Kuznetsov Mikhail Vasilievich Born in the village of Agarino, not far from Serpukhov near Moscow, on November 7, 1913. From 1921 he lived in Moscow, after graduating from the 2nd level of school he worked at a factory. In 1933, due to party mobilization, he was sent to the school of naval pilots (Yeiskoye VMAU). WITH

Gennady Ivanov - "Famous and famous Bezhechans"

1904 - 1985

In Bezhetsk, of course, there was the era of Mikhail Ivanovich Kuznetsov. In the sixties and seventies of the last century, he was a well-known, original, attractive and significant figure in the region.

What was it like for a regional town against the backdrop of the huge Soviet Union to have an amateur orchestra of folk instruments that performs on Central Television (at that time it was written with a capital letter), on the All-Union Radio (also, it seems, with a capital letter, so that they would be respected and understand the significance), performs at the Kremlin Palace of Congresses, becomes a laureate of the All-Russian Amateur Show, and travels abroad! For a regional town, and at a time when there was no such flood of pop music as there is now, when people still understood the beauty of classical music and folk songs, for Bezhetsk the creator and leader of this orchestra was like a god. Everyone knew him, his name in the area was no less famous than, say, Pugacheva’s name is now in Russia. May Mikhail Ivanovich’s students forgive me for this comparison.

Therefore, it is quite natural that after Kuznetsov’s death, albeit not immediately, but only in 1994, a street in Bezhetsk was named after him. His name replaced the name of M.I. Kalinin himself on the street. And in 1999, the head of the administration of the Bezhetsk district M.A. Shibanov signed a resolution naming the Bezhetsk folk instruments orchestra after M.I. Kuznetsova.

Moreover, he was not only a musician, but also an artist. His paintings and his exhibitions were also always an event for the city.

Then he was a very educated man. People were drawn to him for knowledge and communication. There are formal leaders and there are genuine ones. Sometimes it matches, but rarely.

His wife, Vera Sergeevna, provided some materials, including Kuznetsov’s autobiography, written by him in 1966. Here is how he briefly imagined his life: “I, Mikhail Ivanovich Kuznetsov, was born in 1904 in the village of Tolstokosovo, Bezhetsky district, Kalinin region, into the family of a middle peasant, Ivan Vasilyevich. In 1910, my father moved to Bezhetsk, which was located 8 kilometers from the village of Tolstokosovo. When I was 8 years old, I entered primary school and studied well. After graduating from school, he entered the city school, where he also studied well.

An orchestra of mixed folk instruments was organized under the Communist Youth League, and I played the balalaika-alto and the balalaika-bass there. In 1918, our orchestra was sent to villages for propaganda and educational purposes. It was winter, and we were taken on sleighs from one village to another. This concert trip lasted about a month. In 1920, there was a big fire in Bezhetsk, and our Kashinskaya street almost completely burned down, and our house also burned down. At this time I was interested in music and drawing. At the school of painting, sculpture and drawing, where I was the most capable student, I was sent to study in Moscow. When I entered VKHUTEMAS (Higher Artistic and Technical Workshops, an educational institution transformed into an institute in 1926), I was not accepted because I was underage: I was only 15 years old. Distressed, I went to the apartment of the rector of the institute and showed him my work. After looking at them, he gave me a note, and I was accepted.

Having studied before the Christmas holidays in very difficult conditions of hunger and cold, I again came to Bezhetsk. Here my former drawing teacher N.N. Chistyakov advised me to go to Petrograd and enter the Academy of Arts.

On the very first day of my arrival in Petrograd, I fell ill with typhus and was ill for a whole month. I was denied admission to the academy because admission was completed. After studying as a volunteer in the studio of the artist Nathan Altman for several months, he returned to Bezhetsk during the summer holidays. Here I decided to finish my secondary education and in 1923 I went again to enter the Higher Art and Technical Institute, which I graduated from in 1929.

Returning to Bezhetsk, he became a teacher of fine arts and methods at a pedagogical college, where he worked for two years. The desire to improve myself as an artist and musician forced me to go to Leningrad again. There I worked as an artist at the Naval Club and at the Volodarsky Institute of Agitation. As an amateur musician in 1928, at the Leningrad regional competition of entertainers, he received a diploma and a guitar as a gift.

