Ex-soloist of VIA “Plamya” Stanislav Cheremukhin: “The soul sings, you know? Where are you going to put it? Stanislav Cheremukhin: - news - dawn - information portal of the Brest region Are you a man of mind or heart

“A soldier is walking through the city”, “I’ll get off at a distant station”, “Don’t be sad” - a whole generation grew up on these and other hits of VIA “Plamya” Soviet people. The composition of the team that thundered throughout the Union often changed, and one of its bright participants there was a singer and musician Stanislav Cheremukhin. Several years ago, the artist left the ensemble and over the past two years has been working on creating his own group. In late March new team Residents of Brest and Kobrin were able to see “The Shining of the Flame” performing immortal hits.

This mini-tour to Belarus became possible thanks to the meeting of Stanislav Cheremukhin and Brest singer Vitaly Prokopovich, which took place in January at one of the corporate events. Vitaly admits that he was in in a good way I was amazed by the performance of the group and decided to do everything possible so that the group “Shine of the Flame” would visit Brest again and be heard by many. As a result, two months later Stanislav Cheremukhin and his team arrived in the Brest region. Before the concert at the Palace of Culture of Trade Unions on March 26, Cheremukhin and his team met with journalists. Here are some highlights from a conversation with the artist.

My main creative biography associated with the ensemble "Flame". To get into it, you needed skill. By that time, my colleagues and I from VIA “Plamya” were quite good at mastering our instruments and voices, and we studied for this. Still, you had to be lucky. I don't rely on my talents. I'm lucky. And then - work, education, self-education.

The remuneration system in Soviet times was very unfair. Maximum bet, which we received officially from the Ministry of Culture, was 12 rubles 50 kopecks. And this despite the fact that the ensemble “Flame” was gathering stadiums and sports palaces, and local philharmonic societies stood in line and asked: “Guys, when will you come to remove us from the card index so that we have money for Symphony Orchestra And so on?"

As for foreign tours, the cases were simply anecdotal. For the most part, the artists who represented soviet art, traveled abroad to receive 10 or 20 dollars per diem. And if the trip is 3 months and these 90 days are multiplied by 20 dollars, then we are oh-oh-oh. To save this money, we naturally took “conservatories” with us: cans of canned food, boilers, and so on.

And there was such a precedent, in my opinion, indicative, when we came to Finland for the Finnish-Soviet youth festival. The record company that invited us was very pleased with our work and gave us a fee. In your arms! And then an inconspicuous little man came up and said: “Submit! Hand it over to the embassy!” Of course, the embassy did not return anything to us.

The Finns were terribly indignant at this, but when they realized that everything was useless, they brought us to a music store where there were discs and told us to choose what we wanted and how many we wanted. And we stocked up on records by Stevie Wonder, Janis Joplin, “Jesus Christ Superstar”... This is how they paid us off.

Going abroad was a revolution. When I visited the Dresden gallery, I saw “ Sistine Madonna"or "Chocolate Girl" - what could have happened to me? Just a stupor. It all went through the heart. Is it true. It is impossible to imagine ourselves outside the world or to be indifferent if we visit, for example, Buchenwald. And thanks to the fact that “Plamya” was not strongly influenced by ideological blinders, we were indeed more or less free and traveled to many countries.

The composition of the group “Shine of the Flame”: Stanislav Cheremukhin (group leader, singer and musician), Konstantin Kravtsov (video engineer), Alexander Istomin (musician), Svetlana Baskakova (singer), Vladimir Zalevsky (director’s console).
“I have given more than 15 years to the ensemble “Flame””

Leaving the group is actually dramatic story. In short: the moment came when I left VIA “Plamya” under the leadership people's artist Russia Sergei Berezin. I sat at home and rested. But the soul sings, you know? Where are you going to put it? And there is a voice, and everything else too. I devoted more than 15 years to the “Flame” ensemble, and - I say this without bragging - the main songs that really became popular were recorded with my voice. And what would it be like without them? This is all, this is my life. Since we live in new conditions, I registered the trademark “Radiance of Flames”. A production center and group of the same name emerged. On January 21 we had our first concert in Moscow.

