Andrei Vladimirovich Tropillo (russian: links=no, Андрей Владимирович Тропилло; 21 March 1951, Leningrad) is a Soviet and Russian

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

, music publisher,

sound engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproduction, ...

, founder of the label AnTrop (""), and rock musician.

Biography

Tropillo first became involved in the Soviet rock scene in the 1970s. In 1976, he initially attempted to set up a small record factory in a room rented from his then-employer, the Geophysics department of

Leningrad University Saint Petersburg State University (SPBU; russian: Санкт-Петербургский государственный университет) is a public research university in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Founded in 1724 by a decree of Peter the G ...

. He also organized concerts for several bands, including

Mashina Vremeni Mashina Vremeni () is a Russian rock band founded in 1969. Mashina Vremeni was a pioneer of Soviet rock music and remains one of the oldest still-active rock bands in Russia. The band's music incorporates elements of classic rock, blues, and b ...

, and used the income to buy technical equipment for sound recording. Tropillo later started working part-time at the House of Pioneers in the Krasnogvardeysky District of Leningrad, teaching members of the Young Pioneers about sound recording and giving guitar lessons. This position afforded him better access to sound equipment and allowed him to develop a studio. Tropillo began to invite local rock bands to record in the House of Pioneers, starting with

Aquarium An aquarium (plural: ''aquariums'' or ''aquaria'') is a vivarium of any size having at least one transparent side in which aquatic plants or animals are kept and displayed. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, aq ...

and Mify (). From 1979 to 1985, the albums of such groups as

Zoopark Zoopark (russian: link=no, Зоопарк) was one of the founding rock groups which began the Russian rock movement. The group was founded in 1981.Kino Kino may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasters * KINO, a radio station in Arizona, U.S. * Kino FM (98.0 FM – Moscow), a Russian music radio station * KinoTV, now Ruutu+ Leffat ja Sarjat, a Finnish TV channel Fictional entities ...

, and

Alisa Alisa is a female given name, a version of Alice in used in Russia, Finland, Estonia and other countries. Notable people with the names Alisa and Alissa include: Alisa People *Alisa Agafonova (born 1991), Ukrainian former competitive ice dance ...

were recorded in his unofficial studio, AnTrop. From 1980 to 1986, Tropillo and Aquarium worked together to record ten albums. Albums were initially distributed as ''

magnitizdat ''Magnitizdat'' () was the process of copying and distributing audio tape recordings that were not commercially available in the Soviet Union. It is analogous to ''samizdat'', the method of disseminating written works that could not be officially ...

.'' Tropillo would distribute master copies to recording cooperatives on reel-to-reel tapes, which were then re-copied and distributed to other cooperatives across the country. In 1985, Tropillo was dismissed from his role at the House of Pioneers and his studio was closed. He temporarily stored his equipment at the

Leningrad Rock Club The Leningrad Rock Club (russian: Ленинградский рок-клуб) was a historic music venue of the 1980s in Leningrad, situated on Rubinstein Street in the city centre. Opened in 1981 and overseen by the KGB, it became the first lega ...

, before setting up a new AnTrop studio. The 1986 compilation album ''

Red Wave ''Red Wave: 4 Underground Bands from the Soviet Union'' was a split double album released in 1986 and featuring Russian rock bands Aquarium, Kino, Alisa, and Strannye Igry (Strange Games), all from Leningrad. It was the first release of Russian r ...

'', released in the USA, was composed of tracks recorded in Tropillo's studio, although Tropillo was not credited by name. In 1987, Tropillo started working at

Melodiya Melodiya ( rus, links=no, Мелодия, t=Melody) is a Russian (formerly Soviet) record label. It was the state-owned major record company of the Soviet Union. History Melodiya was established in 1964 as the "All-Union Gramophone Record Firm ...

. He brought over several of the master tapes recorded in his old studio and made them available to the label, sometimes without the permission of the musicians involved. In his position at Melodiya, Tropillo was able to officially release some of his previously made recordings as LPs. In 1989, he became the director of the Leningrad branch of Melodiya. In 1991, the St. Petersburg Evangelical-Lutheran Church became the new home of the AnTrop label. From here, Tropillo released copies of albums by Western rock bands such as

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...

, and

Sonic Youth Sonic Youth was an American rock band based in New York City, formed in 1981. Founding members Thurston Moore (guitar, vocals), Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar) and Lee Ranaldo (guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of the b ...

, taking advantage of gaps in the Russian intellectual property laws at the time. He would make alterations to the record covers to circumvent copyright laws. On the sleeve of the AnTrop release of '' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'',

Karl Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...

is replaced by the Russian Beatles fan

Kolya Vasin Nikolai Ivanovich "Kolya" Vasin (russian: Николай Иванович (Коля) Васин, 24 August 1945 – 29 August 2018) was a Russian music historian, writer, one of the main popularizers of the Beatles' creative work inside the USSR ...

and Tropillo's face is inserted in the top row. In his interview for the

BBC Storyville ''Storyville'' is a documentary strand presented by the BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the ...

documentary ''How the Beatles Rocked the Kremlin'', Tropillo stated: "I support not copyright but copyleft. Because I'm sure that in Russia we should support musical piracy, because musical piracy was the key to have freedom in Russia, to have free information."