In 1932, I was invited to the Research Institute of the Music Industry NIIMP, where I worked on improving external and sound qualities, submitting drawings to the Lunacharsky factory. In the evenings, he often visited the Leningrad House of Artists, where sketch competitions were held for the best people of our country, such as Babochkin, Shostakovich, Chukovsky, etc. Many of my works have received awards.

After marriage he moved to live in Moscow. In Moscow I work hard as an artist and guitarist. I work at the Tretyakov Gallery and as the artistic director of the portrait and copy workshop of the Moscow Association of Artists, I was also a member of the artistic council.

In 1945, I was illegally arrested, and I am serving 4 years in a correctional labor colony. After serving my sentence, I did not have the right to live in Moscow and came to Bezhetsk in 1949 to live with my stepmother. Here he began to work again as an artist and musician.

Rehabilitated in 1962.

He organized an art studio in the House of Culture and participated in regional exhibitions with a studio and a personal exhibition and received 6 Certificates of Honor.

In 1957, an idea arose in the homeland of V.V. Andreev to revive the culture of folk instruments, and I eagerly took up the organization of an orchestra of folk instruments at the House of Culture. Years of great work brought the team love and recognition both from their townspeople and from listeners in Kalinin, Leningrad and Moscow, where we performed during a show of rural amateur performances. Now I am making new efforts to show new creative successes of the orchestra and art studio at the show in honor of the 50th anniversary of Soviet power in 1967.”

This autobiography was written in 1966. In it, however, Kuznetsov forgot to say that for his success at the All-Russian Review and for his merits in his ascetic work in culture, in November 1965 he was awarded the honorary title “Honored Worker of Culture of the RSFSR.”

As for the arrest, Vyacheslav Ivanovich Bragin, who led the district from 1973 to 1982 and knew Kuznetsov well, told the following story: “Everything would have been normal with Mikhail Ivanovich and he would have lived in capital cities, if not for his stubborn character and the then political atmosphere in the country. Difficulties with the guardians of “social law” began with him as a student. Kuznetsov's diploma work was shown at an exhibition of the best student works, which was unexpectedly visited by the famous Soviet military leader Tukhachevsky. Pausing near the refugee student’s painting, he expressed his opinion: “This is not Bolshevik!” The institute authorities demanded that Kuznetsov take a different topic as his thesis. He refused. The relevant services have not forgotten this...

In 1945, he was arrested for carelessly uttering a word in the company of artists, someone denounced him, he was accused of anti-Soviet agitation and was sent to a camp near Astrakhan for 4 years.”

Kuznetsov told Bragin that he then turned to the authorities from Bezhetsk twice to restore justice and reconsider his case. But I received refusals. He said that what oppressed him most was the surveillance; in Bezhetsk there was almost open surveillance of him. Apparently, so as not to lead others astray...

It is now difficult for us to understand the internal state of people of that time. But then it was like this: if you had already been imprisoned once, then at any moment you could be arrested again and again. This was the case with Lev Nikolaevich Gumilyov, and with many then. Of course, these surveillances made people nervous and scared.

Bragin told me that Kuznetsov once showed him a small oil portrait of Stalin. “It was the filigree work of a real master!.. Mikhail Ivanovich portrayed the General Secretary of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) in a marshal’s jacket, with numerous awards. It is difficult today to answer the question what motives prompted the artist to turn to the image of Stalin. Perhaps in this way the artist wanted to attract attention to himself and demonstrate his loyalty to the regime. It is quite possible that the image of the leader, despite all the troubles of fate, remained sublime in his worldview. In any case, according to him, this portrait was highly appreciated in the artistic and ideological authorities of Moscow, and was recommended for publication as the official portrait of the Generalissimo.”

In a word, Kuznetsov remained in Bezhetsk forever. His daughter Lida will then go to Moscow and enter the Gnessin Institute, become a professional musician, now she works in the orchestra of the famous Pyatnitsky choir. Lives in Moscow.

Still, there is a suspicion that if not for the arrest, Kuznetsov would have developed into a great artist in the capital’s artistic environment.