We don’t just perform “Flame” songs, we call our program “Gala Concert” best songs VIA "Flame". This is not because we want to cling to their fame, not because we are their doubles. The fact is that “Flame” was one of the most prolific in terms of material. At one time, we calculated that we recorded over 250 songs in those years. Moreover, among them there are songs of such extraordinary beauty that they still have to be performed. And not because we couldn’t get fresh material.

On this moment, I believe we should be in a status that has been practiced in the West for a long time, something like a fan club of the “Flame” ensemble. I want to raise these songs, preserve them and promote them. As for relations with VIA “Plamya”, there are none.

On Sunday we had a relatively free day, and we decided to get inspiration from Belovezhskaya Pushcha. Vitaly Prokopovich, our friend and one of the organizers of this tour, kindly agreed to take us in his car. Indeed, the beauty is indescribable, you can breathe easily, everything is wonderful. We received a pleasant “irradiation” of positive emotions.

We're driving back, everyone's fine, everyone's having fun, and suddenly - a wild boar. He either jumped into the headlights or wanted to run across the road. Strike - Vitaly has this one next to him (follows an eloquent gesture with his hands - approx. auto) pig snout. We slowed down, Kostya (video engineer of the group - approx. auto) climbed under the hood to check what was wrong with the car, and my curious colleagues decided to see what was wrong with the boar.

In general, the cleaver becomes very ferocious when he is wounded. But the guys were lucky: their curiosity was not punished. The boar, apparently, also got scared and ran away. As they said later, for him it was like that, it tickled him a little. And Vitaly now has to do repairs, painting, etc.

Brest is a wonderful city. Listen, this is a European city! I was here in those years when VIA “Plamya” and I toured, I can compare. Now this city is clean, the city is friendly and, it seems to me, completely safe. I don’t understand at all when they clean up your place. Everything is always clean. I have not seen a single Tajik with a broom.

We received the most favorable impressions from Kobrin. The crowd is incredibly warm. When the audience stood up at the end of the concert and gave a standing ovation, a lump came to my throat: “Why did they stand up?!” It turned out that this is the tradition. We don’t have anything like this; the last time this happened was at the CPSU Congress.

We have plans for the future regarding Vitaly Prokopovich: he is a talented, creative, energetic person, he has wonderful songs. Therefore, we will think about how to attract him to Moscow, even if Belarusian talents are known there.

As for your country, I would like to organize a new tour in May and cover more cities. How this will work out and whether it will work out at all depends on the organization here on the ground.

This mini-tour to Belarus became possible thanks to the meeting of Stanislav Cheremukhin and Brest singer Vitaly Prokopovich, which took place in January at one of the corporate events. Vitaly admits that he was amazed in a good way by the performance of the group and decided to do everything possible so that the group “Radiance of the Flame” would visit Brest again and many could hear it. As a result, two months later Stanislav Cheremukhin and his team arrived in the Brest region. Before the concert at the Palace of Culture of Trade Unions on March 26, Cheremukhin and his team met with journalists. Here are some highlights from a conversation with the artist.

“How did I get into VIA “Plamya”? Lucky"

– My main creative biography is connected with the ensemble “Flame”. To get into it, you needed skill. By that time, my colleagues and I from VIA “Plamya” were quite good at mastering our instruments and voices, and we studied for this. Still, you had to be lucky. I don't rely on my talents. I'm lucky. And then – work, education, self-education.

“Soviet artists went on tour for the sake of daily allowance”

– The remuneration system in Soviet times was very unfair. The maximum rate that we officially received from the Ministry of Culture was 12 rubles 50 kopecks. And this despite the fact that the ensemble “Flame” was gathering stadiums and sports palaces, and local philharmonic societies stood in line and asked: “Guys, when are you coming to take us off the card index so that we have money for a symphony orchestra and so on?”

