|
In December 2001, the Voice of Russia launched a new program “Song of the
Year.” It featured the most popular songs of the year 2001 on the
Voice of Russia World Service, Russian pop stars, and young performers
– discoveries of the season. We invited our listeners to get to know these
new Russian songs and choose the ones they fancied most. With the voting
now over, it’s time to sum up the results of our hit parade. But before
we announce the winners - the listeners whose personal choice coincided
with the opinion of the majority that determined the three front-runners
- let’s recall the songs that took part in our competition:
“Zimushka” – or “Nice winter” – sung by Dmitry Malikov
“In Too Much of a Hurry” – Jasmine
“The Colonel” – B-2
“About to Melt” – Valeria
“Michelle” – Valery Leontiyev
“He Loves Me” – Alsu
“Tell Her, Girls…” – Nikolai Baskov
“River Bus” – Alla Pugacheva
“Cry!” – Ivanushki Int.
“The Old Road” – Anna Sidnina
These are the songs that made it to the top ten on our hit parade charts.
We are glad that none of them escaped your attention or failed to get any
votes at all. Hundreds of listeners in nearly thirty countries took
part in our hit parade, a fact that, of course, pleased us immensely because
it reflects the popularity that Russian pop singers enjoy in all parts
of the world. The bulk of the responses came from the former Soviet
republics, Europe, Canada and Japan. In the Indian state of Bihar, all
the members of the local Anamica Radio Shrota Club took part in the voting.
Surprisingly, their tastes vary a lot. We congratulate those who voted
for the rising pop star Jasmine. Her single “In Too Much of a Hurry” ended
up third in our hit parade.
Dmitry Malikov runs neck-to-neck with Jasmine, and his song “Nice Winter”
got an equal number of votes. Matida Midori in Hirosaki, Japan, voted for
Dmitry Malikov, but added that it had been a difficult choice. The picture
of a snowy Russian winter seemed particularly appealing to listeners in
countries with a warm climate, such as Hungary, Italy, Greece and Turkey.
Jafer Korro in Albania followed our hit parade for two months. His sympathies
split between Jasmine and Dmitry Malikov. Perhaps his vote proved crucial
in deciding the third spot. As a result, it was shared by two songs – “In
Too Much of a Hurry” by Jasmine and “Nice Winter” by Dmitry Malikov.
Jan Kmet in Olomouc, in the Czech Republic listens to the Voice of Russia
broadcasts in two languages - Czech and Slovak. As for the Song of the
Year hit parade, he says the program was a real treat for music lovers.
“I belong to the medium generation and enjoy songs by Bulat Okudzhava,
Vladimir Vysotsky and Zhanna Bichevskaya”, he writes. “But I am also
keen on contemporary hits. I feel a sort of hunger for the Russian language
and Russian songs that are rarely heard in our country today.” His sympathies
lie with “The Old Road” sung by Anna Sidnina. This was also the choice
of Robert Janik in Lublin, Poland. He says he likes “The Old Road” because
it reminds him of the vast Russian expanses with picturesque villages and
ancient churches hidden behind birch-trees. Anna Sidnina’s marvelous voice
enchanted Manuela Luscher in Switzerland, Geoffrey Lund in Britain, Todor
Dechev in Bulgaria, Zoltan Kerecsenyi in Hungary, William Kerr in Canada
and many others. As a result, “The Old Road” comes second on our hit makers’
list. And we are glad to inform you that Anna Sidnina has won the contest
of young singers conducted by the Voice of Russia last year.
The majority of our listeners, among them Jonathan Murphy in Ireland, Dennis
Roberts in USA, Tom Wielogorski in Canada, Kasim Yildirim in Turkey and
many others - all agreed that “River Bus” sung by the Russian pop
diva and superstar Alla Pugacheva, is the top winner.
None of the listeners, however, guessed the exact top three hit ratings.
Some guessed the winners, but put them in a different order. These are
Josef Krak in Slovakia, Savada Kenjiti in Japan and Branko Djokic in Yugoslavia.
They will receive diplomas and audiocassettes with the final program of
the Song of the Year hit parade. Encouragement diplomas will be sent to
Lazar Valuyev and Todor Dechev in Bulgaria, Misawa Akira in Japan, Jan
Kmet in the Czech Republic, Konstantinos Paraskevas in Greece, Alexander
Duka, Jafer Korro and Puka Fatbarda Seferi – all three in Albania, Geoffrey
Lund in Britain, Manuela Luscher in Switzerland, and William Kerr in Canada,
who guessed two top-winners.
We thank our listeners for their participation in the “Song of the Year”
hit parade and hope that they will take part in future Voice of Russia
projects.
|
|
