Of course, all of us know this amazing waltz - probably the only waltz in memory of those who died heroically in battle. It is not for nothing that it is often called simply "Russian Waltz" abroad. A century has passed since the Kapellmeister Moksha regiment Ilya Shatrov, sitting in the guardhouse, wrote down his notes, and the waltz lives in every Russian as a part of the soul.

Ilya Alekseevich Shatrov

In February 1905, the 214th Reserve Moksha Infantry Regiment, in the most difficult battles between Mukden and Liaoyang (see the Battle of Mukden), fell into the Japanese encirclement and was constantly subjected to enemy attacks. At a critical moment, when the ammunition was already running out, the regiment commander, Colonel Pyotr Pobyvanets, gave the order: "The banner and the orchestra - forward! .."

Bandmaster Shatrov led the band to the parapet of the trenches, gave the order to play a battle march, and led the band forward behind the banner of the regiment. Encouraged soldiers rushed to the bayonet attack. During the battle, the regiment continuously attacked the Japanese to the music of the orchestra and, in the end, broke through the encirclement. During the battle, the regiment commander was killed, 700 people remained from the 4000 of the regiment, only 7 musicians from the orchestra (65 people) survived.

On the hills of Manchuria

For this feat, all the musicians of the orchestra were awarded St. George's crosses, Ilya Shatrov was awarded the Order of St. Stanislav of the 3rd degree with swords (the second such award for bandmasters), and the orchestra was awarded honorary silver pipes.

After the end of the Russo-Japanese War, the Mokshan Regiment remained in Manchuria for a whole year, where Ilya Alekseevich, having once got to the guardhouse on the orders of the new regiment commander, began to write the waltz “The Mokshan Regiment on the Hills of Manchuria”, dedicated to the fallen comrades.

In May 1906, the Mokshansky regiment returned to its place of deployment in Zlatoust. In the summer, Ilya Shatrov created the first version of the waltz, which was called "The Mokshan Regiment on the Hills of Manchuria." Shatrov dedicated the waltz to his fallen friends. On September 18, 1906, the Moksha Regiment was redeployed to Samara. Here Shatrov met and became friends with the teacher, composer and music publisher Oscar Filippovich Knaub, who provided the novice composer with serious assistance in completing work on the waltz and its subsequent publication. In the summer of 1907, the notes of Ilya Shatrov's waltz "The Moksha Regiment on the Hills of Manchuria" were sold in Oscar Knaub's cheap editions store.

In Samara, in the Strukovsky Garden on April 24, 1908, the first performance of the waltz by a brass band took place. At first, the provincial public greeted this waltz rather coolly, but subsequently the popularity of the waltz began to grow, and since 1910, the circulation of gramophone records with the recording of the waltz began to exceed the circulation of other fashionable waltzes. Only in the first 3 years after writing this waltz was reprinted 82 times.

After the revolution, Shatrov joined the Red Army, was bandmaster of the Red Cavalry Brigade. After graduation civil war until 1935 he served in Pavlograd. From 1935 to 1938, Shatrov led the orchestra of the Tambov Cavalry School, in 1938 he was demobilized and stayed to work in Tambov. With the beginning of the Great Patriotic War returned to the army again: he served as the bandmaster of the division. Has been repeatedly awarded. After the war, Shatrov led the orchestra of the Kirovabad garrison in the Transcaucasian military district (the military band of the Transcaucasian military district) for a long time.

He retired in 1951, returned to Tambov, where he was in charge of the musical department at the Tambov Suvorov School.

He died in Tambov on May 2, 1952. He was buried at the Vozdvizhensky cemetery. The composer failed to create anything equal to the waltz "Moksha Regiment on the Hills of Manchuria" (that's what it is called, it's just that the name did not fit on the records).
By the way, the waltz was without words. At first, the words were composed by everyone who is not lazy, but by now it is customary to perform Mashistov's version.

Moksha regiment
on the hills of Manchuria

January 19, 1878 during the reform Russian army 44 reserve infantry battalions were formed. Formed in Penza 59th Reserve Infantry Battalion(Commander Colonel K. M. Akimfov) based on the frame deducted from Ryazan local battalion. In 1891 the battalion is named Mokshansky(at the quartering of one of the companies). December 26, 1899 it is renamed to 214th Infantry Reserve Moksha Battalion(Commander Colonel Nikolai Gavrilovich Pirotsky). City Mokshan based in 1679, is located 40 versts from Penza on the guard line, where the townspeople with weapons in their hands defended their homeland from the predatory raids of the steppe nomads. On the coat of arms of the city were depicted “in the red field there are two reeds, ancient military weapons, as a sign that the inhabitants of this city are the essence of the old services, service people” .

Mokshans had their own traditions, banner, music choir (orchestra). Annually May 21st they celebrated the feast of the part. In 1900 the money allocated for the celebration of this event was transferred by the Moksha residents to the creation of a museum and a monument A. V. Suvorov- that year marked the 100th anniversary of the death of a brilliant commander. Band of the battalion (bandmaster V. L. Kretovich) took part in a concert of brass bands of parts of Penza, half of the collection also went to the Suvorov Fund.

November 26, 1900 , on the day of the cavalier holiday of the Order of St. George the Victorious, when parades of troops and Knights of St. George were held throughout the country, a parade was held in Penza with choirs of music with banners. The parade was commanded by a new, fourth commander of the Moksha battalion, Colonel Pavel Petrovich Pobyvanets, a participant in the Russian-Turkish war, for distinction in battles in the Transcaucasus, he was awarded military orders and golden weapons.