As for foreign tours, the cases were simply anecdotal. For the most part, the artists who represented Soviet art traveled abroad to receive 10 or 20 dollars per diem. And if the trip is 3 months and these 90 days are multiplied by 20 dollars, then we are oh-oh-oh. To save this money, we naturally took “conservatories” with us: cans of canned food, boilers, and so on.

And there was such a precedent, in my opinion, indicative, when we came to Finland for the Finnish-Soviet youth festival. The record company that invited us was very pleased with our work and gave us a fee. In your arms! And then an inconspicuous little man came up and said: “Submit! Hand it over to the embassy!” Of course, the embassy did not return anything to us.

The Finns were terribly indignant at this, but when they realized that everything was useless, they brought us to a music store where there were discs and told us to choose what we wanted and how many we wanted. And we stocked up on records by Stevie Wonder, Janis Joplin, “Jesus Christ Superstar”... This is how they paid us back.

“We were more or less free and traveled to many countries”

– Going abroad was a revolution. When I visited the Dresden Gallery and saw the Sistine Madonna or the Chocolate Girl - what could have happened to me? Just a stupor. It all went through the heart. Is it true. It is impossible to imagine ourselves outside the world or to be indifferent if we visit, for example, Buchenwald. And thanks to the fact that “Plamya” was not strongly influenced by ideological blinders, we were indeed more or less free and traveled to many countries.

The composition of the group “Shine of the Flame”: Stanislav Cheremukhin (group leader, singer and musician), Konstantin Kravtsov (video engineer), Alexander Istomin (musician), Svetlana Baskakova (singer), Vladimir Zalevsky (director’s console).

“I have given more than 15 years to the ensemble “Flame””

– Leaving the group is actually a dramatic story. In short: the moment came when I left VIA “Plamya” under the leadership of People’s Artist of Russia Sergei Berezin. I sat at home and rested. But the soul sings, you know? Where are you going to put it? And there is a voice, and everything else too. I devoted more than 15 years to the “Flame” ensemble, and - I say this without bragging - the main songs that really became popular were recorded with my voice. And what would it be like without them? This is all, this is my life. Since we live in new conditions, I registered the trademark “Radiance of Flames”. A production center and group of the same name emerged. On January 21 we had our first concert in Moscow.

“I want to raise these songs, preserve them and promote them.”

– We don’t just perform “Plamya” songs, we call our program “Gala concert of the best songs of VIA “Plamya”. This is not because we want to cling to their fame, not because we are their doubles. The fact is that “Flame” was one of the most prolific in terms of material. At one time, we calculated that we recorded over 250 songs in those years. Moreover, among them there are songs of such extraordinary beauty that they still have to be performed. And not because we couldn’t get fresh material.

At the moment, I believe, we should be in a status that has been practiced in the West for a long time, something like a fan club of the “Flame” ensemble. I want to raise these songs, preserve them and promote them. As for relations with VIA “Plamya”, there are none.

“On the way out of the forest we were attacked by a wild boar”

– On Sunday we had a relatively free day, and we decided to get inspiration from Belovezhskaya Pushcha. Vitaly Prokopovich, our friend and one of the organizers of this tour, kindly agreed to take us in his car. Indeed, the beauty is indescribable, you can breathe easily, everything is wonderful. We received a pleasant “irradiation” of positive emotions.

We are driving back, everyone is happy, everyone is having fun, and suddenly - a wild boar. He either jumped into the headlights or wanted to run across the road. Strike - Vitaly has this one next to him (follows an eloquent gesture with his hands - approx. auto) pig snout. We slowed down, Kostya (video engineer of the group - approx. auto) climbed under the hood to check what was wrong with the car, and my curious colleagues decided to see what was wrong with the boar.

In general, the cleaver becomes very ferocious when he is wounded. But the guys were lucky: their curiosity was not punished. The boar, apparently, also got scared and ran away. As they said later, for him it was like that, it tickled him a little. And Vitaly now has to do repairs, painting, etc.

