Belarusian state ensemble «Pesnyary» - 55!

3 september 2024

Interesting

The history of «Pesnyary» began in 1965, when military service bonded musicians Uladzimir Mulyavin, Leonid Tyshko, Vladislav Misevich, Valery Yashkin and Alexander Dziameshka. In 1968, the first step was taken – the friends became part of the pop revue «Lyavonikha» and called themselves «Lyavony».

The band’s official birthday is September 1, 1969, when by the decision of the artistic council of the Belarusian State Philharmonic, the group «Lyavony» received the right to be called a vocal-instrumental ensemble. The basis of the repertoire was Belarusian folklore: the band included pop arrangements of folk songs in the repertoire, and the texts were dedicated to Belarusian culture and history.

When the ensemble was preparing for the IV All-Union Competition of pop artists, the Minister of Culture of the BSSR Mikhail Minkovich suggested changing the name of the ensemble. Leonid Tyshko, looking through the books of Belarusian classical poets, read a poem written by Yanka Kupala «To the Belarusian Pesnyar (singer)». The word «pesnyar» was from the source of national culture, it indicated the direction in creativity and imposed certain responsibilities. Performance of the songs «Love», «Khatyn», «Alesya» to the music of I. Luchenko, «I dreamed of you in the spring» to the music of Y. Semenyaka, «Ave Maria» to the music of V. Ivanov (to a poem by M. Tank) in the competition program made a strong impression on the jury and listeners, but they decided not to award the first prize to anyone.

After the landmark competition in Moscow, Leonid Bartkevich, who was a member of the «Golden Apples» ensemble, joined the team. Also, one of the brightest soloists was Anatoly Kashaparov, who at one time became famous for his performance of the song «Volagda». In 1971, the first studio album was released, which included «Aleksandrina», «Yas Mowed The Clover», «Oh, it's early for Ivan», «A willow in the field», «Belarus is mine», «Rushniki» and others.

Around the same time, the first foreign trips of the ensemble and victories on the international music scene began: the International Song Festival in Sopot (1971), a prize at the X International Festival of Youth and Students in Berlin (1973), a prize at the «Golden Lion» Song Festival in Leipzig. Also, the ensemble, which continued to gain popularity, won the All-Union Soviet Song Contest held in Minsk (1973). In 1976, the «Pesnyary» tour in the USA and performances at the international MIDEM festival in Cannes were held with great success.

«Pesnyary» remained one of the most popular bands of the USSR and the post-Soviet space for a long time. They became one of the first owners of the «Golden Disk» of the USSR for the largest circulation of vinyl records sold, captured the hearts of millions of listeners, giving the world many wonderful songs.

By the way, «Pesnyary» is not only the name of a world-famous band, but also a well-known trademark (the copyright holder is the Belarusian State Ensemble «Pesnyary»), which is protected for an indefinite period of time.

Based on materials of the official website of the ensemble «Pesnyary»

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