But in Bezhetsk he did a great job. And first of all, with his generous artistic gift, he attracted hundreds and hundreds of children, distracted many from the street, in the sense of hooliganism, and helped many, many to find themselves in this life. Vera Sergeevna read out excerpts from letters that Kuznetsov’s students wrote from the army or from other cities. Some grateful words. Here Sasha Yakovlev writes: “Mikhail Ivanovich! I don’t even know how to thank you. After all, you did so much for me, you tried everything to make a real musician out of a hooligan boy and because of this you made all concessions to me. And now, in a difficult moment for me, you again came to my aid - you gave me a balalaika...” Or here’s a letter from Udmurtia from Valentina Medvedeva: “...I recently listened to the program “The Secret of Music.” This is about you, Mikhail Ivanovich!.. I am very glad that your right to be the most noble person and sensitive musician-educator has been recognized. I join your students and say: thank you for knowing you, for musical communication with you...”

Boris Alekseevich Nikitin, who played in Kuznetsov’s orchestra, recalls: “Children flocked to Mikhail Ivanovich from all over Kashinskaya Street and adjacent alleys. He took everyone who had hearing and some abilities, worked with them, regardless of time, and developed children's abilities.

During the first meetings, he himself played the domra or balalaika and showed the playing technique. The guys' eyes lit up; they wanted to learn the same thing, but not everyone could go through the difficulties of this science. Once in a conversation he mentioned that one out of ten remains. I thought that if there are 30 people in the orchestra, then three hundred have passed through his hands. What a job!

During this period there were many children in the city. After finishing seven classes, many went to vocational schools, technical schools, left the city due to a change of residence, and others came to take their place. So in 5 years, more than one hundred children have passed through the string circle.

One of the main tasks that Mikhail Ivanovich set for himself was the task of distracting numerous children from the street in those difficult years. Crowds of children gathered in groups, climbed through the gardens, fought, and became hooligans. The only place for games was the pavement...”

It wasn’t just the kids who flocked to Kuznetsov. Many people in the city played various instruments, there were enthusiasts, there was an orchestra in the cultural center. But everyone was self-taught. And everyone saw in Kuznetsov a master and a generous master to help. After meetings with Kuznetsov, Nikitin says, most amateurs had to retrain, since all the self-taught ones did not know either the correct placement of hands or how to produce sound. Still, Kuznetsov communicated a lot with famous professionals, played in Leningrad in the ensemble of guitarists with Isakov, a very famous guitarist at that time.

Kuznetsov made several of his exhibitions in Bezhetsk and Kalinin. The exhibitions were a success among the audience. There are a lot of kind words in the reviews. Such, for example: “Dear artist Mikhail Ivanovich! I am very happy that I had the opportunity to get to know your work. Beautiful portraits, amazing landscapes. I would even say that your landscapes resemble the best examples of great masters. And for some reason they remind me, first of all, of Fyodor Aleksandrovich Vasiliev. The artist Vasiliev was at one time a student of Shishkin, traveled with Repin along the Volga, painted several landscape paintings that became classics. The artist lived only 23 years. His works are in the Tretyakov Gallery and the Russian Museum.

Or here, too, from the “Book of Reviews”. Architect S. Gusev writes: “It’s not often possible to see such an exhibition in Kalinin. And in color, and in composition, and in drawing - everything is convincing! Thank you from the bottom of my heart to the artist for telling us about the wonderful Bezhetsky region.”

Another review: “In each canvas one can feel great love and understanding of Russian nature. Landscapes are filled with air, full of life and spontaneity. Kuznetsov's portrait works attract attention... His portraits are a whole gallery of unique images. Each of them reveals the inner world of the person depicted by the artist. I especially like the portrait of A.P. Lomakina. In this portrait, in my opinion, the artist wanted to reveal the image of a man in love with music. G. Govorova."

Pictures, music... Music, pictures... This is how this man lived on earth. He strived for perfection to the best of his ability. And he wanted to bring the orchestra to the level of professional performance. He did what he could, and brought happiness to how many people.

Nikitin, a student of Kuznetsov, still remembers the life of the orchestra. About the zonal review in Leningrad: “It was an unforgettable business trip. Very successful. There were many speeches and useful meetings. We performed at the Vyborg Palace of Culture, at the turbine plant, at the Mariinsky Theater (at that time the Kirov Opera and Ballet Theater), and in other places. Mikhail Ivanovich arranged for us to meet with the Leningrad Orchestra of Russian Folk Instruments named after Andreev. We were at a rehearsal of this orchestra, talked with the musicians, and it was like a master class. Experienced musicians, including teachers from the Mussorgsky Music School, shared with us the secrets of their craft. After the rehearsal ended, they played us Andreev’s waltz “Faun”. We also played it at that time, and there was an opportunity to compare, to improve something in our performance, which Mikhail Ivanovich took advantage of, he introduced additional instruments and corrected our parts. It was a very useful meeting.