“I haven’t seen a single Tajik with a broom in Brest”

– Brest is a wonderful city. Listen, this is a European city! I was here in those years when VIA “Plamya” and I toured, I can compare. Now this city is clean, the city is friendly and, it seems to me, completely safe. I don’t understand at all when they clean up your place. Everything is always clean. I have not seen a single Tajik with a broom.

We received the most favorable impressions from Kobrin. The crowd is incredibly warm. When the audience stood up at the end of the concert and gave a standing ovation, a lump came to my throat: “Why did they stand up?!” It turned out that this is the tradition. We don’t have anything like this; the last time this happened was at the CPSU Congress.

“Let Belarusian talents be known in Moscow”

– We have plans for the future regarding Vitaly Prokopovich: he is a talented, creative, energetic person, he has wonderful songs. Therefore, we will think about how to attract him to Moscow, even if Belarusian talents are known there.

As for your country, I would like to organize a new tour in May and cover more cities. How this will work out and whether it will work out at all depends on the organization here on the ground.

The star guest of the cultural program of the kebab festival, held on Sunday at the Rainbow cascade of fountains, was Stanislav Cheremukhin from the legendary Soviet-era ensemble “Flame”. The singer performed “No need to be sad”, “I’ll get off at the distant station”, “Aty-baty, the soldiers were coming”, “The snow is spinning” and other hits beloved by the people.
“Industrialka” managed to communicate with Muscovite Stanislav Cheremukhin, who, by the way, turned out to be our fellow countryman.
“Oh, I remember the newspaper “Industrial Zaporozhye,” said Stanislav Cheremukhin. – I come from Akimovka, Zaporozhye region. My parents subscribed to Industrialka, and in those years I read it occasionally. I remember how I was struck by the article in “Industrial Zaporozhye” that technology was advancing in such steps that there would soon be video phones. My brother served in Khabarovsk, and I thought: “It’s great that I can communicate with him.”
And he said, signing the poster:
– Cheremukhin is my pseudonym, and according to my passport I am Cherepukhin, but no matter how they called my last name – Cheremushkin, Cherepanov. Why Cheremukhin? But one letter changes and immediately - associations.
FROM THE “GEMS” THE “FLAME” WAS REBORN. AND NOT ONE

Stanislav Cheremukhin in Zaporozhye
(Photo by the author)

– Stanislav Danilovich, how did it happen that the members of the “Gems” ensemble became “Flame”?
– I have not witnessed this split, I know about it from my colleagues. In the 70s in the Soviet Union there were no more popular ensembles than Pesnyary and Gems; it was like the Beatles and Rolling Stones in the world.
In 1975, a conflict arose between the artists of “Gems” and artistic director Yuri Malikov. It was mostly financial in nature, but also creative.
And then all the artists of the “Gems” ensemble unanimously left the artistic director, invited a new artistic director, Nikolai Mikhailov, and organized an ensemble called “Flame”.
– Is it true that the name “Flame” was born in a Moscow kebab shop?
- No. It was born after a tour in Czechoslovakia, in honor of the ensemble, which in Czech was called “Flame”, we became related.
– How did you get into “Plamya” and how many years did you work there?
– I graduated from the Melitopol College of Culture, then studied at the Kostroma Music College, and graduated from GITIS. He worked in various philharmonic groups - Kostroma, Nikolaev, Vinnitsa Philharmonic and Lenconcert.
My fellow countryman Yura Redko and I were noticed and invited to join the ensemble “Flame” during the next change of group. Then Tolya Mogilevsky applied to leave for America, Nikolai Mikhailov too, Yura Genbachev went to play jazz. Were needed fresh people, and Yura Redko and I sang like that together – for half the ensemble!
This was in 1976. And until 1980, I worked in the “golden” lineup, recording songs that became popular. To this day, my voice and my flute can be heard in such songs as “I’ll get off at a distant station”, “A soldier is walking through the city”, “Snow is spinning” and many other people’s favorite songs.
Then my destiny was connected with cinema - I worked in this field for ten years. He worked, in particular, with Sergei Zhigunov as an organizer and distributor of his series.
And in 2000, the composer and artistic director Seryozha Berezin invited us to gather for the anniversary of the ensemble “Flame”. After which we were invited to City Day in the Moscow region. And when we sang “Don’t be sad” and the whole square sang with us, when the song “My address is Soviet Union“It was a shock, a shock! And we realized that our song was not yet sung!

