A Truly Significant Holiday - Passport magazine

photo Anna Salynskaya
Out & About
Yermolai Solzhenitsyn
Big Love Show in Olimpiisky
Nobody knows why, but Russians really like St. Valentine’s Day. And they are willing
to celebrate it not only in clubs, but also in huge concert halls like Olimpiisky. On
the 14th of February thousands of young (well, and not so young) Russians took over the
concert hall on Prospect Mira, adorned with rose-colored balloons. The concert was
organized and financed by Love Radio. Dima Bilan, last year’s Eurovision winner, was
the first to appear on stage and knock the audience out with some of his hits. The bands
that followed might have been less famous, but were highly appreciated by the tightly
knitted bands of Russian teenagers in the crowd. The bands were: Sergei Lazarev, Vlad
Topalov, Band’ Eros (r’n’b band), Quest Pistols, synthy-pop freaks from Ukraine. Other
performers were: the Swedish band September (Russians have some of their tunes as
ringtones in their mobiles), Rio with his famous song “Shine On,” Basshunter and Craig
David, who was greatly expected by the audience. The show continued in Black Star,
a club frequented by sons and daughters of the Russian rich, and the show-business
establishment.
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March 2009
Solzhenitsyn lecture
The latest lecture in the English Language Evenings series, run by American
expat Stephen Lapeyrouse, proved a moving and memorable occasion.
Yermolai Solzhenitsyn, managing partner of international consulting
firm McKinsey and Company, gave an insightful glimpse into the life and
thoughts of his father, the late writer Alexander Solzhenitsyn. An engaging
and competent speaker, Yermolai began by sketching the historical
details of Solzhenitsyn’s life, from his birth in 1918 to his 1994 return to Russia
after the publication of The Red Circle. Solzhenitsyn spent eight years in
the Gulag (1945 to 1953) for subversive correspondence, and it was here
that he developed his deeply individual view of the world and man’s position
within it. Having received a brief burst of government approval with
the release of A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich in 1962 during the Thaw,
Solzhenitsyn quickly fell out of favour and was exiled to Germany in 1970
after the manuscript of The Gulag Archipelago was discovered by the
authorities. The author finally settled for 18 years in Vermont, USA, where
Yermolai spent his childhood. Solzhenitsyn was a man of unyielding personal
discipline and moral strength, for whom vacations and weekends
were anathema, although he always suggested – rather than dictated
– the right path to his children. According to Yermolai, his father constantly
strove to achieve a balanced judgement and, despite his grouchy reputation,
had an ultimately optimistic faith in the ability of the human spirit
to overcome hardship. This was a unique chance to get close to a worldrenowned
figure of such stature, and Stephen Lapeyrouse should be congratulated
for organising such a successful event. For more information on
future ELE lectures visit: “http://www.elemoscow.net” For more information
on Solzhenitsyn, the author’s surviving wife has recently set up a website
devoted to all areas of the author’s life and works: www.solzhenitsyn.ru
-- Dominic Esler
Graig David on the scene
Graig and Slava, Russian pop-singer Dima Bilan, Eurovision-2008 winner
Sergei Lazarev, singing his “Lazerboy” song