At the beginning of the 20th centurythe situation worsened Far East. Ahead was the Russo-Japanese war. November 24, 1901 The Moksha battalion left the Finogeevsky barracks in Penza forever and relocated to Zlatoust. February 1, 1902 commander of the 54th reserve brigade colonel Semenenko informed the commander of the 214th Moksha battalion Pobyvanets about the proposed reorganization of the battalion into a two-battalion regiment (1) .
At that time the workers Zlatoust plant opposed the administration. They came to the plant management, demanded better working conditions and the release of those arrested. March 13, 1903 by order of the Ufa governor. N. M. Bogdanovich two companies of Mokshans were called and opened fire on the crowd of workers. 45 man was killed about 100- hurt. Echo "Zlatoust massacre" swept across the country. By the verdict of the militant organization of the Socialist-Revolutionary Party, the worker Egor Dulebov May 6, 1903 killed Governor Bogdanovich.

Spring 1903two more companies were added to six companies so that the battalion could be turned into a two-battalion regiment, and a separate unit of the Mokshan battalion in Yekaterinburg (5-8th company) was formed under the command of a lieutenant colonel Alexey Petrovich Semenov.

The Russo-Japanese War began. May 27, 1904 martial law was declared and "bringing to a reinforced composition" reserve units in the Kazan, Moscow and Kiev military districts. June 8 The Moksha reserve battalion deployed into two field infantry regiments: 214th Mokshansky in Zlatoust and 282nd Chernoyarsk in Yekaterinburg (from a separate unit of the 214th battalion). The Moksha Regiment included: 6 headquarters officers, 43 chief officer, 391 non-commissioned officer, 3463 privates, 11 horse orderlies and 61 musician (2) .

30 JuneSovereign Emperor arrived for the solemn farewell to the soldiers at the front in Zlatoust. Many Moksha residents received memorable gifts. Colonel Pobyvanets was presented with an excellent combat saber. The regiment marched out of the city in six echelons and July 31 arrived in Mukden, and August 14 took up positions on the left flank of the Russian army near Liaoyang on the Dalinsky Pass, which he successfully defended throughout the Liaoyang battles (3) .

September 26Moksha participated in the attack on Bensikha, but they especially distinguished themselves in the battles near Mukden, where more than 10 days, stubbornly defending and furiously counterattacking, the regiment held positions at railway, preventing the Japanese from encircling the Russian army. The heavily shell-shocked colonel remained in the ranks and in the most difficult moments commanded:

« Banner ahead! Orchestra forward!

To the sounds of an orchestra with thunder"Hooray!"Mokshans rushed after the 56-year-old commander to the bayonet and repelled enemy attacks. Orchestras (music choirs) in the Russian army have long been an invariable part of its organizational structure, creating the necessary psychological mood in battles, campaigns, and parades. A. V. Suvorov argued that"music doubles, triples the army" .

February 27, 1905 near Mukden, the regiment covered the withdrawal of artillery and the last convoys of the 22nd division, then he himself left the old positions. When retreating "shimosa" (4) was seriously wounded in the right thigh Colonel Pobyvanets (5) . He ordered the soldiers who rushed to him:

"First, pick up the wounded soldiers...".

He was taken out last. At the dressing station, straining his last strength, the commander asked to bring the banner of the regiment. He died in an ambulance train near Gunzhulin station.May 25, 1905Chrysostom with military honors saw off the heroPavel Petrovich Pobyvanetson the last journey(6) .

The war is over, the Mokshans are left barely 700 Human. Chernoyarsk citizens were again attached to them. In January 1906 sent home the first spare. Moksha regiment returned to Zlatoust May 8, 1906. For heroism in battles, Moksha warriors were presented for awards and distinctions: breastplate - for officers, headgear - for lower ranks with the inscription "For distinction in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905" (7) .

May 21st, on the day of the traditional regimental holiday of the Mokshans, the Zlatoust residents watched with interest a vivid picture of the parade of the famous regiment, marching under banners pierced by bullets and shrapnel Mokshansky And Chernoyarsk regiments. The skill of the regimental orchestra was highly appreciated (8) . The band members always went to the enemy together with the soldiers, they inspired the soldiers with their skill and courage. Even when the orchestra was not allowed to participate in the battles, they often voluntarily threw themselves into the thick of the battle, assisted the wounded, taking them out from under the fire. Covered with military glory, military bands in peacetime played in city gardens, at festivities and were indispensable propagandists of the best musical works in the most remote places of the country. And the military conductors themselves often composed beautiful melodies that are still popular today. These are the marches S. Chernetsky, "Farewell Slav" V. Agapkina, waltz "Amur Waves" M. Kyusa and etc.

With the start of the World War in 1914 The regiment was re-formed. July 17th in the Admiralteyskaya Sloboda near Kazan 306th Moksha Infantry Regiment flag was presented 214th Mokshansky. Mokshans participated in the Warsaw-Ivangorod operation 1914, in battles in the Vladimir-Volyn direction in 1916, on the river Styr, near the Kovno fortress. Everywhere they were faithful to their duty to the end.

In March 1918the regiment was disbanded (9) .

But loud glory Moksha regiment brought not the "Zlatoust massacre" and not even military exploits, but a composed in 1906 bandmaster of the regiment I. A. Shatrov waltz " Moksha regiment on the hills of Manchuria . In the post-war years, a lot was written about this in our press (about a hundred publications are known, unfortunately, for the most part they are poor in true facts and abound in conjectures).
From birth, the waltz was accompanied by unprecedented success. In 1907 notes began to be published, and since 1910 gramophone records with waltz recordings performed mainly by military bands were released. Then the singers also sang it - they began to compose various versions of the text to the taste of the performers to the music.
The long name of the waltz did not fit into one line on the record label, and it was "cut down". Thus, the name of the legendary regiment, to which the waltz was dedicated, disappeared from the name. The authors of the texts also helped to forget him, often unaware of the existence of the Moksha Regiment. The first editions of the sheet music did not have text, but for the sake of completeness they contained some explanations: "talk of orphaned women" , "Soldier Talk" , "knock of wheels" and etc.

