Vdol po Pityerskoy
Down the Peterskaya street, Вдоль по Питерской
"Vdol po Pityerskoy" is a Russian folk song that goes back to the period of the pre-Sovjet epoch. The title could also be translated as "Down the St-Petersburg Street": although the Russian city was christened as Saint-Pieter-Burgh, at the time of Tsar Peter the Great, in common parlance and even in some official contexts, the toponym became abbreviated to Petersburg, Peterburg or even just Pieter. The latter toponym, percieved by the city's inhabitants as a loving, diminutive term, is first mentioned in literary works at the end of the eighteenth century. By the beginning of the nineteenth century, it became so entrenched in colloquial use, that the road leading from Moscow to St-Petersburg, became known as Pieterskaya. The Tverskaya street, that is mentioned at the beginning of the song, is the best-known radial street in Moscow and it continues further on in the direction of St-Petersburg as the Tverskaya-Yamskaya.
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Nearby The Tverskaya Street, and next to the Red Square in Moscow, is an ancient district, known as Kitai Gorod. During the eighteenth and early nineteenth century, many enterprising peasants started settling down in Moscow, where they started small cotton mills, which eventually expanded to full size factories, that made Moskow to a major textile centre. Those peasants formed the core of Moscow's merchant community.
Though this new kind of Russian merchants were working hard to gain more and more money, they never forgot about the patriarchal and God-loving lifestyle they were used to, as being peasants. Because they were earning a lot and as personal wealth has always been seen as a great sin by the Russian Orthodox church, the Russian merchants speared no money on the construction of new churches, featuring a variaty of architectural styles, some of which still grace the streets of Kitai Gorod.
Religious feasts and holidays were also stricktly observed, especially the most important fasting season in the Eastern Orthodox Church: the Lent. Even though butter was absolutely out during these weeks of fasting, the diet realy boggled the mind, with a variety of deliciously prepared selection of grated radish, pickled mushrooms, soaked apples and pears, honey porridge, variously cooked potatoes and heaps of red hot buns. On saturday butter was back on the table, the kitchens were working at full power and the number of dishes climbed up to thirty. This went on all through the three weeks of fasting period. |
Then, when Lent was over, time came for shopping on the latest fashion wear. But no matter how much money, no matter how much wealth, the Moscow merchants were not accepted by the nobility who despiced them for their ignorance and lust for money. This attitude from the nobility caused a fast change in the half-literate and largely ignorant Moscow merchants: they started to send their children to school, to commercial academy and to university. The merchants became the centerpiece of everything that happened in Moscow.
The song "Down the Peterskaya Street" itself is a musical joke and it paints us a lady who has been experiencing the life such as the Moscow merchants could provide. Knowing how good this life could be, makes it easy to believe that she was not looking forward for her husband to come home from his weeklong service with the troika, carrying a big pikeperch of which she would have to cook the ukha. This is a sort of fishsoup that is made by peaching a whole fish in water, with herbs and seasonings. Afterwards the entire fish is eaten, including the softened bones, with its broth.
The song`s text varies a little like it is with many folk songs. The set of words depends on the area, an epoch, specifics of the performance, even on the mood of the singer. "Vdol po Pityerskoy" belongs to a tradition in which it was previously popularised by the famous Russian bass singer Feodor Chaliapin (1873-1938) and the soloist of the Alexandrov Ensemble, Alexei Sergeev, who both made the song their own. |
Sergeev's version was hilariously sturdy, but possibly overwhelming at close quarters for the ladies, while on the other hand, Kharitonov's (1933 -) performance shows the huge and clumsy but genial Russian Bear, the symbol of Russia, beloved by Lev Tolstoy. The tonality is kept warm and elegant, while the vocal slide from one note to the next, and on one occasion a whole glissando, helps to create an illusion of musical drunkenness.
As this song is a musical joke, the singer Georgi Vinogradov (1908-1980) had taken the vocal slide from drunks and tuneless club singers. He utilised it to showcase his own disciplined vocal skills and consistent vocal quality, while sliding from one register to the next.
