Knowing my fondness for Russian orchestral pop and piano ballads, Reggie Chamberlain-King sent over this beauty the other night. Leonid Utyosov's Dark Night (English translation of the lyrics in YouTube description):
A langorous sigh, settling into one's resting spot to appreciate the night spanning out before one's view.
Utyosov seems to have led quite a life. Actor, singer, conductor, raconteur, he started out as a stand-up comedian and an acrobat. In 1923 he even put on a show entitled From Tragedy To The Trapeze (what a great title, rather Suede-y ; ) He also came up with and worked extensively on the concept of "Tea Jazz" (another great name!), a combination of theatre and jazz, where the musicians were also actors. Utyosov: “It is easiest to say that our success was in the novelty numbers like our tea-jazz had not yet been performed. There was of course jazz created by a blueprint, a foreign blueprint. We, however, suggested a completely new genre, untried, theatrical jazz. Our whole program was sprinkled with jokes, sarcasm and humor. In front of the audience not only was a band born, but also a company, a gathering of happy people not dampened by sadness, people with whom one could find joy and with whom one was certain to have a good time. I think that the success of our first program was grounded particularly in our optimism and humor.”
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