On the popularity of the waltz "On the hills of Manchuria" such facts speak. By 1911 O. F. Knaub(Shatrov granted him a monopoly right) reissued notes 82 times (10) , and the firm "Zonophone" only for the first half of December 1910 sold 15 thousand records.

With the establishment Soviet power the waltz began to be interpreted as a symbol of tsarism, the White Guard and was practically not performed. In 1943 jazz orchestra (then State Jazz of the RSFSR) under the direction of L. O. Utesov used the motif "Hills" in a patriotic potpourri. In 1945 on the eve of the war with Japan, a waltz was sung I. S. Kozlovsky.

The famous waltz Ilya Alekseevich Shatrov(1879-1952) was born into a poor merchant family in Zemlyansk, Voronezh province. Orphaned at an early age, Ilyusha was brought up by his uncle Mikhail Mikhailovich, who, being himself musically gifted, taught the basics of music to his nephew. By the way, his daughter Elena Mikhailovna Shatrova-Fafinova subsequently sang on stage Bolshoi Theater in Moscow.

After graduating from the district school, Ilya gets into a platoon of trumpeters Life Guards of the Grodno Hussars in Warsaw. In 1900 he graduated from the courses of bandmasters at Warsaw Musical Institute, then lived for several months in his native Zemlyansk without work. Apparently, not without the assistance of his former regimental commander, General O. Ya. Zander, which became in 1902 chief of staff Kazan Military District, in March 1903 Shatrov received the post of civilian bandmaster Moksha regiment in Zlatoust. With this regiment, he went all the way to the first disbandment of the regiment in 1910.

In 1904 the Moksha Regiment was part of 1st Manchurian Army. By order of her commander No. 273 of April 2, 1905

"for excellent, diligent service in a military situation ... a silver medal with the inscription "For Diligence" to be worn on the chest on the Annenskaya Ribbon..." was awarded "214th Moksha Infantry Regiment civilian Kapellmeister Shatrov".

In the winter of 1905, the Moksha Regiment was already in 3rd Manchurian Army, and by order of her commander No. 429 of October 24, 1905 Shatrov again awarded a silver medal "for excellent and diligent service and special works" . In Russia there was "gradual" awards, that is, a strict sequence from the lowest to the highest awards. At the same time, the same award was not presented twice. Orders were awarded only to officials, including officers. Medals were intended for non-officials and lower ranks of the army. Violation fixed with new Order No. 465- about replacement silver medal to the military bandmaster of the 214th Infantry Mokshan Regiment Shatrov, who was secondly awarded by her gold medal.

While this red tape lasted, Shatrov received the first rank of collegiate registrar, and now he was entitled to a lower order, not a medal. An order followed No. 544 of January 20, 1906:

“The Kapellmeister of the 214th Moksha Regiment, Ilya Shatrov, in exchange for the bestowed ... gold medal with the inscription “For diligence” to be worn on the chest on the Stanislavsky ribbon ... I award the Order of St. Stanislav 3rd degree with swords for differences against the Japanese at different times.”

By the way, Shatrov's predecessor Vyacheslav Kretovich, who fought in Manchuria as a bandmaster 283rd Bugulma Regiment, also having the rank of collegiate registrar, was awarded the Order of Stanislav 3rd degree with swords with the same wording (11) .

I. A. Shatrov, carried away at one time by a young merchant's daughter Shura Shikhobalova, wrote another popular waltz "Country Dreams" . After her death in 1907 he married the mother of the bride, a widow E. P. Shikhobalova. Then his “swan song” sounded - the last composition "Autumn has come" .

Some authors, referring to the memoirs of Shatrov himself, wrote about a search at his place and some kind of gendarmerie persecution, however I. A. Shatrov was far from revolutionary activity. And here is his sister Anna And brother Fedor were associated with the Voronezh revolutionaries, printed and distributed illegal literature, for which in 1906 were arrested. Uncle Mikhail heavily paid off in order to "hush up the matter." Ilya Alekseevich, having received a large fee for a waltz "On the hills of Manchuria" , sent part of the money to his uncle, significantly supporting the family in Hard time. This could draw the attention of the gendarmes to the composer.

In 1918merchant I. A. Shatrov fled from the revolution to Siberia. In Novonikolaevsk (Novosibirsk) he fell seriously ill with typhus, and when he recovered, there were reds in the city. Shatrov was mobilized into the Red Army. In 1938 he was demobilized by age with the rank of quartermaster technician 1st rank (12) .
Spring 1945 of the year Shatrov again enlisted in the army. But changes were made to his personal file, now stored in the Tambov city military commissariat. Date of birth not specified 1879 , A 1885. In 1952 Shatrov died with the rank of major and was buried in Tambov.

Waltz "Moksha Regiment on the hills of Manchuria" performed by
Central Military Band of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.

Notes
1 Russian State Military Historical Archive (hereinafter: RGVIA), f. VUA, item 13047, part 2.

2 RGVIA, f.VUA, item 13332, sheet 60.

3 Ibid., f. VUA, item 26470, sheet 38.

4 "Shimosa" - Japanese shrapnel projectile.

