Date: 21 January 2008 18:25:45
Gentle readers interested in the Russian language will not need reminding that the above phrase is the equivalent to “nice to meet you” in English.
This is pretty much the extent of my Russian and happens to be the title of my beginners' textbook. When I first graduated, back when Shakespeare was a lad, I decided I would be lost without filling my spare time with language study, so enthusiastically signed up for Improvers' Spanish and Beginners' Russian.
I used to sit in my room voicing out loud the new vocabulary in Russian in an attempt to read the Cyrillic alphabet. My flatmates would sit sniggering outside my door as they listened to me slowly spelling out “L-e-n-i-n-g-r-a-d”, “S-p-u-t-n-i-k”, N-o-v-o-s-i-b-i-r-i-s-k” and “D-o-s-t-o-y-e-v-s-k-i”.
These language courses both took place twice a week. In my enthusiasm, I had not thought through the implications of being in classes four consecutive evenings a week which left next to no time to do any homework as I was employed full time. I managed to stagger through a term of increasing incompetence before abandoning both languages.
But, gentle readers, it was not time entirely wasted for I still remember a curious fact in Russian. The word for train station is “voksal” which is apparently a Russianisation of the English “Vauxhall” - an area of South London. The story goes that a group of Russian officials visited Vauxhall and its newly opened railway station in the 1830s. They thought that the word Vauxhall meant station - and took this new knowledge back home with them. I don't know if this is true - but our teacher who was Russian told us the story, so it seems to be part of popular folklore, at least.
This term at choir we have a new conductor. After a year of performing Requiems (Duruflé's last March, Mozart's in June, Brahms' German Requiem in July and Verdi's in December), the choir is quite pleased to be exploring new avenues. We are working on Russian Choral Masterpieces by various composers, and John Tavener's Funeral Ikos and his Song for Athene. Appropriately, although I think entirely coincidentally, we will be performing these pieces in the Abbey on Russian Orthodox Easter Eve - 26 April. (Ian will be able to confirm/put me right). The Russian pieces have had their texts transliterated for English speakers so we do not have to read the Cyrillic alphabet - but still have to twist our tongues round unfamiliar sounds - one being “schch” which is apparently pronounced the same as the last sound of “fresh” and the first of “cheese” - together - in the space of a semi-quaver.
What is the Russian for “Tchaikovsky, have mercy on me, a humble singer”?