a Xinhua correspondent.
“This is exactly the example of musical art, when both poetry and music are united and complement each other,” noted G. Sachenyuk. He added that the performers each time experience the same emotions as the people during the war.
According to official data, the Soviet Union lost about 27 million people during the Great Patriotic War. And so the song has a deeply personal meaning for millions of Russian families.
“This is the kind of music that many people sometimes even talk about with a lump in their throat, because it is connected with the history of each family,” emphasized the rector of the Gnessin Russian Academy of Music, Alexander Ryzhinsky.
“SONG AS A WEAPON”
A. Aleksandrov left personal memories of the creation and performance of the song. “I was never a military specialist, but I still had a powerful weapon in my hands. This is a song. A song that can also defeat the enemy, like any weapon. When I performed with the Red Banner Ensemble at train stations and other places in front of soldiers going to the front, this song was always listened to standing, with some special impulse, a holy mood. And not only the soldiers, but also we, the performers, often cried,” N. Kirillov read out the composer’s memories with a feeling of deep respect.
The ensemble’s performers admit that even today they can hardly contain their emotions when they go on stage with this song. It contains the tragedy of war, the feat of the people, the pain of loss and the triumph of life.
“Sometimes tears come, but since we are artists, we hold them back,” says choir member Dmitry Trunov, admitting that each performance is accompanied by a feeling of pride for the country and the realization that “The Sacred War” went to the front along with the soldiers. –0–