5 RGVIA, f.VUA, item 13342; An illustrated chronicle of the Russo-Japanese war. Issue 15. - 1905. - P.41.

6 Ufimskiye Provincial Gazette. - 1905. - No. 90, 120.

7 RGVIA, f.487, item 946, l.120.

8 Ufimskiye Provincial Gazette. - 1906. - No. 115. - June 1.

9 RGVIA, f.2915, op.1, items 9, 81, 165.

10 See: News of the season. - 1911. - No. 2301.

11 RGVIA, f. VUA, items 26470, 27775, 27781.

12 RGVA, f.35550, op.1, items 10, 55.

G. V. Eremin

________________________________________

From the history of musical works. Ilya Alekseevich Shatrov

The name of this piece of music was originally the name of the military unit, whose history began on Penza land - "Moksha Regiment on the hills of Manchuria." But over time, its transformation took place and now it sounds briefly - "On the hills of Manchuria."
This waltz by I. A. Shatrov has many poetic variants for its musical basis.

On January 19, 1878, during the reform of the Russian army, 44 reserve infantry battalions were formed. In Penza, the 59th reserve infantry battalion (commander Colonel K. M. Akimfov) is being formed on the basis of a cadre expelled from the 1-gerb-mokshan Coat of arms of the city of Mokshan. The Ryazan local battalion. In 1891, the battalion received the name Mokshansky (according to the quartering of one of the companies). On December 26, 1899, it was renamed the 214th Infantry Reserve Mokshan Battalion (commander Colonel Nikolai Gavrilovich Pirotsky). The city of Mokshan, founded in 1679, is located 40 versts from Penza on the guard line, where the townspeople with weapons in their hands defended their homeland from the predatory raids of the steppe nomads. On the coat of arms of the city, “two berdysh, ancient military weapons, were depicted in a red field, as a sign that the inhabitants of this city are the essence of old services, service people.”
Mokshans had their own traditions, banner, music choir (orchestra). Every year on May 21 they celebrated the holiday of the unit. In 1900, the money allocated for the celebration of this event was donated by the Moksha people to the creation of a museum and a monument to A.V. Suvorov - that year marked the 100th anniversary of the death of the brilliant commander. The battalion orchestra (bandmaster V. L. Kretovich) took part in a concert of brass bands from parts of Penza, half of the collection also went to the Suvorov Fund.

On November 26, 1900, on the day of the cavalier holiday of the Order of St. George the Victorious, when parades of troops and Knights of St. George were held throughout the country, a parade was held in Penza with choirs of music with banners raised. The parade was commanded by a new, fourth commander of the Moksha battalion, Colonel Pavel Petrovich Pobyvanets, a participant in the Russian-Turkish war, who was awarded military orders and golden weapons for his distinction in battles in Transcaucasia.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the situation in the Far East escalated. Ahead was the Russo-Japanese war. On November 24, 1901, the Mokshansky battalion left the Finogeevsky barracks in Penza forever and relocated to Zlatoust. On February 1, 1902, the commander of the 54th reserve brigade, Colonel Semenenko, informed the commander of the 214th Moksha battalion Pobyvanets about the proposed reorganization of the battalion into a two-battalion regiment.
At that time, the workers of the Zlatoust plant opposed the administration. They came to the plant management, demanded better working conditions and the release of those arrested. March 13, 1903 by order of the Ufa governor. N. M. Bogdanovich, two companies of Mokshans called in opened fire on a crowd of workers. 45 people were killed, about 100 were injured. The echo of the "Zlatoust massacre" swept through the country. On May 6, 1903, the worker Yegor Dulebov killed Governor Bogdanovich on May 6, 1903, on the verdict of the militant organization of the Socialist-Revolutionary Party.
In the spring of 1903, two more companies were added to six companies so that the battalion could be converted into a two-battalion regiment, and a separate unit of the Mokshansky battalion in Yekaterinburg (5-8th company) was formed under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Alexei Petrovich Semenov.
The Russo-Japanese War began. On May 27, 1904, martial law was declared and the reserve units in the Kazan, Moscow and Kiev military districts were "reinforced". On June 8, the Mokshansky reserve battalion deployed into two field infantry regiments: the 214th Mokshansky in Zlatoust and the 282nd Chernoyarsky in Yekaterinburg (from a separate unit of the 214th battalion). The Moksha regiment included: 6 staff officers, 43 chief officers, 391 non-commissioned officers, 3463 privates, 11 horse orderlies and 61 musicians.
On June 30, the sovereign emperor arrived at the front in Zlatoust for a solemn farewell to the soldiers. Many Moksha residents received memorable gifts. Colonel Pobyvanets was presented with an excellent combat saber. The regiment set out from the city in six echelons and arrived in Mukden on July 31, and on August 14 took up positions on the left flank of the Russian army near Liaoyang on the Dalin Pass, which was successfully defended throughout the Liaoyang battles.
On September 26, the Mokshans took part in the attack on Bensikha, but they especially distinguished themselves in the battles near Mukden, where for more than 10 days, stubbornly defending and furiously counterattacking, the regiment held positions near the railway, preventing the Japanese from encircling the Russian army. The heavily shell-shocked colonel remained in the ranks and in the most difficult moments commanded:
"Banner forward! Orchestra forward!
To the sounds of an orchestra with a thunderous "Hurrah!" Mokshans rushed after the 56-year-old commander to the bayonet and repelled enemy attacks. Orchestras (music choirs) in the Russian army have long been an invariable part of its organizational structure, creating the necessary psychological mood in battles, campaigns, and parades. A. V. Suvorov argued that "music doubles, triples the army."

