Sirenevyj Tuman
Purple Haze, Сиреневый Туман
Sirenenvyj Tuman, Сиреневый туман, is a Russian song that got widely known beginning from the years 1989-1991 in the performance of the Russian pop singer Vladimir Markin. The song itself, however, was known long before this time, though the date of its creation, and the true creators remain not surely known. Markin got interested in the song, after he heard one verse of it being performed by the Russian rock singer Alexander Gradsky. This happened on an occasional evening by the pop singer Andrei Makarevich, in his apartment on Leninsky Prospect in Moscow. After the performance, Markin asked Gradsky about the author and the origin of the song, but Gradsky did not know himself. |
As Markin also did not succeed in finding any information on the author, Markin decided to recreate the song. From the parents of his friends, the generation which sang the song first, he collected about 50 different verses of the song Purple Haze, still being unable to find any information on the author, as with time the song had become a folk one, everybody remade it as good as possible, adding or omitting own impressions. Markin could only exclude all the unnecessary additions, and in this way he kept four verses that were very similar to each other. Using these verses, the arrangement for the song was written in only four hours. On this song a clip was shot, which eventually was broadcasted in the well-known anchorman Vladimir Molchanov's program "Before And After Midnight". From that moment the song became a hit, a "visit card" of Markin, included in his debut album "Difficult Childhood".
Soon after the broadcast, Markin was contacted by the widow of the Russian poet Mikhail Matusovsky (1915-1990). According to her, the lyrics of Purple Haze had been written by her husband in the year 1936 for a student's evening at the Litinstitute (Literary Institute in Moscow) to the music of his mate Jan Sashin (1911-1954). For Matusovsky himself, the song "Purple Haze", at that time also called "The Guard Waits", never had any importance, being meant as a student song only. He also never imagined that it would become that famous to be considered a folk song. Even after his youngest daughter brought this "new folk song" home from her institute, and he identified it as his own composition, he forgot about the song again.
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With only her memories as a proof for the authorship, Matusovsky's widow, Eugenia Akimovna, let the song "Purple Haze" be officially registered as a song of Matusovsky and Sashin. However, not all Matusovsky's contemporaries did recognize it as the song he had written at the time of their studies. The famous poet Lev Oshanin recalled another verse, composed by Matusovsky, as the very song discussed, but different from it in rhythm completely. And Oshanin did not recall the music at all.
Mikhail Matusovsky
Yuri Lipatov
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Soon after the first record was released, on which Matusovsky was already mentioned as the author of the lyrics, Mikhail Lipatov, the son of the Russian poet and composer Yuri Lipatov, claimed that his father had written "Purple Haze", and as an evidence he got a manuscript with the text. The title of the song in this case though was "Road Tango" ("Farewell"). Yuri Lipatov devoted the song to his beloved lass, Nina Glukhova, mentioned on the manuscript. She says when he came to her by train in the town of Leo Tolstoy from the nearby town of Chaplygin, the purple hazes met him and the midnight stars were witnesses to his departure. One summer night of 1943 he asked her to become his wife, but she could not decide. He returned home and composed the song. They have never met more, and after Lipatov`s death in 1986 she was found by the relatives of Yuri Lipatov, who discovered the manuscript in his archive. According to Mikhail Lipatov, his father had written the notes initially for accordion, and Vladimir Bunchikov (1902-1995), the famous Soviet baritone singer, as the first performer. However, Bunchikov`s performance is unknown. Mikhail says, his farther tried to register the song on himself. The song, however, was not given a great future: Khrushchev's officials regarded it as something similar to "the sugary songs of Vertinsky", which meant that the song was inevitably damned to lay on the dusty shelves of the archives, for never to come out again. Eventually the "Russian Authors' Society" (RAO) rewarded Yuri Lipatov the authorship of the musical processing of the song.
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Since 2004 the story about the song "Purple Haze" became even a bit more complicated. In the thirteenth issue of the online magazine "Jewish Antiquities", the editor, journalist and translator Shulamit Shalit claimed that the author of the song was Mikhail Landman (1931-1997), a Russian poet and translator. The poet had been studying all his life, without ever graduating from any higher education institution. However, he did possess philological abilities and a heightened sense of rhythm and language. In 1951 Landman wrote, together with the Russian poet Mikhail Yarmush (1932-2008), the poem "The Express Of Times". Later this song was transformed into a song on the motive of "a certain famous tango". By their friend, Vladimir Velutis, the song was taken to the Kaliningrad Naval School, from where it dispersed throughout the world. So, according to this version, the authors of the lyrics are Mikhail Landman and Mikhail Yarmush, the melody is from an unknown composer. There verse was published in 1961 in an unofficially printed book of poems about love, released in 5 copies.
The free mentioned versions are very similar in general, but differ in words very much also. There is also a variant written by Vitaly Zverev, expressing the feelings of the imprisoned people who are forced to part with their beloved.
The free mentioned versions are very similar in general, but differ in words very much also. There is also a variant written by Vitaly Zverev, expressing the feelings of the imprisoned people who are forced to part with their beloved.
Taking note of the previous information, it is impossible to say which version formed the origin of the song "Purple Haze". As Matusovsky's poem appeared to be the first with the comparable text, it is most likely that the other poems were based on his work. However, nothing has been proven. The time yet on which Matusovsky wrote the poem, is the closest to the appearing of the song, according to several sources.
