Snorty Meets the Red Army Choir
From our arts archive, a great personal tale about the Red Army Choir which — in Soviet times — was a real force in military music making.
One person well across the choir's 'Pre-Perestroika' repertoire is Radio National features producer, Natalie Kestecher.
That's because her father was a great Red Army Choir fan.
But for Natalie, her father's passion was emblematic of an heroic and altogether romantic view of the 'old' Soviet Union …
… And could the Red Army choir even survive as a cultural entity when that union ruptured?
Natalie imagined a bunch of ageing generals with amazing voices, wearing patched-up uniforms … remembering more lucrative times.
She dreamed of one day travelling to the motherland … tracking down former Red Army Choir members and finding out about their lives and music –before and after Perestroika.
As we find out, six years ago her dream came true — and she didn't even have to leave Australia.
CREDITS
Natalie Kestecher, Producer
Andrei Shabunov, Sound engineer