On February 27, 1905, near Mukden, the regiment covered the retreat of artillery and the last convoys of the 22nd division, then left the old positions itself. During the retreat, Colonel Pobyvanets was seriously wounded in the right thigh with a shimose. He ordered the soldiers who rushed to him:
"First, pick up the wounded soldiers...".
He was taken out last. At the dressing station, straining his last strength, the commander asked to bring the banner of the regiment. He died in an ambulance train near Gunzhulin station. On May 25, 1905, Chrysostom, with military honors, saw off the hero Pavel Petrovich Pobyvanets on his last journey.
The war ended, there were barely 700 Mokshans left. Chernoyarsk citizens were again attached to them. In January 1906, the first spares were sent home. The Moksha regiment returned to Zlatoust on May 8, 1906. For heroism in battles, Moksha warriors were presented with awards and insignia: breastplates for officers, hats for lower ranks with the inscription "For distinction in the Russian-Japanese war of 1904-1905."
On May 21, on the day of the traditional regimental holiday of the Moksha people, the Zlatoust people watched with interest a vivid picture of the parade of the famous regiment, marching under the banners of the Moksha and Chernoyarsk regiments under pierced bullets and shrapnel. The skill of the regimental band was highly appreciated. The band members always went to the enemy together with the soldiers, they inspired the soldiers with their skill and courage. Even when the orchestra was not allowed to participate in the battles, they often voluntarily threw themselves into the thick of the battle, assisted the wounded, taking them out from under the fire. Covered with military glory, military bands in peacetime played in city gardens, at festivities and were indispensable propagandists of the best musical works in the most remote places of the country. And the military conductors themselves often composed beautiful melodies that are still popular today. Such are the marches of S. Chernetsky, “Farewell of the Slav” by V. Agapkin, the waltz “Amur Waves” by M. Kyus and others.
With the outbreak of World War II in 1914, the regiment was re-formed. On July 17, in the Admiralteyskaya Sloboda near Kazan, the banner of the 214th Mokshansky was handed over to the 306th Moksha Infantry Regiment. Mokshans participated in the Warsaw-Ivangorod operation of 1914, in the battles in the Vladimir-Volyn direction in 1916, on the Styr River, near the Kovno fortress. Everywhere they were faithful to their duty to the end.
In March 1918, the regiment was disbanded.
But it was not the “Zlatoust massacre” and not even military exploits that brought great fame to the Moksha regiment, but the waltz “Moksha Regiment on the Hills of Manchuria” composed in 1906 by the bandmaster of the regiment I. A. Shatrov. In the post-war years, a lot was written about this in our press (about a hundred publications are known, unfortunately, for the most part they are poor in true facts and abound in conjectures).
From birth, the waltz was accompanied by unprecedented success. In 1907, notes began to be published, and since 1910, gramophone records with waltz recordings performed mainly by military bands began to appear. Then the singers also sang it - they began to compose various versions of the text to the taste of the performers to the music.
The long name of the waltz did not fit into one line on the record label, and it was "cut down". Thus, the name of the legendary regiment, to which the waltz was dedicated, disappeared from the name. The authors of the texts also helped to forget him, often unaware of the existence of the Moksha Regiment. The first editions of the notes did not have text, but for the sake of completeness they contained some explanations: “the conversation of orphaned women”, “the conversation of soldiers”, “the sound of wheels”, etc.
The popularity of the waltz "On the Hills of Manchuria" is evidenced by the following facts. By 1911, O. F. Knaub (Shatrov granted him a monopoly) reissued the notes 82 times, and the Zonofon firm sold 15,000 records in the first half of December 1910 alone.
With the establishment of Soviet power, the waltz began to be interpreted as a symbol of tsarism, the White Guard and was practically not performed. In 1943, the jazz orchestra (then the State Jazz of the RSFSR) conducted by L. O. Utyosov used the motif "Sopok" in a patriotic potpourri. In 1945, on the eve of the war with Japan, the waltz was sung by I. S. Kozlovsky.

The author of the famous waltz, Ilya Alekseevich Shatrov (1879-1952), was born into a poor merchant family in Zemlyansk, Voronezh province. Orphaned at an early age, Ilyusha was brought up by his uncle Mikhail Mikhailovich, who, being himself musically gifted, taught the basics of music to his nephew. By the way, his daughter Elena Mikhailovna Shatrova-Fafinova subsequently sang on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow.
shatrov-i-a-w Ilya Alekseevich Shatrov (1879-1952) After graduating from the district school, Ilya enters the trumpet platoon of the Life Guards of the Grodno Hussars in Warsaw. In 1900, he graduated from the bandmaster's course at the Warsaw Musical Institute, then lived in his native Zemlyansk for several months without work. Apparently, not without the assistance of his former regimental commander, General O. Ya. Zander, who became the chief of staff of the Kazan Military District in 1902, in March 1903 Shatrov received the post of civilian Kapellmeister of the Moksha Regiment in Zlatoust. With this regiment, he went all the way to the first disbandment of the regiment in 1910.
In 1904, the Moksha Regiment was part of the 1st Manchurian Army. By order of its commander No. 273 of April 2, 1905
"for excellent, diligent service in a military situation ... a silver medal with the inscription "For diligence" to be worn on the chest on the Annensky ribbon ..." was awarded to the "214th Infantry Moksha Regiment, civilian Kapellmeister Shatrov."
In the winter of 1905, the Moksha Regiment was already part of the 3rd Manchurian Army, and by order of its commander No. 429 dated October 24, 1905, Shatrov was again awarded a silver medal "for excellent, diligent service and special labors." In Russia, there was a "gradual" award, that is, a strict sequence from the lowest to the highest awards. At the same time, the same award was not presented twice. Orders were awarded only to officials, including officers. Medals were intended for non-officials and lower ranks of the army. The violation was eliminated by a new order No. 465 - to replace the silver medal to the military bandmaster of the 214th Moksha Infantry Regiment Shatrov, who was awarded it for the second time, with a gold medal.
While this red tape lasted, Shatrov received the first rank of collegiate registrar, and now he was entitled to a lower order, not a medal. Order No. 544 of January 20, 1906 followed:
“The Kapellmeister of the 214th Moksha Regiment, Ilya Shatrov, in exchange for the bestowed ... gold medal with the inscription “For diligence” to be worn on the chest on the Stanislavsky ribbon ... I award the Order of St. Stanislav 3rd degree with swords for differences against the Japanese at different times.”
By the way, Vyacheslav Kretovich, Shatrov's predecessor, who fought in Manchuria as bandmaster of the 283rd Bugulma regiment, also having the rank of collegiate registrar, was awarded the Order of Stanislav 3rd degree with swords with the same wording.
I. A. Shatrov, who at one time was carried away by the young merchant's daughter Shura Shikhobalova, wrote another popular waltz "Country Dreams". After her death in 1907, he married the mother of the bride, the widow E. P. Shikhobalova. Then his “swan song” sounded - the last composition “Autumn has come”.

