"…The Original and Probably the Only Song Writer in Russian Literature"

Abstract

The article is dedicated to the musical and poetic creativity of the talented Russian songwriter of the late XIX — early XX century M.I. Ozhegov. It is emphasized that, being a native of the peasants of the village of Mikhino in the Nolinsk district of the Vyatka province, Ozhegov knew the life of a poor peasant well and spoke about it with great sympathy in his beautiful poems and songs. M.I. Ozhegov did not have the opportunity to receive a systematic general and musical education and received all knowledge mainly through self-education.

The self-taught poet wrote more than a hundred "songs in the spirit of the people of his region", some of which, having high artistic merits, became popular songs and romances and were included in the repertoire of such outstanding Russian singers of the past as F.I. Chaliapin, S.Y. Lemeshev, N.A. Obukhova, A.V. Nezhdanova. They are still heard today in the concert programs of modern "romantics of romance".

The article discusses the most important milestones in the biography of Ozhegov, who went through a difficult life path from a peasant from the Vyatka hinterland to a famous Moscow poet-songwriter, author of several poetry books, compiler of popular collections of songs published in thousands of copies, an active participant in the Surikov literary and musical circle. The article highlights the history of the creation and song existence of the best works of Ozhegov's musical and poetic heritage, which received a second life as songs and romances, became almost folk. It is noted that the merits of M.I. Ozhegov in the field of poetic creativity was evaluated by the "Literaturnaya Gazeta" 1930, calling him "an original and probably the only song writer in Russian literature".

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