Returning home after a wonderful evening “In memory of Vladimir Vysotsky”, organized to mark the 30th anniversary from his death, I sat at my computer and copied what I had written in haste and said from the stage. I added few words that did not have time to say and decided to distribute my sketches among friends.
Dear friends, today we will not say any word about politics. Only about art, culture and spirituality. I am very glad that my friends, who also like me are fans of Vladimir Vysotsky, responded to my initiative to organize today’s “Evening in Memory of Vladimir Vysotsky.
You know, I am happy that God has granted me two lungs. I breathe two lungs, two cultures. With one lung I breathe the Romanian culture and with the other lung I breathe the Russian culture. I believe that this is precisely the uniqueness and unique beauty of our people’s culture and spirituality. We draw our inner wealth from two sources, and this synthesis of cultures is a huge advantage, the great gift of destiny for us.
Boris Marian, he was rightly saying here that we need to think seriously about translating Vysotsky’s work in Romanian. It is not an easy task, but if you really follow the advice of Boris Marian, the most successful way for selecting the best translation of Vysotsky’s poetry would be to hold a competition. And I will ask my friends from “Flux” newspaper to announce this initiative, and my Christian Democratic colleagues – to search for possible sponsors of this work. We all know the sad game of words in Italian, which reads: “tradutori – traditori”, i.e. translators are traitors, distorting the meaning and quality of the original. But this is not true, or even not true at all when done by talented translator. A good example in this regard: Romanian translator George Lesnea has beautifully translated Sergey Yesenin. By the way, today I read again the French translation of Vysotsky’ ballads. Excellent work.
So what, it may sound pretty funny in some places. For example, imagine for a moment, how it would sounded like in Romanian, this line: “Let the God’s will be, and I’ll stay with Romanians. / They say Romanian, like we, are from the Volga region too!” I could be quite amusing.
Each of us has our own Vysotsky. Or, in the words of the poet, “My Hamlet.” So I also have my Vysotsky. He always accompanies me. I was absorbed in his art so much that it is rather difficult for me to read other poets. Remember what he said once about his work : “I am often asked: “What did you mean in this or that song?” My answer is this: everyone understands to the extent of one’s education… “
People really like digging into the daily life of geniuses. So they choose to liken themselves to them. But the geniuses are great not because of drinking, loving women or rowing (every perishable one is cable of that). They are great by their work.
For years, I breathe Vysotsky every day; I live in rhythm of his chords, strain my nerves and tear the soul with his grave and tragic voice.
Vysotsky is the soul of his time. He has enriched so much the Russian language that we speak his language every day. We quote him constantly when talking about tragic or comic, philosophical thoughts or thieves.
In preparation for this evening, I have long thumbed through a pile of Vysotsky’s collection books. And found a couple of verses or as he called them -things – that are less known. They are very short and they are not sung, but they seemed very appropriate for nowadays.
Here is one of them, and of course, about the Soviet reality. But still so relevant. As if it is about this year’s our political reality. Exactly, this is about the referendum, scheduled for September 5. That’s it, the times reecho. Listen:
“Подымайте руки,
В урны суйте
Бюллетени, даже не читав, –
Помереть от скуки!
Голосуйте.
Только, чур, менея не приплюсуйте:
Я не разделяю ваш устав.»
“Raise your hands,
Stick them in boxes
Without reading the ballots at all -
Die of boredom!
Vote.
But, mind you, do not add me:
I don’t share your by-law.”
Well, say yourself, isn’t a good hint for the meaningless of political exercise, scheduled for September 5?
And here’s another thing. About our 21st century. About our today’s reality. This is what happens to us, today and here.
“У профессиональных игроков
Любая масть ложится перед червой, –
Так век двадцатый – лучший из веков –
Как шлюша упадёт под двадцать первый.
Я думаю — учёные наврали, –
Прокол у них в теории, прорез:
Развитие идёт не по спирали,
А вкривь и вкось, вразрез, наперерез.»
“For professional players
Any color lies down in front hearts, –
Precisely that is how the best – 20th – century
Will lie under the 21st like whore.
I think – the scientists have lied -
Their theories are mistaken, they failed:
The development is not like a spiral,
It’s agley, inconsistent and shortcut.”
Thank you.
Iurie Roşca
July 25, 2010
Exprimă-ți opinia