Some authors, referring to the memoirs of Shatrov himself, wrote about a search at his place and some kind of gendarmerie persecution, but I. A. Shatrov was far from revolutionary activity. But his sister Anna and brother Fyodor were associated with the Voronezh revolutionaries, printed and distributed illegal literature, for which they were arrested in 1906. Uncle Mikhail paid off intensively in order to "hush up the matter." Ilya Alekseevich, having received a large fee for the waltz "On the Hills of Manchuria", sent part of the money to his uncle, significantly supporting the family in difficult times. This could draw the attention of the gendarmes to the composer.
In 1918, the merchant I. A. Shatrov fled from the revolution to Siberia. In Novonikolaevsk (Novosibirsk) he fell seriously ill with typhus, and when he recovered, there were reds in the city. Shatrov was mobilized into the Red Army. In 1938, he was demobilized due to age with the rank of quartermaster technician of the 1st rank.
In the spring of 1945, Shatrov was again enlisted in the army. But changes were made to his personal file, now stored in the Tambov city military commissariat. The date of birth is not 1879, but 1885. In 1952, Shatrov died with the rank of major and was buried in Tambov.

The waltz "On the Hills of Manchuria" celebrated another anniversary - a well-known work dedicated to Russian soldiers who fell in the war with Japan. The beginning of its writing was laid in the Far East.

More recently - 20 years ago - this melody could be heard everywhere: in squares and gardens, in parks and on the embankment. In general, wherever brass bands played. Today, alas, brass bands are a curiosity, but this melody is remembered by everyone, from young to old.

"Moksha regiment on the hills of Manchuria" - this is the correct name of this work. In 1905 during Russo-Japanese War the regiment was surrounded near Mukden. When the cartridges ran out and the soldiers began to lose their last hopes, the commander gave the command: the banner and the orchestra to the parapet. Having perked up, having gathered the last forces into a fist to the sounds of the march, the soldiers rose to a bayonet attack and were able to break through the encirclement. Out of 4,000, 700 people survived, and seven musicians from the orchestra. The bandmaster of the regiment, Ilya Shatrov, was awarded the officer order of St. George, which is a rarity for a musician, and the orchestra was awarded honorary silver pipes.

Andrey Popov, head of the Pacific Fleet orchestra, major: “The work greatly influenced the development of national culture. It is permeated through the events that took place in Manchuria. It remained, for sure, in the hearts of all listeners and musicians and conductors and ordinary listeners, because it was written from the heart.

After the end of the war, the Moksha Regiment remained in Manchuria for another year. At one fine moment, Ilya Shatrov, on the orders of the commander, ended up in the guardhouse. It was here that he began to compose a waltz in memory of his comrades who fell in battle. In May 1906, the regiment returned to its permanent deployment in Zlatoust. It was here that the composer created the first version of the waltz. And here Ilya Shatrov met the teacher and composer Oscar Knaub. He helped the bandmaster to finish work on the work and publish the notes. Already in the summer of 1907, they appeared on the counter of the Knaub store.

The waltz "Moksha Regiment on the Hills of Manchuria" was performed for the first time by a brass band in Strukovsky Park in Samara on April 24, 1908. At first, the audience greeted this melody rather coolly. Critics also found a lot of comments on the new waltz.

Andrey Popov, head of the Pacific Fleet orchestra, major: “Firstly, it was an innovation on the part of Shatrov - to play a waltz in Strukovsky Park. Because people are accustomed to the performance by brass bands of bravura works with the participation of the famous, at that time popular, Turkish drum, copper cymbals. And then suddenly people heard a waltz. It was something new. Therefore, the waltz initially accepted such criticism, but soon this music became popular and began to develop. Along with this waltz, many patriotic songs were written about those times, about those events in the Far East. And I think that many composers, taking an example from that work, began to write more about the exploits of the Russian people. And this began to be strongly reflected in art.

The popularity of the waltz grew by leaps and bounds. In the first three years alone, it was reprinted 82 times. The circulation of records surpassed all other fashionable hits. It was played everywhere - on playgrounds, in restaurants, waltz music poured from almost every window. Soon the Samara poet and writer Stepan Petrov wrote the first version of the poems for the waltz. It was she who formed the basis of subsequent options.

During the First World War, all military bands during a lull on the front line performed this waltz. He has not lost his popularity Soviet time. On all dance floors, in clubs, on holidays, "On the Hills of Manchuria" and "Amur Waves" played first. In 1945, the waltz was performed on the radio, at concerts and at solemn moments, in connection with the victories of the Red Army in the battles with Japan.

Tatyana Selitskaya, Concentrator of the Pacific Fleet Orchestra: “This is precisely the secret of the composer's talent. He put his soul, his emotions into music. He invested to such an extent that it became clear to everyone and passes through music. Music in general is magic.

