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The 105th Anniversary of Composer I.I.Dzerzhinsky

On April, 9, 2014, it is the 105^th anniversary of Ivan Ivanovich Dzerzhinsky, a Russian composer, the People’s Actor of the RSFSR.

I.I.Dzerzhinsky is the author of the operas “The People’s Blood”, “Nadezhda Svetlova”, “Prince-Lake”, “Thunderstorm”. The operas after the works by M.A.Sholokhov “The Quiet Don”, “Virgin Soil Upturned” and “The Fate of a Man” made the top of his art.

I.I.Dzerzhinsky and M.A.Sholokhov got acquainted in Moscow in 1934. Later the composer said: ”The Quiet Don” and Virgin Soil Upturned” by Mikhail Sholokhov have become the favourite books of the Soviet people. These works inspired me for creation of the two operas. While working over the opera “The Quiet Don” I endeavoured to get acquainted with Mikhail Alexandrovich several times… The meeting took place in the “National” hotel during one of the visits of Mikhail Alexandrovich to Moscow. A short man, semi-military clad, welcomed me hospitably and easily, without “ceremony”… I played and sang the whole opera for him using rather a poor piano…The subject of the dispute was not the libretto, as I had supposed before, but the music itself. Mikhail Alexandrovich argued heatedly for the necessity of including in the opera true Don Cossack songs without changing them if possible…”

I.I.Dzerzhinsky met with M.A.Sholokhov in Moscow, Rostov-on-Don and in 1936 the composer visited Vyoshenskaya on the invitation of the author of the novel “And Quiet Flows the Don”.

The same year, Dzerzhinsky helped the writer to buy a “Schröder” piano, which stands now in the sitting-room of the Memorial House in the Estate of M.A.Sholokhov.

I.I.Dzerzhinsky wrote the music for the film “When Cossacks Cry” (1963) screened after “Tales from the Don” by M.A.Sholokhov (with the script and film direction by E.Morgunov).

The composer noted: “The art of Mikhail Sholokhov, his personality and fellowship with him – all these played the major role in my life and creative work, what for I am sincerely grateful to our remarkable writer.”

Nataliya Kirsanova
Ekaterina Karbysheva
Elena Popova