VIA "Flame". Stanislav Cheremukhin – second from the right in the second row

- And since then you have been performing in revived ensemble"Flame"?
– In 2010, I left the team under the leadership of Berezin. Cause? Let's say creative differences.
I decided I'd stop singing. But - again, it’s a case! I was invited to speak to the cadets. Young guys. And again - a stunning reception. I don’t attribute it to myself, I’m just a carrier musical language ensemble "Flame", this style. I became convinced that people needed these songs.
– Do we now have one “Flame” or more than one?
- Not one.
- How much?
– Accounting question (laughs). We live in different legal dimensions compared to the twentieth century... The trademark “Flame” is registered and remains with Sergei Berezin.
I registered the brand “Shine of the Flame” and have the right to write on the poster: “Artist of the ensemble “Flame” Stanislav Cheremukhin, in the program - best songs VIA "Flame", accompanied by the group "Shine of Flame". I came to Zaporozhye alone, I was accompanied by your musicians.
“IN MOSCOW THEY SAY TO ME: “YOU’RE AN IDIOT!” WHERE ARE YOU DRIVING?"
– Why did you agree to perform in Zaporozhye in these difficult times?
– Pulls me to my native land! I have the graves of my relatives in Akimovka, my brother lives there. This is not the first time I’m performing in Zaporozhye. I love Khortitsa very much!
And another good chance brought me together with Gennady Fedosov. He heads the production center "Tavr" (he was involved in organizing the kebab festival - S.O.). We support each other now. I need a stage, concerts! And in Russia, frankly speaking, there are few of them. Why? The generation has changed. The field was “trampled” by phonographists, karaokeers and just rogues. I can’t beat myself in the chest: “I’m real!” Whoever knows is the one who invites.
– How do you feel about the concert in our city?
– Thanks to Gennady and his organizational skills! I’m a grated kalach, I’ve been to all sorts of festivals and competitions, but this was my first time at a barbecue festival. It turned out that there are a lot of barbecue lovers! These scents are absolutely insane!
The cultural program included talented people, yours. Andrey Shamray from “Voice of the Country” is a magnificent natural gift! And others, I can’t list them all.
And our performance with Zaporozhye musicians - it worked! Gennady Fedosov picked up the bass guitar.
And, despite any difficulties, Gennady gives me a tour. This is already the third tour of Ukraine this year, we will go to the Poltava region. In Moscow they tell me: “You are an idiot! Where are you driving? Don’t you watch TV?” Gennady and I are guided by the following phrase: “The jackal howls, the caravan moves on.” Our job is to sing songs that have become popular.
– How do Russians really treat us now?
- With sympathy. You know: people – separately, the media – separately. And the people I communicate with - Ukraine, this is understandable, the first topic now - everyone is worried.
– What else do you do besides performing?
– I teach, I have students. I work in a studio, I am a multi-instrumentalist, I have a collection - six guitars, three flutes, keyboards.
ABOUT PERSONAL
– Son Danil - he is the soloist of the State symphonic chapel"Russia", composer. I brought his arrangement, and the ensemble of the director of the Zaporozhye Music College, Sergei Pelyuk, will play his work.
The daughter showed brilliant promise as an actress and starred in several films. And for main role girls in the film “Fan” (13-year-old Lena, who is being courted in a peculiar way by a maniac. - S.O.). she received the Kinoshock festival prize. And then - women's destiny, now she has a daughter. They still invite her to act, but she doesn’t want to. It's a pity…