Several variants of texts were written for this waltz in different years. Such masters of the Russian and Soviet stage as Kozlovsky, Leshchenko, Utesov, Zykina took it for him, and performed it at the most solemn events. Yes and simple people, especially those who are older remember and sing this waltz with pleasure. More than once or twice it has been used in feature films.

The popularity and value of this waltz is also evidenced by the fact that more than once or twice at different times, in the era of completely different musical styles, “Manzhurian bit” - this is how the name sounds in English, was performed by various groups. The Glenn Miller Orchestra, Ventures, Spotnics… This is just a small honor of foreign performers.

Evgeny Kalestratov, musician of the Pacific Fleet orchestra, midshipman: “In my opinion, because it was written for people. And written, apparently, very a good man. And when they write not for anyone, but for ordinary people, music, it takes on other forms, some kind of spiritual, there is a lot of this Orthodox music in this music.

A year ago, on April 24, the 105th anniversary of the first waltz performance was celebrated in the Strukovo Park of Samara. The concert was attended by such famous performers as Mark Kogan and Georgy Tsvetkov. Now a project of annual festivals of brass bands dedicated to the waltz "Moksha Regiment on the Hills of Manchuria" has been launched in Samara.

I.A. Shatrov himself (Wikipedia) and Stepan Skitalec (for example,) are indicated as the author of this text. However, it is known that Shatrov had a negative attitude towards the performance of his waltz with the text, since he believed that these words turn the work into a "requiem in waltz rhythm", and he wrote music about selfless love for the motherland and devotion to it. Therefore, we can assume that Shatrov was not the author of the above text, and he was neither earlier nor later noticed writing poetry. As for the Wanderer, here the situation is even more interesting. Most of the sources I have come across indicate that the author of the earliest text is Stepan Petrov (literary pseudonym - Wanderer). But! The following text is often cited as a creation of the Wanderer:

Quiet around, the hills are covered with haze,
The moon shone from behind the clouds,
Graves keep peace.

White crosses - the heroes are sleeping.
The shadows of the past are circling for a long time,
They talk about the victims of the battles.

Quietly around, the wind carried away the fog,
On the hills of Manchuria the soldiers sleep
And Russians do not hear tears.

Crying, crying mother dear,
Crying young woman
Evil fate and cursing fate! ...

Let the kaoliang bring you dreams
Sleep heroes of the Russian land,
Fatherland native sons.

And let's celebrate the bloody feast.

It was this text that became the most famous among the people (what are the numerous folk variations that begin with the words "quietly around"). But who is its author? Note that option 1 and option 2 are different poems. Yes, the general emotional background and poetic images used in writing are preserved. And it seems that the meaning of the song has not been changed, but ... the lyrics are different! As if one of them is the result of a poetic translation of the second into another language. It is believed that the author of the early text is the Wanderer, but objectively, the earliest text is the first version, but the text of the Wanderer also indicates the second version. It's incomprehensible. There are also hybrid versions, for example, in the collection of Mitkov's songs the first text appears, but with the first verse stuck to it:

Sleeping kaoliang,
The hills are covered with haze...
On the hills of Manchuria the warriors sleep,
And Russian tears are not heard ...

And the last verse, taken from the second option:

Crying, crying mother dear,
Crying young woman
Everyone is crying as one person
Evil fate and cursing fate! ...

And the author of all this is also indicated by S. Skitalec.
Unfortunately, I did not come across any early (pre-revolutionary) records with the second text, and therefore we will assume that Stepan Skitalets is the author of the first version, and the second is the result of a late (probably post-revolutionary) processing of the first. In fact, the second version seems to be more perfect from a poetic point of view, it contains a text for the second part of the waltz ("Cries, cries, dear mother ..."). But who is its author? Still the same Wanderer? Or maybe Kozlovsky? (In fairness, I note that I have not heard recordings with the performance of just such a version of the "second version" of the text - only Kozlovsky's recording, but more on that below)
A few words about text writing for this waltz. A thankless job. This is not a song, but an instrumental piece. Three-part waltz. And our earliest text - only to one part of it. In the second version, the text appears as a "chorus" on the third part of the waltz. Later there will be lyrics trying to use the most "non-singing" second movement. But all these attempts look somewhat strained, unnatural. This is not a song, however, this is only my opinion, which does not pretend to be objective.
Another interesting waltz recording is performed by M. Bragin:

The record was recorded at the Sirena Record studio in January 1911. The verses (as far as I could hear them) are as follows:

We will never forget this terrible picture
And what Russia was able to survive
Troubles and shame of the year.

In Chinese soil on the far plains of the east
left (?) thousands (?) of our (?) lie (?)
The will of unfortunate (?) fate.

In their hearts now there is hope for a feast
With the knowledge (?) that we are dying for Rus',
For Faith, Tsar and Fatherland

great sorrow
And tears involuntarily run from the eyes
Like the waves of a distant sea

Weeping fathers, mothers, children, widows
And far away in the Manchurian fields
White crosses and tombs

Peace to your soul... ... ...
Take one last farewell
From woeful mournful Russia

And again - a painful impression. Undoubtedly "a requiem in the rhythm of a waltz".
Back to historical events. 1910-1918, waltz enjoys great popularity. Abroad it is called "Russian national waltz". It is played, sung, recorded on records. By the way, if you listen to some recordings of 10-13 years, then the end of the waltz catches your eye - the funeral march sounds quite long. It really is a requiem. The author of music saw his work differently, but the artistic vision of the author was sacrificed to social requirements. However, often in this world, art is sacrificed to ideology.
They write that after the revolutions the waltz ceases to sound. But the fact that during the Great Patriotic War (again - a social order?) It is actively performed - this is a well-known fact. It is sung and recorded by Utyosov (so they write, although I have not heard these recordings) and Kozlovsky. There are several variants of the Soviet waltz text. First:

The night has come
Twilight fell on the ground
Desert hills drown in the mist,
A cloud covers the east.