This performances demonstrate the artistry behind the charm of a comedic bass solo performance.
As this song is a musical joke, the singer Georgi Vinogradov (1908-1980) had taken the vocal slide from drunks and tuneless club singers. He utilised it to showcase his own disciplined vocal skills and consistent vocal quality, while sliding from one register to the next.
This performances demonstrate the artistry behind the charm of a comedic bass solo performance.
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Igor Stravinsky on his turn, used "Vdol po Piterskoj" in his opera "The Firebird", where the wet nurses' dance is performed to the tunes of this song.
Sources: https://sputniknews.com/voiceofrussia/radio_broadcast/2248959/2316861/ http://www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/eating-by-the-seasons-in-russia/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Kharitonov_(singer) http://www.vadimprokhorov.com/russian_folk_songs__musical_genres_and_history_25733.htm http://portpcfix.com/wikifusion/index.php/Feodor_Chaliapin Oxford history of Western Music: Richard Taruskin, music in the 19th century, peasants and history (Russia) |
Russian lyrics
Эх! Вдоль по Питерской, По Тверской-Ямской, Да ох, ой! По Тверской-Ямской с колокольчиком. Э! Едет миленький Сам на троечке. Эх! И едет, лапушка, По проселочкам. Ох! И я в пирушке была, Во беседушке, Ела я и пила то С угощеницем! С угощеницем Да с сиропчиком. Ела я и пила то С удовольствием. Народ где что То не лед трещит, Да не комар пищит, Это кум до кумы Да Судака тащит. Эх! Эх! Эх! Эх! Э-эй! Кумушка, Да Ты голубушка, Свари куму судака, Чтобы юшка была. Эй! Эй! Эй! Эй! Эй, ой! Юшечка Да ты с петрушечкой, Ну поцелуй же ты меня, Кума-душечка! Ох! Ох! Ох! Ох! Ну поцелуй! Ну поцелуй! меня Кума-душечка! Эх! |
Transliteration
Ekh! Vdol' po Piterskoj, Po Tverskoj-YAmskoj, Da oh, oj! Po Tverskoj-Yamskoj S kolokol'chikom. Eh! Edet milen'kij Sam na troechke. Ekh! I edet, lapushka, Po proselochkam. Oh! I ya v pirushke byla, Vo besedushke, Ela ya i pila to S ugoshchenicem! S ugoshchenicem Da s siropchikom. Ela ya i pila to S udovol'stviem. Narod gde chto To ne led treshchit, Da ne komar pishchit, Eto kum do kumy Da Sudaka tashchit. Ekh! Ekh! Ekh! Ekh! Eh-ej! Kumushka, Da Ty golubushka, Svari kumu sudaka, Chtoby yushka byla. Ej! Ej! Ej! Ej! Ej, oj! Yushechka Da ty s petrushechkoj, Nu poceluj zhe ty menya, Kuma-dushechka! Oh! Oh! Oh! Oh! Nu poceluj! Nu poceluj! menya Kuma-dushechka! Ekh! |
English
Ekh! Down the Peterskaya street, The Tverskaya-Yamskaya! Wow! Oh, Oi ! The Tverskaya-Yamskaya With the troika`s bells! Ye! That my dear man rides! In the troika he sits! Ekh! That goes dear, my dear Through the small lanes and streets! Ukh! And me dined also nice! In a chamber I was! There I ate and drank to my pleasure, Taking the sweaty gifts! The sweaty gifts I was given! And I drank the syrup. There I ate and drank to my pleasure, Very happily! People, what is that? That nor ice does crack, Nor a gnat thinly peeps, That is Kum to his Kuma A big pikeperch drags! Ekh! Ekh! Ekh! Ekh! You my lovely woman, You my dear and nice, Cook the big fish for Kum, So as the broth to be dense! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Oi! The densy broth, It`s with the parsley plant, So I wait till You kiss me, You my soul Kuma! Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh ! Kiss me, just kiss me now, You my soul Kuma! Ekh! With special thanks to Alexander |