“A soldier is walking through the city”, “I’ll get off at a distant station”, “No need to be sad” - a whole generation of Soviet people grew up on these and other hits of VIA “Plamya”. The composition of the group that thundered throughout the Union often changed, and one of its brightest members was the singer and musician Stanislav Cheremukhin. Several years ago, the artist left the ensemble and over the past two years has been working on creating his own group. At the end of March, the residents of Brest and Kobrin were able to see the new band “Shine of the Flame” performing immortal hits.

This mini-tour to Belarus became possible thanks to the meeting of Stanislav Cheremukhin and Brest singer Vitaly Prokopovich, which took place in January at one of the corporate events. Vitaly admits that he was amazed in a good way by the performance of the group and decided to do everything possible so that the group “Radiance of the Flame” would visit Brest again and many could hear it. As a result, two months later Stanislav Cheremukhin and his team arrived in the Brest region. Before the concert at the Palace of Culture of Trade Unions on March 26, Cheremukhin and his team met with journalists. Here are some highlights from a conversation with the artist.

“How did I get into VIA “Plamya”? Lucky"

My main creative biography is connected with the ensemble “Flame”. To get into it, you needed skill. By that time, my colleagues and I from VIA “Plamya” were quite good at mastering our instruments and voices, and we studied for this. Still, you had to be lucky. I don't rely on my talents. I'm lucky. And then - work, education, self-education.

“Soviet artists went on tour for the sake of daily allowance”

The remuneration system in Soviet times was very unfair. The maximum rate that we officially received from the Ministry of Culture was 12 rubles 50 kopecks. And this despite the fact that the ensemble “Flame” was gathering stadiums and sports palaces, and local philharmonic societies stood in line and asked: “Guys, when are you coming to take us off the card index so that we have money for a symphony orchestra and so on?”

As for foreign tours, the cases were simply anecdotal. For the most part, the artists who represented Soviet art traveled abroad to receive 10 or 20 dollars per diem. And if the trip is 3 months and these 90 days are multiplied by 20 dollars, then we are oh-oh-oh. To save this money, we naturally took “conservatories” with us: cans of canned food, boilers, and so on.

And there was such a precedent, in my opinion, indicative, when we came to Finland for the Finnish-Soviet youth festival. The record company that invited us was very pleased with our work and gave us a fee. In your arms! And then an inconspicuous little man came up and said: “Submit! Hand it over to the embassy!” Of course, the embassy did not return anything to us.

The Finns were terribly indignant at this, but when they realized that everything was useless, they brought us to a music store where there were discs and told us to choose what we wanted and how many we wanted. And we stocked up on records by Stevie Wonder, Janis Joplin, “Jesus Christ Superstar”... This is how they paid us off.

“We were more or less free and traveled to many countries”

Going abroad was a revolution. When I visited the Dresden Gallery and saw the “Sistine Madonna” or the “Chocolate Girl” - what could have happened to me? Just a stupor. It all went through the heart. Is it true. It is impossible to imagine ourselves outside the world or to be indifferent if we visit, for example, Buchenwald. And thanks to the fact that “Plamya” was not strongly influenced by ideological blinders, we were indeed more or less free and traveled to many countries.

The composition of the group “Shine of the Flame”: Stanislav Cheremukhin (group leader, singer and musician), Konstantin Kravtsov (video engineer), Alexander Istomin (musician), Svetlana Baskakova (singer), Vladimir Zalevsky (director’s console).

“I have given more than 15 years to the ensemble “Flame””

Leaving the group is actually a dramatic story. In short: the moment came when I left VIA “Plamya” under the leadership of People’s Artist of Russia Sergei Berezin. I sat at home and rested. But the soul sings, you know? Where are you going to put it? And there is a voice, and everything else too. I devoted more than 15 years to the “Flame” ensemble, and - I say this without bragging - the main songs that really became popular were recorded with my voice. And what would it be like without them? This is all, this is my life. Since we live in new conditions, I registered the trademark “Radiance of Flames”. A production center and group of the same name emerged. On January 21 we had our first concert in Moscow.