Here, underground
Our heroes sleep
The wind sings a song above them and
The stars are looking down from heaven.

That was not a volley from the fields flew -
It was thunder in the distance. 2 times
And again everything is so calm around,
Everything is silent in the silence of the night.

Sleep, fighters, sleep peacefully,
May you dream of native fields,
Father's distant house.

May you die in battles with enemies,
Your feat to fight calls us,
The banner washed with the blood of the people
We will carry forward.

We will go towards a new life,
Let's throw off the burden of slave shackles.
And the people and the fatherland will not forget
Valor of their sons.

Sleep, fighters, glory to you forever!
Our homeland, our dear land
Do not conquer the enemies!

Night, silence, only the kaoliang makes noise.
Sleep, heroes, the memory of you
Motherland keeps!

The author of the above version is A. Mashistov, although on Wikipedia the author was named Demyan Bedny. (By the way, why exactly Poor?) You can pay attention to the stanza "It was not a volley that flew from the fields ...". This is the very attempt to find the text for the most difficult part of the waltz.

But in the performance of A. Kozlovsky, the text is already well known to us - the very one, the traces of the author of which I could not find (because I was looking badly?) - the second of the options given in this article. Only the phrase "bloody feast" was replaced by Kozlovsky with "glorious feast", apparently in order to avoid all sorts of rumors about the excessive bloodthirstiness of Russians. The last verse of his song went like this:

You fell for Rus', you died for the Motherland,
Believe us, we will avenge you
And we will celebrate a glorious feast.

Or did Kozlovsky completely rework the pre-revolutionary text of the Wanderer, thereby giving life to the most popular "quiet in the forest ..."? The question of the author of this variant of the text is still open to me.

Here it is, the most famous version of the sound of the waltz "On the Hills of Manchuria":

During the Great Patriotic War, the waltz became very relevant. Especially - after the start of active hostilities against Japan. So we again owe the revival of this beautiful melody to the "social order". At the same time, several more text options appeared. For example, the front-line poet Pavel Shubin:

The fire is fading,
The hills were covered with fog.
Gentle sounds of the old waltz
Gently leads the button accordion.

In tune with the music
Remembered the hero-soldier
Dew, birch, blond braids,
Girly cute look.

Where they are waiting for us today
In the meadow in the evening
With the strictest touch
We danced this waltz.

Timid date nights
Long gone and disappeared into the darkness...
Manchurian hills sleep under the moon
In powder smoke.

We saved
Glory native land.
In fierce battles, here in the East,
Hundreds of roads have been passed.

But also in battle
In a distant foreign land,
Remembered in bright sadness
Motherland.

She is far away
From a soldier's light.
Gloomy nights from Manchuria
Clouds drift towards her.

Into the dark space
Past the night lakes
Higher than the birds, beyond the border
Above the Siberian mountains.

Leaving the gloomy edge,
Let them fly after us in joy
All our brightest thoughts,
Our love and sadness.

There, behind the blue ribbon,
The banner of the motherland is above you.
Sleep, my friend! Silent shots,
Your last fight has died down...

These verses are a completely different story. It's no longer a requiem. A lyrical story of memories of peacetime, of a distant home, of dancing to the sounds of this particular waltz, smoothly flowing into something pathetic on the theme "here we are back, glory to the fallen." The author makes it clear that the very trizna about which his predecessors wrote is done. The Russian army returned to Mukden, defeated the Kwantung grouping of Japanese troops. The circle is closed. And on the other hand, this text contains much more than exactly what Shatrov put into his music: expressions of love for the Motherland and dedication to the memory of fallen comrades, but not in the style of tragic sobbing, but simply silently taking off his hat. That is why this text is the most sympathetic to me, although I do not hide the fact that I consider it incorrect to write poetry on originally instrumental compositions.
Listen here (recorded in 1959, sung by Petr Kirichek):

(addition: a site visitor pointed out a factual inaccuracy - the entry dates from 1958,).
With these verses, Shatrov's brilliant work really began to resemble a waltz, and not a funeral march, didn't it? In this regard, I had a stupid question: was Shubin familiar with Shatrov? For it is known how negatively the composer treated the "orthodox" versions of the text to his melody, and Shubin's poem is strikingly in tune with Shatrov's thoughts about his waltz. But these are crazy thoughts.

As a conclusion to the story - a few words about the later life of Kapellmeister Shatrov. In 1910, the 214th Moksha Regiment was disbanded and merged into the 189th Izmail Infantry Regiment. In 1918, Shatrov was mobilized into the Red Army, and in 1938 he was transferred to the reserve due to age. But in 1945, for some reason, they mobilized again, and in order to comply with the formalities, they had to falsify the year of birth. There is another semi-mythical story concerning the fact of a second conscription into the Red Army. Allegedly, after the capture of Port Arthur, Stalin personally orders the author of the waltz "On the Hills of Manchuria" to be brought there. For what? For what mystical or ideological purpose? But the fact that after that I.A. Shatrov served until the moment of his death is a fact. He died on May 2, 1952 in the city of Tambov, where he was buried.

This is such a magical waltz. Not a requiem, but tragic notes are undoubtedly audible in it. Beautiful music in the meter of a waltz, but you should not forget the dedication from the author's title - "The Mokshan Regiment on the Hills of Manchuria".

PS: Photos, as well as a number of audio recordings, are taken from the site