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Robert Rozhdestvensky | |
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 Rozhdestvensky in 1965 | |
| Born | Robert Stanislavovich Petkevich (1932-06-20)20 June 1932[1][2][3] Kosikha,West Siberian Krai,Russian SFSR,Soviet Union |
| Died | 19 August 1994(1994-08-19) (aged 62) Moscow,Russia |
| Resting place | Peredelkino Cemetery |
| Occupation | Poet, translator, songwriter |
| Language | Russian |
| Nationality |  Soviet Russian |
| Education | Petrozavodsk State University Maxim Gorky Literature Institute |
| Genre | Lyrical poetry |
| Literary movement | Sixtiers |
| Years active | 1950–1994 |
| Notable works | Flags of Spring (Флаги весны), 1955"Documentary Screen"(Документальный экран) 1974 |
| Spouse | Alla Borisovna Kireyeva (Russian:Алла Борисовна Киреева 1933–2015) |
Robert Ivanovich Rozhdestvensky (Russian:Ро́берт Ива́нович Рожде́ственский; 20 June 1932 – 19 August 1994) was aSoviet-Russian poet and songwriter who broke withsocialist realism in the 1950s–1960s during theKhrushchev Thaw and, along with such poets asAndrei Voznesensky,Yevgeny Yevtushenko, andBella Akhmadulina, pioneered a newer, fresher, and freer style of poetry in theSoviet Union.
Robert Rozhdestvensky was born in the village ofKosikha inWest Siberian Krai (nowAltai Krai).[4] He was named in honor ofRobert Eikhe.
His father, Stanislav Nikodimovich Petkevich, was a Polish man employed by theOGPU,NKVD until drafted in 1941. Whilst in the army he obtained the rank of lieutenant overseeing his own group in the123rd Rifle Division(ru)
He died in battle inLatvia on February 22, 1945. He was buried near the village of Mashen in the Temerovo district of the Latvian SSR,[5] He was later reburied in a mass grave in the village ofSlampe in theTukums Municipality.
His birth parents divorced when Rozhdestvensky was 5 years old.
His mother, Vera Pavlovna Fedorova (1913-2001), was the director of a rural elementary school and was studying medicine at a specialised institute.
From 1932-1934 he lived in theSherbakulsky District,Omsk Oblast. His grandfather P.D. Fedorov is buried in a cemetery here.
After 1934 Rozhdestvensky lived with his parents and grandmother in Omsk. Following the outbreak ofWorld War II his parents were called to the front. Rozhdestvensky was left with his grandmother Nadezhda Alekseyevna Fyodorova.
Rozhdestvensky's first poem "My dad goes camping with a rifle"..." (С винтовкой мой папа уходит в поход)[6] was published in The Omsk Truth (Омская правда) July 8, 1941)
In 1943 he studied at the military music school. His grandmother died in April 1943, His mother returned briefly to register her sister in the apartment. Rozhdestvensky continued to live there with his aunt and cousin until 1944.
His mother attempted to bring him with her to become a "Son of the Regiment(ru)" a child living in the army.
On the way to Moscow he changed his mind and found himself in the Danilovsky Orphanage.
In 1945, his mother remarried. Her new husband was an officer named Ivan Ivanovich Rozhdestvensky (1899-1976). Robert changed his name andpatronymic to that of his new stepfather. His parents took him toKönigsberg, where they were both serving at the time.
After the war ended he moved toLeningrad until 1948 where he moved again toPetrozavodsk.
In 1950, the first adult publication of Rozhdestvensky's poems appeared in the magazineAt the Frontier(ru).
Rozhdestvensky attempted to enter theMaxim Gorky Literature Institute in the same year but wasn't accepted. He spent the following year studying at the historical and philological departments atPetrozavodsk State University.
In 1951, after reapplying he was able to attend the Maxim Gorky Literature Institute.
During his studies at the institute, he published the collections of poems Flags of Spring (1955) and Test (1956), and published the poem "My Love" (1955). He also became a member of theUnion of Soviet Writers during this time.
During the following period until 1964 Rozhdestvensky and his contemporaries became known for the transgressive mildly anti-Soviet work which they would perform in front of live audiences in stadiums.
In 1955, while practicing in Altai, Rozhdestvensky met with a student at the conservatory,Alexander Flyarkovsky, with whom he created his first song - "Your Window".
In 1956, he met classmate Alla Kireyeva. future literary critic, artist and wife.
After graduation in 1956 he moved to Moscow. It was there he would meet Yevgeny Yevtushenko and laterBulat Okudzhava and Andrei Voznesensky.
In 1957 he fathered his first daughter Russian PhotographerYekaterina Rozhdestvenskaya(ru).
On March 7, 1963, he participated in a meeting with Khrushchev and the intelligentsia, and was vilified for the poem "Yes, Boys." "Khrushchev cried out in a fury:" Comrade Rozhdestvensky, it's time for you to stand under the banners of your fathers! "A punishment followed, many tried to forget about Rozhdestvensky. They didn’t publish him, they didn’t invite him to meetings ... Then, for some reason, Kapitonov, secretary of the CPSU Central Committee, didn’t like the poem "Morning", as a result Robert was forced to leave Moscow forKyrgyzstan altogether. He worked there, translating the poems of local poets into Russian ... "[7]
In 1966, Rozhdestvensky was the first to receive the Golden Wreath from theStruga Poetry Evenings.
In 1968, he co-wrote a song "Ogromnoe nebo".
In the 1970s, Rozhdestvensky was the host of theDocumentary Screen(ru)(Ru: Документальный экран) television show which aired onSoviet Central Television. It presented documentary stories discussing various often topics including the west and was often marred by state propaganda[8]
Rozhdestvensky appeared at theCannes Film Festival as a member of the jury. He first appeared at the festival in 1968, he returned in 1973 and supportedLa Grande Bouffe and its directorMarco Ferreri, his final visit was in 1979 where he persuadedFrançoise Sagan to give the prize toAndrei Konchalovsky'sSiberiade.[9]
Since 1976, he was the Secretary of the Union of Soviet Writers.
He became a member of Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 1977.
In 1980, theOlympic anthem in Russian was sounded at the opening ceremony of theOlympic Games in Moscow. Rozhdestvensky provided the translation.
In 1979, he was awarded theUSSR State Prize for the poem "210 Steps".
From 1986 - Chairman of the Commission on the Literary Heritage ofOsip Mandelstam. He took a direct role in the rehabilitation of Mandelstam. As the Chairman of the Commission on Literary Heritage ofMarina Tsvetaeva he helped the opening of theMaria Tsvetaeva House-Museum(ru). As Chairman of the Commission on Literary HeritageVladimir Vysotsky, he compiled the first published book of poems "Nerve" by Vysotsky in the USSR " Nerve " (1981).
In early 1990, Rozhdestvensky was diagnosed with a brain tumor. The poet responded to this misfortune with sarcasm: "In my brain there is a tumor the size of a chicken egg, - (I wonder who it brought out a chicken carrying such eggs?! .. )." As a result of a successful operation in France, Rozhdestvensky survived and continued to create until his death.
In October 1993, he signed theLetter of Forty-Two.[10] However,Eduard Shevelev contends that his signature (like poetMikhail Dudin) was forged.[11]
Rozhdestvensky died of a heart attack on 19 August 1994 inPeredelkino.[8]
He was buried at the Peredelkino cemetery. In the same year, the collection "The Last Poems of Robert Rozhdestvensky" was published in Moscow.