“I want to raise these songs, preserve them and promote them.”

We don’t just perform “Plamya” songs, we call our program “Gala concert of the best songs of VIA “Plamya”. This is not because we want to cling to their fame, not because we are their doubles. The fact is that “Flame” was one of the most prolific in terms of material. At one time, we calculated that we recorded over 250 songs in those years. Moreover, among them there are songs of such extraordinary beauty that they still have to be performed. And not because we couldn’t get fresh material.

At the moment, I believe, we should be in a status that has been practiced in the West for a long time, something like a fan club of the “Flame” ensemble. I want to raise these songs, preserve them and promote them. As for relations with VIA “Plamya”, there are none.

“On the way out of the forest we were attacked by a wild boar”

On Sunday we had a relatively free day, and we decided to get inspiration from Belovezhskaya Pushcha. Vitaly Prokopovich, our friend and one of the organizers of this tour, kindly agreed to take us in his car. Indeed, the beauty is indescribable, you can breathe easily, everything is wonderful. We received a pleasant “irradiation” of positive emotions.

We're driving back, everyone's fine, everyone's having fun, and suddenly - a wild boar. He either jumped into the headlights or wanted to run across the road. Strike - Vitaly has this one next to him (follows an eloquent gesture with his hands - approx. auto) pig snout. We slowed down, Kostya (video engineer of the group - approx. auto) climbed under the hood to check what was wrong with the car, and my curious colleagues decided to see what was wrong with the boar.

In general, the cleaver becomes very ferocious when he is wounded. But the guys were lucky: their curiosity was not punished. The boar, apparently, also got scared and ran away. As they said later, for him it was like that, it tickled him a little. And Vitaly now has to do repairs, painting, etc.

“I haven’t seen a single Tajik with a broom in Brest”

- Brest is a wonderful city. Listen, this is a European city! I was here in those years when VIA “Plamya” and I toured, I can compare. Now this city is clean, the city is friendly and, it seems to me, completely safe. I don’t understand at all when they clean up your place. Everything is always clean. I have not seen a single Tajik with a broom.

“No need to be sad”, “I’ll get off at the distant station”, “Aty-Bati, the soldiers were marching”, “The snow is spinning” and other hits beloved by the people, on which a whole generation of Soviet people grew up, sounded from the stage of the Kredmash Palace of Culture on January 30 performed by the vocal and instrumental ensemble “Plamya” and its soloist Stanislav Cheremukhin.

It is worth noting that the composition of the group that thundered throughout the USSR often changed, but it was the singer and musician Stanislav Cheremukhin who was and remains one of its brightest participants.

Before the concert, the soloist talked to reporters from the Kremenchug newspaper and told why and when he worked to a soundtrack, which of the Ukrainian stars he prefers, how VIA “Plamya” was “cloned,” about his love for cats and a surprise for the townspeople.

1975 VIA “Plamya” was founded. Today, 2016, for many you are the personification of the overthrown communist regime, and for others, memories of childhood and youth. What do you associate yourself with?

With a musician and singer, artist of the ensemble “Plamya”, whose songs are loved, known and remembered to this day.

You yourself are from Russia, but you are performing in Ukraine - isn’t it scary?

It’s not scary, for one simple reason... I feel that people need these songs, that they need this support. That's why they come to these concerts. Nobody has picnics there, but people go and listen to these songs.

Are you saying that culture is outside of politics?

At least I'm out of politics. I sing these songs. This is a discovery for me that in the 21st century they suddenly listen with pleasure to songs that were written 40 years ago. That's why I bring this to people.

Was there a soundtrack in 1975?

In 1975 it wasn’t, but in ’76 it was... (Laughs).