On that trip, Mikhail Ivanovich introduced me to the famous guitarist B.A. in Leningrad. Pavlov. This is a friend of Mikhail Ivanovich from the Leningrad period of his life. We met at the apartment, took turns playing for each other and talking about music... One of the main results of that trip for me was ordering a guitar for me from the Lunacharsky factory. The order was completed within 9 months. I received a wonderful instrument made by master Khomyachkov. I still have this guitar, and I haven’t looked for or seen anything better in stores.” Bragin believes that thanks to Kuznetsov, the “fashion” for the balalaika or domra never passed in Bezhetsk.

There were moments when the orchestra fell into crisis, people either left or plunged into family concerns and no longer found time for systematic music lessons. Then Mikhail Ivanovich was very worried and felt as if guilty before the townspeople. But he didn’t ask anyone for anything, Bragin recalls. He went to schools himself, making friends with his new students. And again a miracle happened! Again, boys and girls as tall as a balalaika swarmed around Kuznetsov, again he leaned over to them, showing them how to hold the instrument, and went through the musical notation with them... Some time passed and the team was revived again, went to competitions, to shows, brought prizes . Slavil Bezhetsk.

They say our fellow countryman, People's Artist of the USSR, soloist of the Bolshoi Theater Alexei Petrovich Ivanov, who also turned 100 in 2004, loved to sing to the orchestra of M.I. Kuznetsov. And here’s another detail: Vera Sergeevna said that Ivanov was at her and Mikhail Ivanovich’s silver wedding and sang “Many years!”

Many good musicians grew up in the orchestra. Some of them were awarded prizes for their performances and were written about in the press. Orchestra soloist Julius Pakkanen became, together with M.I. Kuznetsov was a laureate of the All-Russian Review, great successes in musical creativity were achieved by A. Nikitin, V. Kolesnichenko, L. Kuznetsova (the youngest orchestra member at that time, the daughter of Mikhail Ivanovich), I. Novikova - Artist of the Kalinin Philharmonic Arkady Kovalev once wrote in a letter to Kuznetsov: “I am very glad that I know a person like you, from whom I can learn selfless service to art and people...”

They learned from Kuznetsov during his lifetime, this is understandable, but it turns out that even today young people learn from him. He delves into the history of his life, writes essays about him. One of these essays was shown by Vladimir Anatolyevich Mikhailov, a former school director and now deputy head of the district administration. He showed me the work of Irina Kezanova from school No. 1. It’s interesting that she lives on Kuznetsova Street. So, she wrote a competition essay “Artist, musician, teacher, intellectual M.I. Kuznetsov." This essay was sent to Moscow for the competition of historical research papers for high school students “Man in the History of Russia.”

What would you like to copy from Irina?

She has a good beginning to the composition, the intonation is good, melodious, very appropriate when talking about a musician:

“Who, just two decades ago, did not know Mikhail Ivanovich Kuznetsov in Bezhetsk - a descendant of village blacksmiths, an artist, musician, creator of the Bezhet orchestra of folk instruments, teacher and educator of many of today's Bezhet artists and musicians, Honored Cultural Worker of the RSFSR, a great worker!

Everything began for him in the village of Tolstokosovo, eight miles from our ancient Bezhetsk. It began with the songs of the mother, with the inviting distances and dewy meadows, rye, clover and flax fields... With the wide, abundant beauty of Mologa, with the ringing of the bells of the Resurrection City Cathedral, with the singing of the church choir..."

Vera Sergeevna said that Mikhail Ivanovich was baptized and was not an atheist. And she read me by heart the good Orthodox poems of the long-forgotten poet Rozengelmets “The Empty Church.” She and her husband read a lot to each other in the evenings. Vera Sergeevna is a teacher of Russian language and literature by profession. Honored School Teacher of the RSFSR.

God willing, Bezhetsk will celebrate not only the 100th anniversary of Mikhail Ivanovich, but also the 100th anniversary of the Orchestra that now bears his name.