May 01, 2015 Siberian Punk Who knew? The heart of Siberia, a place best known for its severe winters, was the birthplace of one of the most original, raw rock movements ever to hit the USSR. Music
September 01, 2012 The Age of Aquarium For 40 years, Boris Grebenshchikov and Aquarium have made music like no other band in Russia, combining poetry and beautiful, often quizzical instrumentals into a charming sound that is at once entirely unique and entirely Russian. Music
May 01, 2012 Victor Tsoy No rock musician has had such a profound, lasting effect on Russian culture as Victor Tsoy. Music
January 01, 2012 The Soviet Faust A history of Leon Theremin, inventor of electronic music and the instrument which bears his name. Music
January 01, 2012 Alexander Scriabin A short consideration of the life and work of Alexander Scriabin, born on Jan. 6, 1872, a composer whose life was cut tragically short, but who nonetheless set the stage for much that was to come. Music
May 01, 2011 Russian Strings As a festival in Moscow brings together virtuoso guitarists from across Europe, the traditional Russian seven-stringed form of the instrument is enjoying a renaissance… in America. Music
March 01, 2010 The Captain Has Chosen His Course The fiercely independent Russian National Orchestra, the finest of Russian classical ensembles, turns 20 this year. We look at how they have flourished against the odds. Music
Notes at the Front Musicians have not been spared from the criminalization of protest and expression. We also share Ilya Yashin's final words. Dissent Music War
My City Now is Drowsing A final poem by Okudzhava to close out this issue devoted to his beloved city. Music
The Song Babel’s “The Song” comes from his Red Cavalry cycle, a volume of short stories about the Polish-Soviet War (1919-1921). As in many of these pieces, Babel contrasts the narrator’s intellectual, poetic outlook with the brutalities and horrors of war. Music
