The difficult path of Zhanna Bichevskaya: who encroached on the singer's life, and why were her concerts banned on television?

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Popular in the 1970s. performer of romances and folk songs Zhanna Bichevskaya never chased after fame, did not seek to please anyone, did not participate in behind-the-scenes intrigues, avoided social events, and once even told A. Pugacheva that they were "from different trade unions." Straightforward and uncompromising, she often made enemies. For several years she was persona non grata on Soviet television, and once an anti-tank shell flew into the balcony of her house.

Zhanna Bichevskaya's childhood was difficult: she lost her mother early, and her father often beat her and left her in the care of his mistresses. Relations with him improved only when she grew up. Often left to herself, from an early age she learned independence and responsibility. After school, Zhanna entered the circus school, where Khazanov and Pugacheva studied. However, Bichevskaya did not maintain friendly relations with stellar peers. Later, when the songs of Bichevskaya and Pugacheva headed the Soviet charts, and the records were sold in millions of copies, the prima donna once asked Bichevskaya: "Zhanna, why don't you participate in our parties?" And she answered her: "You and I are from different trade unions."

Zhanna calls Bulat Okudzhava her godfather on the stage. She herself approached him in the Central House of Writers, introduced herself and offered to listen to her songs. Later, she often performed his compositions. In 1973, Bichevskaya won the All-Russian Pop Song Performers Contest, after which she began touring the Union and abroad. Her albums have sold in huge numbers in more than 40 countries.

In search of folk songs, Bichevskaya often traveled throughout Russia. Once an old woman dictated to her the words of the song "Oh, but not evening", the melody of which she did not remember. And the singer herself wrote the music. Until now, many consider this song to be folk, not suspecting that the music in it is the author's.

Bichevskaya created her own style of performing folk songs, which was later called country folk and was often compared to Joan Baez, an American country folk singer. Once they even performed together on the same stage abroad. Bichevskaya explained her choice of repertoire as follows: “I loved jazz, country, folk, romances. But she was always far from omnivorous. She did not accept the "mass-produced" stage."

Due to her directness and uncompromising attitude, the singer often found herself in curious situations. In 1975 she performed at the Kremlin Palace of Congresses. She was surprised by the fact that no one at the checkpoint had checked her guitar case, and she joked: “What if I had a machine gun in my case and I would shoot everyone here now?”. After that, a scandal erupted, and the head of the State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company banned Bichevskaya from being shown on television. The ban was lifted only a few years later, when Kobzon stood up for the singer with a guitar. He advised to return to the screens the singer, on which the State Concert earned a lot of money - in Paris, she was sold out 8 times in the Olympia concert hall.

In the early 1990s. In the repertoire of Bichevskaya appeared White Guard songs, compositions based on poems of poets of the Silver Age, religious songs and the anthem of the Russian Empire "God Save the Tsar!", which caused a wave of indignation among the haters of Tsarist Russia. According to the singer, it was this that provoked the attempt on her life. In 1994, an anti-tank missile hit the wall of her kitchen, miraculously not crippling her household. The investigation never found those responsible, and Bichevskaya did not frighten or stop the assassination attempt - she did not change her repertoire.

At the song contest in San Remo, Zhanna Bichevskaya was awarded the Golden Guitar award for her significant contribution to the world performing arts. Before her, Joan Baez was the only female guitarist who received this award. For 30 years of creative activity, Bichevskaya has recorded 22 discs. And in 1999 she tried herself as a radio host: she created the author's program "From Heart to Heart".

The singer formulated her creative credo as follows: “I sing for everyone who listens to me. Indeed, according to Holy Scripture, talent must necessarily be returned with a profit. What is the profit? It's very simple: you need to make sure that as many people as possible see the beauty."

One of the most famous compositions performed by Bichevskaya - romance "There was a carriage at the church"