How do you perform? What does this concept mean to you?

There was a phonogram then too. When we performed at the Shakhtar stadium in Donetsk, where there were 100 thousand people, like in Luzhniki, there was simply no equipment at that time that could voice all this. Therefore, there were speakers all around the perimeter, metal, with a terrible creak, like shoes, and then we played our record, but... We honestly sang...

Now how do we perform? The 21st century is here, which has revolutionized music. On the one hand, he revealed great sound possibilities, and on the other hand, he made young people lazy, who, using a computer, can create completely impossible sounds for themselves.

We work with a small lineup and therefore use samplers and play on top. You will hear acoustic performances at the concert. It’s not for nothing that the piano is also standing here... It creates a sensation.

I must pay tribute to the Kredmash House of Culture, which preserved this instrument. In Russia, pianos are broken, but here the instrument is in excellent condition.

What kind of music do you listen to?

Various. And modern ones too. I give preference domestic performers. I have always appreciated and respected Ukrainian stage. I say this sincerely. There are incredibly talented people here. The same Oleg Skripka, the same “Ocean Elzy”, which is very popular in Russia. I'm not even talking about Ani Lorak...

On the Internet I found several different VIA “Plamya”. How to spot a fake?

I recently talked about this in the film “Legends of Music,” which, by the way, was released to mark the 40th anniversary of the “Flame” ensemble. So, there are artists and figures who are trying to privatize the name, privatize the songs. I answered this question there in such a way that the songs of the ensemble “Plamya” are in the public domain and trying to somehow “make something for yourself” from this is incorrect.

Yes, there are several ensembles. I don't mind that. It with light hand « Happy May" They multiplied throughout the country. Let's talk about quality and who sings what. Here is Yura Peterson “Flame 2000” - this is great singer, I think. But there are accomplices. I will name such a case. Suddenly a call came from my friend from the Moscow region, and he said - you are here at a concert at our stadium and let me come in now. I say, like at a concert? I'm sitting at home.

He says no, your posters. He is a persistent guy and went to the administrator - where is “Flame”? Yes, he is there, they drink and eat. He comes in and says, where is Cheremukhin, where is Berezin?! Who are you?! We were workers, but then we just left...

Do you understand what the meanness is!?... To take someone else’s poster and hang it up, to take what and how they sang... It’s just an abomination. There have been criminal prosecutions in this regard.

What can piss you off during a concert?

It's difficult to get out.

Have there been such cases?

Are you a person of head or heart?

Both. It's hard to say what more.

If there was a fire in your house, what would you take out first?

A cat, and then a guitar... I have three cats. Murka, Seraya and Lucy...

You released a film for the ensemble’s 40th anniversary, what is your inner age?

Well, I'm afraid to lie, but probably 25 years.

What do you value in people and what do you not accept?

I do not accept lies and insincerity, but value work and talent.

Tell us who you are performing with today. Who are these talented people?

These talented people are my like-minded people... The guys are capable of what you heard and saw at the rehearsal... They are simply selfless. An example is this. Past tours in Zheltye Vody. We are going by our own bus. It happened that a window was broken and the navigator was stolen, and that same night we had to go to the Sumy region and give a concert alone, and then to the Kharkov region in Pervomaisk. And Seryozha, the sound engineer, showed himself to be a man. For this haul - it’s more than 1000 km, he should be given the “Hero of Ukraine”. We arrived in Pervomaisk, where there is a “thousander” hall. We were an hour and a half late. But at least someone left...

What will you surprise the residents of Kremenchuz with today?

Premiere of the song. We remembered the song “Chaklunka gir” from 40 years ago. Then it was written by Volodya Kudryavtsev... Today we are reviving the song...

After this interview, Stanislav Cheremukhin again went up on stage and began to “practice” the song. Within 40 minutes the concert began at the Kredmash cultural center. The hall was packed to capacity, and the audience did not spare their palms and often shouted from their seats “Bravo” and “Thank you!”