Ya Vstretil Vas
(I met you)
The words to this very famous Russian romance were written by the prominent Russian poet Fedor Tyutchev (1803-1873) at the age of 67, in a one day only: the 26th of July, 1870. For a long time it has been not certain who composed the music to this poem. In the beginning the composer S. Donaurov wrote the music to Tyutchev's poems, later those were A. Spiro and J. Shaporin. None of them, however, is the author of the very popular version of the romance as we know it now, and which was sung by the Soviet tenor Ivan Kozlovskiy (1900-1993). Kozlovskiy had heard the melody from the actor A. Moskvin, thereafter he arranged it. Till recently Kozlowskiy's version of the romance has come out with the label "The author of the music is unknown". However, the musicologist G. Pavlov suspected that the music to the romance had been written by the Russian composer Leonid Malashkin (1842-1902), and that it was very close to the melody that was sung by Kozlowskiy.
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He appeared to be right: in the musical vaults of Moscow and Leningrad, Malashkin's notes were found a couple of years ago. They were published in Moscow in 1881, and printed in an edition of no more than 300 copies. Thereafter the work was forgotten, together with the name of the composer. Malashkin's music appeared to be close to Kozlowskiy's performance, yet not completely similar to it.
After Tyutchev had written the verse, it was published the same year, in the magazine "Рассвет" ("Dawn"), being dedicated to K.B. It was widely believed that those initials stood for "Krudener Baroness" (1808-1888).
Fedor Tyutchev met Amalia Lerchenfeld for the first time in 1823. At that time the poet was only 20 years old, and Amalia, only 15, had just received the right to call herself Countess Lerchenfeld. They both fell in love with each other, and only one year later Tyutchev made her a wedding proposal, that was accepted by the young countess. Amalia, however, was born to an old and wealthy family, her mother being Princess Theresa Thurn und Taxis, an aunt of the Empress Alexandra Fedorovna, the wife of the Tsar Nicholas I. Her father was Count Maximilian Lerchenfeld. He died when Amalia was only two, but as she was his illegitimate child, on his request she would be raised as a foster child by the wife of Count Lerchenfeld. Some people believed that her real father was the Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm III, which could explain why Count Maximilian had wanted that strange arrangement. |
Lev Leshchenko performs "Ya Vstretil Vas"
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It was more than clear that the diplomat Tyutchev would not meet the requirements of Amalia's family, and there was also another young man interested in the girl: baron Pavel von Krüdener. Amalia felt attracted to the title of nobility, and Tyutchev's relationship with her ended with a duel with his rival, in January 1925. On August 31 of the same year, Amalia married the baron and became Baroness Amalia von Krüdener in Köfering. One year later, Tyutchev married his first wife, Eleanor Peterson, Countess von Bothmer (1800-1838). Both families Krüdener and Tyutchev lived in München, and as Amalia's husband was a very difficult personality, Fedor and Amalia often did meet each other. Those meetings reminded Tyutchev of the time when they both were young, and inspired him to write one of his most beautiful poems:
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The baroness knew that Tyutchev wrote the verses, and as her husband was appointed to Saint-Petersburg in 1836, Tyutchev handed her the poems, asking to give them to his friend, Prince Gagarin. Through the prince the poems did reach Pushkin, who published them in two numbers of "Современник" ("Contemporary"): twenty-four poems, signed F.T.
Baron von Krüdener died in 1852 in Stockholm, and in 1855 Amalia von Krüdener married count Nikolai Adlerberg. Nevertheless, she remained friend with Tyutchev, and it was after an unexpected meeting in Carlsbad that in 1870 Tyutchev wrote his most beautiful poem: "Ya Vstretil Vas" ("I Met You"). Tyutchev saw Amalia for the last time in 1873, as she was sitting at the bedside of the paralyzed poet. The next day, Tyutchev wrote to his daughter Daria: |
Yesterday I felt a moment of burning emotion due to my meeting with... my dear Amalie Krüdener, who wished to see me for the last time in this world, and came to take her leave of me. In her person my past and the best years of my life came to give me a farewell kiss.