In the recent time, the song gained a big popularity among the Russian-speaking people. It sounds on the radio, appears on television and in movies. From 1995 to 2000 there was a TV programme in Russia, entitled "Purple Haze" produced by V. Markin. The song sounds in Karen Shakhnazarov`s movie «American Daughter». One of the song`s variants is performed by the famous actor Alexander Abdulov in the movie "Descended From Heaven".
The performers: Vladimir Markin, Mikhail Shufutinskiy, Arkadiy Severniy, Andrei Daviedyan, Lubeh, instrumental accordion: Kombrig
In the recent time, the song gained a big popularity among the Russian-speaking people. It sounds on the radio, appears on television and in movies. From 1995 to 2000 there was a TV programme in Russia, entitled "Purple Haze" produced by V. Markin. The song sounds in Karen Shakhnazarov`s movie «American Daughter». One of the song`s variants is performed by the famous actor Alexander Abdulov in the movie "Descended From Heaven".
The performers: Vladimir Markin, Mikhail Shufutinskiy, Arkadiy Severniy, Andrei Daviedyan, Lubeh, instrumental accordion: Kombrig
Russian lyrics
Сиреневый туман над нами проплывает Над тамбуром горит полночная звезда Кондуктор не спешит, кондуктор понимает Что с девушкою я прощаюсь навсегда Ты смотришь мне в глаза и руку пожимаешь Уеду я на год, а может быть, на два А, может, навсегда ты друга потеряешь Еще один звонок, и уезжаю я Последнее: Прости! с любимых губ слетает В глазах твоих больших тревога и печаль Еще один звонок, и смолкнет шум вокзала И поезд улетит в сиреневую даль Сиреневый туман над нами проплывает Над тамбуром горит полночная звезда Кондуктор не спешит, кондуктор понимает Что с девушкою я прощаюсь навсегда |
English text
The wreathing purple haze is floating above us Above the platform high a midnight star burns bright The guard waits, standing by, he grasps well what comes to pass That, maybe, for the last time I see her tonight You look into my eyes and shake my hand with your hand For one year I leave, or, it may be for two Or, maybe, never more you will see your loved boyfriend The only bell remains and I will shade from view The last: Forgive! slips off the loved lips and redounds Your big eyes show me anxiety and grief The only bell remains and no station sounds Into the purple space the train will swiftly leave The wreathing purple haze is floating above us Above the platform high a midnight star burns bright The guard waits, standing by, he grasps well what comes to pass That, maybe, for the last time I see her tonight Translation by Accordeonworld |
Transliteration
Sirenevyj tuman nad nami proplyvaet
Nad tamburom gorit polnochnaya zvezda
Konduktor ne speshit konduktor ponimaet
Chto s devushkoyu ya proshchayus navsegda
Ty smotrish mne v glaza i ruku pozhimaesh
Uedu ya na god a mozhet byt na dva
A mozhet navsegda ty druga poteryaesh
Eshche odin zvonok i uezzhayu ya
Poslednee Prosti s lyubimyh gub sletaet
V glazah tvoih bolshih trevoga i pechal
Eshche odin zvonok i smolknet shum vokzala
I poezd uletit v sirenevuyu dal
Sirenevyj tuman nad nami proplyvaet
Nad tamburom gorit polnochnaya zvezda
Konduktor ne speshit konduktor ponimaet
Chto s devushkoyu ya proshchayus navsegda
Sirenevyj tuman nad nami proplyvaet
Nad tamburom gorit polnochnaya zvezda
Konduktor ne speshit konduktor ponimaet
Chto s devushkoyu ya proshchayus navsegda
Ty smotrish mne v glaza i ruku pozhimaesh
Uedu ya na god a mozhet byt na dva
A mozhet navsegda ty druga poteryaesh
Eshche odin zvonok i uezzhayu ya
Poslednee Prosti s lyubimyh gub sletaet
V glazah tvoih bolshih trevoga i pechal
Eshche odin zvonok i smolknet shum vokzala
I poezd uletit v sirenevuyu dal
Sirenevyj tuman nad nami proplyvaet
Nad tamburom gorit polnochnaya zvezda
Konduktor ne speshit konduktor ponimaet
Chto s devushkoyu ya proshchayus navsegda
Sources:
https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Сиреневый_туман ; http://radioshanson.fm/news/istoriya_pesni__sirenevyy_tuman ;
https://www.liveinternet.ru/users/4000579/post384589143/ ; http://www.historyonesong.com/2010/04/sireneviy_tuman_1 ;
https://ok.ru/pusttvorch/topic/67733406433331 ; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikhail_Matusovsky ;
https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Бунчиков,_Владимир_Александрович ; https://www.eg.ru/showbusiness/4555/ ;
https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ландман,_Михаил_Хаимович ; http://www.vekperevoda.com/1930/yarmush.htm ;
https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Сиреневый_туман ; http://radioshanson.fm/news/istoriya_pesni__sirenevyy_tuman ;
https://www.liveinternet.ru/users/4000579/post384589143/ ; http://www.historyonesong.com/2010/04/sireneviy_tuman_1 ;
https://ok.ru/pusttvorch/topic/67733406433331 ; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikhail_Matusovsky ;
https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Бунчиков,_Владимир_Александрович ; https://www.eg.ru/showbusiness/4555/ ;
https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ландман,_Михаил_Хаимович ; http://www.vekperevoda.com/1930/yarmush.htm ;