The All-Russian Folklore Festival “Sholokhov Spring” is held in the village of Veshenskaya

This is already the third batch of Sholokhov’s novels sent to the Northern Military District. Zakhar Prilepin took the first one with “Quiet Don” last year directly from Veshki to Donetsk. The second – with “Virgin Soil Upturned” – was sent by the writer’s grandson, State Duma deputy Alexander Sholokhov at the beginning of this year. And here is the third one.

And in the Sholokhov Museum in Veshenskaya, as a special relic, this novel is kept, published during the Great Patriotic War, which the squad leader took from the body of a soldier; a fragment that fell into it also pierced the book, which the commander sent to the writer.

Photo: Elena Yakovleva / RG

“In a shirt or without a shirt – it’s all the same a Cossack, but without a sword – a dead dog,” the inscription on the decorative barrel uncompromisingly asserts. Such barrels, miniature kurens, artifacts of Cossack antiquity – lamps, scissors, chesks, spindles – songs, dances, go-dogs, shish kebabs, unique Cossack calls and squeals, unexpected jazz in the field kitchen area and “Tender May” pushed far to the barbecue outskirts the village of Veshenskaya is now overcrowded, hosting the Sholokhov Spring festival for three days.

Today its climax is endless songs, literary news, the opening of an exhibition about the Civil War, a gala concert, the stage of which is set right on the water of the great river. And two stars – vocal – Alexander Rosenbaum and literary – Zakhar Prilepin, who did not come because of the tragedy of the terrorist attack.

The grandson of the great writer deliberately postpones the presentation of Prilepin’s novel about Sholokhov, which was finally released in the ZHZL series: we will wait until Zakhar recovers. And he tells the guests of the festival about the idea of ​​this new biography of Sholokhov, which arose even before 2014, was postponed all because of the same 2014, and finally written in three years.

However, another, third, star spontaneously arose at the Festival – a girl in black – a la military clothes, dancing in front of the stage with … a saber. While the “Cossack Heart” from the Shinnik plant in Voronezh sang and danced on stage, a girl with a saber performed miracles of military dance.

Inna Vecherkina not so long ago worked as a paramedic on an ambulance in the neighboring village of Bokovskaya. She learned to dance with checkers herself, to the skeptical exclamations of Cossack men: a woman – and with a checker? “And I say: come on, join, perform with me.” One joined directly in Veshki, but he did not come out as impressive as Inna’s. Inna was simply amazing.

Photo: Elena Yakovleva / RG

– It is necessary to have time to save all this – checkers, songs, dances, – she is convinced. – And then small children come to me, and when they see a sword, they say: look, what a katana – a Japanese sword! I tell them: you are crazy, this is a checker!

Inna is subtly reminiscent of “Corsa” – now, apparently, a long prototype of a woman in a military style.

– Have you heard about Gennady Vecherkin? This is my husband’s uncle, he writes songs and directs the “Orthodox Don” ensemble in Bokovskaya, – Inna clarifies her “artistic” pedigree.

Gennady aims to preserve the features of the Cossack singing of the Upper Don. In the history of his ensemble and singing on the stage of the Kremlin Palace of Congresses, and meeting with the president. And this is the real authentic singing of the Upper Don Cossacks, which is not often heard even at the Sholokhov Festival. More and more people here sing the way people of my father’s and mother’s generation sang. As my grandmother’s generation sang, you hear much less often.

And if the Sholokhov Festival grows into loud glory, then most likely through the creation of a cultural fund of live folk singing, through competitions, selection of real art, laboratories of real old folk singing – whether Cossack, northern, Ural …

Guests from afar often come to Veshenskaya for the Sholokhov festival. This year, these are the director of the Moscow Alexander Pushkin Museum Evgeny Bogatyrev, the director of the Elabuga Museum-Reserve Gulzada Rudenko, heads of the regional departments of culture of the Komi Republic, who traveled to Veshenskaya by bus, train and two planes. With special tenderness in Veshki, the children’s school dance group “Veselka” from Lugansk, who for many years dreamed of getting to the “Sholokhov Spring” and received an invitation from Alexander Mikhailovich at the 10th minute of acquaintance, is met with special tenderness.

Photo: Elena Yakovleva / RG

The most important moment of the holiday comes when numerous spectators join the dances and songs on the large square in front of the old recreation center. Looking at plump men and bright women is also a special pleasure. There is almost zero artistic technique here, but what a style, what a position, what a restrained prowess. Something elusive is broadcast, transmitted, held, twisted, does not die.