Studies of the Moscow literary critic Alexandra Nikolaeva try to prove that the initials K.B. do not stand for Krüdener Baroness, but for Clothilde von Bothmer, the younger sister of Tyutchev's first wife, Eleanor. There had been some rapprochement between the poet and Clothilde, soon after his return from a long vacation in Russia in 1826. Clothilde would have hoped for a future with Tyutchev, but only one year after his wife's death in 1838, he married Ernestine von Dornberg, with whom he already had a relationship, he had a child also born in the marriage with Eleanor von Bothmer. In 1838 Clothilde took her engagement to Baron Apollonius von Maltitz. There was another meeting with the poet in 1847, but thereafter they separated for a very long time.
It might be a small chance that Tyutchev wrote his poem for Clothilde von Bothmer, but as we know what he wrote in his letters about Baroness Amalia von Krüdener, it is more than likely that he wrote the poem for her. The romance is a very lyric and heartfelt one. It has been performed by: Ivan Kozlovskiy, Lev Lezhenko, Oleg Pogudin, Boris Shtokolov, Dmitri Hkvorostovskiy, Yury Gulyaev, Eduard Khil, Arthur Eisen.
SCORE FOR ACCORDION |
Fedor Tyutchev
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Russian text
Я встретил вас – и всё былое В отжившем сердце ожило; Я вспомнил время золотое – И сердцу стало так тепло... Как поздней осени порою Бывают дни, бывает час, Когда повеет вдруг весною И что-то встрепенется в нас, – Так, весь обвеян дуновеньем Тех лет душевной полноты, С давно забытым упоеньем Смотрю на милые черты... Как после вековой разлуки Гляжу на вас, как бы во сне, – И вот – слышнее стали звуки, Не умолкавшие во мне... Тут не одно воспоминанье, Тут жизнь заговорила вновь, – И то же в вас очарованье, И та ж в душе моей любовь!.. |
Transliteration
Ya vstretil vas - i vso byloye Votzhivshem serdtse ozhilo; Ya vspomnil vremya zolotoye I serdtsu stalo tak teplo ... Kak pozdney oseni poroyu byvayut dni, byvayet chas, Kogda poveyet vdrug vesnoyu I chto-to vstrepenetsya v nas, - Tak, ves' obveyan dunoven'yem tekh let dushevnoy polnoty, S davno zabytym upoyen'yem Smotryu na milyye cherty ... Kak posle vekovoy rzaluki glyazhu na vas, kak by vo sne, - I vot - slyshneye stali zvuki, Ne umolkavshiye vo mne ... Tut ne odno vospominan'ye, Tut zhizn' zagovorila vnov', - I to zhe v vas ocharovan'ye I ta zh v dushe moyey lyubov'! ... |
English text
On meeting you I’ve got revival - My heart has gained its living force: Recalling time when you were idol, Within my heart I’m getting warmth. Late autumn days sometimes appear To reproduce bright tunes of spring - And flutes of love you start to hear, And birds of soul would start to wing. Same way I’m plunging into feeling Of former days, of happy days. With bygone joy and sweet revealing I see the nice well known face. As if I were away for ages, I look at you as in a sleep, And I can feel again all badges Of love that once I felt too deep. It is not solely remembrance - The life itself has bloomed anew, I feel the same way charm and fragrance, Again I am in love with you. |
http://www.liveinternet.ru/users/2496320/post249503011/; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fyodor_Tyutchev;
http://oleg-pogudin.elegos.ru/forum/18-384-1; http://telegrafua.com/social/13023; https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amalie_von_Lerchenfeld;
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duchess_Therese_of_Mecklenburg-Strelitz; https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Alexander_von_Kr%C3%BCdener;
http://oleg-pogudin.elegos.ru/forum/18-384-1; http://telegrafua.com/social/13023; https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amalie_von_Lerchenfeld;
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duchess_Therese_of_Mecklenburg-Strelitz; https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Alexander_von_Kr%C3%BCdener;