RUSSIA: Ceremony for 'Steppe Wolf' annual awards for young and independent musicians held in Moscow despite lack of financing due to organisers' opposition activities.

Record ID: 205295

  • Title: RUSSIA: Ceremony for 'Steppe Wolf' annual awards for young and independent musicians held in Moscow despite lack of financing due to organisers' opposition activities.
  • Date: 29th June 2012
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) RUSSIAN POETESS AND STEPPE WOLF AWARD NOMINEE VERA POLOZKOVA, SAYING: "As for the award, the necessity of independent music expertise was never as big as it is now, because the truth is that most of the people think that there is no music in Russia apart from the nominees of MuzTV Music Awards. I personally know some people, who think that it reflects the picture in full."
  • Embargoed: 14th July 2012 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Russian Federation
  • Country: Russia
  • Reuters ID: LVA4AKCCFW97ALKM0N4TZFWLV0HH
  • Story Text: Russia's young and promising musicians gathered alongside with veteran rockers in Moscow on Thursday (June 28) for an annual music awards ceremony which organisers say is an alternative to the country's mass pop culture.
    The 'Steppe Wolf' - a music award ceremony created five years ago by Moscow's Central House of Artists and renowned Russian music critic and producer Artemy Troitsky, was initially planned as an event which could give musicians from around Russia a chance to be heard somewhere outside their home towns. It was also designed to allow up-and-coming musicians to be objectively evaluated by an independent jury of music experts.
    Troitsky, a prominent promoter of young musicians, said he wanted to create an award which would be different from the popular ones organised by mainstream TV and radio stations in Russia.
    "These media (main TV and radio stations) just give the awards to the performers whom they rotate frequently and they have good relations with. Again this is to some extent based on payola, on payments (from music producers to media) and basically on a buddy system. There was no quality and objective music awards in Russia before 'Steppe Wolf'. That is why we made it up, right near here in the Central House of Artists," Troitsky said.
    The 'Steppe Wolf' ceremony held in Moscow's central Muzeon park did not attract many audience members apart from journalists and the supporters of young bands who came from towns all over Russia - from Tomsk in Siberia to Ekaterinburg in the Ural mountains.The reason was partially a lack of publicity, as this year it was the first time the ceremony was not supported by any commercial sponsors. Troitsky suggested this could be because of his opposition activities.
    "All our sponsors, with some of whom I even had good personal relations, suddenly refused to support 'Steppe Wolf', even though it is not a politicised action, it is a purely music award. I do not exclude the possibility - although I do not insist on this version - that it may have some political connotation, because the award is mostly associated with me and everyone knows my (political) position," Troitsky said.
    He participated in the recent mass rallies against Russian President Vladimir Putin, which brought thousands to the Moscow streets in winter and spring protesting against the results of parliamentary and presidential elections.
    Despite saying the ceremony was not political, Troitsky came out on the stage wearing a pink-coloured balaklava - resembling those the members of Pussy Riot all-women punk band were wearing when they performed an anti-Putin song in a Moscow cathedral. Three members of the band were jailed for their impromptu and unsanctioned performance of a punk prayer called "Holy Mother, throw Putin out!" in short dresses and colourful balaklavas at the altar of Moscow's Christ the Saviour Cathedral.
    "We are all Pussy Riot", Troitsky said from stage, words which drew applause and approving shouts from the audience.
    Russian President Vladimir Putin was one of the nominees for the 'Steppe Wolf' as well - in the category called "Catalyst" - where the award is usually given to those who inspire new directions in contemporary music. Putin was nominated along with a number of music producers and music festival organisers as a person responsible for a whole new wave of music, Troitsky said from the stage.
    The ceremony was a good chance for young performers, who do not fit into any radio or TV format, to show themselves to Moscow audience. Poetess Vera Polozkova, a former journalist, who recited her poems accompanied by a music band, said it was not a bad thing that mostly journalists were present at the awards ceremony, as they could spread the word to the public.
    "As for the award, the necessity of independent music expertise was never as big as it is now, because the truth is that most of the people think that there is no music in Russia apart from the nominees of MuzTV Music Awards. I personally know some people, who think that it reflects the picture in full," Polozkova said referring to one of Russia's main music channels' awards ceremony.
    Russia's famous rock singer Yuri Shevchuk, who won two 'Steppe Wolves' for the Best Album and Best Concert, said it was good that the ceremony was small and did not involve any big stars of TV channels, as the award was more objective this way.
    "It is non-commercial and this is nice. No money, no scary central television, no crystal stars, it's great!" Shevchuk said, adding that he came to the ceremony to see new bands and to express his appreciation to one of the nominees - The Retuses band, which uses the poems of the famous Russian 20th century poet, Sergei Yesenin, in their songs.
    In the past five years the 'Steppe Wolf' has turned from Artemy Troitsky's small personal enterprise into quite a big and objective music award. It gives people a chance to find out what is really going on in Russian music, Matvei Kulakov, the young frontman of 'Scofferlane' - a gothic postpunk group which won an award for Best Video, told Reuters.
    "I think this award is very important, because there are almost no alternative music awards in the country, that could create a bulk information in the country. Also I think it is important that this award is more or less politicised, which is an important factor in our country because it is on a crossroads right now," Kulakov said.
    Politicised or not, most of the performances represented a whole range of music styles, some of them unique for Russian musical scene, and musicians from all over the country got a chance to bring their music to wider public.
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