Discography

}) ,

, - , 1979 , Compiler , ''Malen'kii prints'' (russian: links=no, "Маленький принц", lit=The little prince) ,

, - , 1980 , Sound engineer , ''Proschai, chyornaya subbota'' (russian: links=no, "Прощай, чёрная суббота" , Yuri Stepanov (keyboardist of Mify) , - , 1981 , Compiler , ''Moskva — Leningrad'' (russian: links=no, "Москва — Ленинград", lit=Moscow — Leningrad) ,

, - , 1981 , Sound engineer , ''Doroga domoi'' (russian: links=no, "Дорога домой" , lit=The way home) , Mify (russian: links=no, Мифы, lit=The Myths) , - , 1981 , Sound engineer , '' Sinii albom'' (russian: links=no, "Синий альбом", lit=Blue Album) ,

, - , 1981 , Studio sound engineer , ''Istoria Akvariuma. Tom II. Elektrichestvo'' (russian: links=no, "История Аквариума. Том II. Электричество") ,

, - , 1981 , Sound engineer, musician (flute, backing vocals) , ''Treugol'nik'' (russian: links=no, "Треугольник", lit=The Triangle) ,

, - , 1982 , Sound engineer , ''Nesostoyavshiisya kontsert'' (russian: links=no, "Несостоявшийся концерт") ,

Andrey Makarevich Andrey Vadimovich Makarevich PAR (russian: link=no, Андре́й Вади́мович Макаре́вич; born 11 December 1953 in Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union) is a Soviet and Russian rock musician and the founder of Russia's oldest ...

, - , 1982 , Sound engineer , ''Dym'' (russian: links=no, "Дым", lit=Smoke) ,

Piknik Piknik (Picnic, russian: Пикни́к) is a Russian rock band known for its unique style which is a mixture of art rock, progressive rock and original Russian rock. The band was formed in 1978 in Leningrad by Sergey Omelnichenko, Evgeny Volo ...

, - , 1982 , Sound engineer , ''Taboo'' (russian: links=no, "Табу") ,

, - , 1982 , Sound engineer , ''Istoria Akvariuma. Tom I. Akustika'' (russian: links=no, "История Аквариума. Том I. Акустика") ,

, - , 1982 , Sound engineer, musician (flute, backing vocals) , '' 45'' ,

Kino Kino may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasters * KINO, a radio station in Arizona, U.S. * Kino FM (98.0 FM – Moscow), a Russian music radio station * KinoTV, now Ruutu+ Leffat ja Sarjat, a Finnish TV channel Fictional entities ...

, - , 1982 , Sound engineer, musician (flute, backing vocals) , ''Strasti po Innokentiyu'' (russian: links=no, "Страсти по Иннокентию") , Olga Pershina , - , 1982 , Sound engineer for parts of the recording , ''Еxercises'' , Vladimir Chekasin,

Sergey Kuryokhin Sergey Anatolyevich Kuryokhin (russian: Серге́й Анато́льевич Курёхин, also transliterated as Sergei Kuriokhin, Sergei Kurekhin, Sergueï Kouriokhine, Sergey Kuriokhin, etc.; nicknamed "The Captain"; 16 June 1954 – 9 Ju ...

, BG , - , 1983 , Sound engineer (mobile studio MCI) , ''

Radio Africa ''Radio Africa'' (russian: Радио Африка) is an album by the Russian rock band Aquarium. The album's style presents an eclectic mix of influences: new wave, art rock, post-punk, jazz, Psychedelic rock, psychedelia, honky tonk, free i ...

'' (russian: links=no, "Радио Африка") ,

, - , 1983 , Sound engineer , ''Vchera i pozavchera v uezdnom gorode N'' (russian: links=no, "Вчера и позавчера в уездном городе N") ,

Zoopark Zoopark (russian: link=no, Зоопарк) was one of the founding rock groups which began the Russian rock movement. The group was founded in 1981.Strannye Igry Strannye Igry (russian: Странные игры, Strange Games) was a Soviet Leningrad-based new wave band, noted for using the ska influences (which was unusual for the Soviet music scene of the time), writing lyrics based on the translations ...

, - , 1983 , Sound engineer , ''Kolyosiko'' (russian: links=no, "Колёсико", lit=The Little Wheel) (Note: the album was not distributed) , Vladimir Levy (leader of Tamburin) , - , 1984 , Sound engineer , ''Tanets volka'' (russian: links=no, "Танец волка", lit=Wolf Dance) ,

, - , 1984 , Sound engineer , ''Den' Serebra'' (russian: links=no, "День Серебра", lit=Day of the Silver) ,

, - , 1984 , Sound engineer , ''MCI'' (compilation of songs recorded for''Taboo'' but not included on the original album) ,

, - , 1984 , Sound engineer, arrangements, musician (flute) , ''Belaya polosa'' (russian: links=no, "Белая полоса") ,

Zoopark Zoopark (russian: link=no, Зоопарк) was one of the founding rock groups which began the Russian rock movement. The group was founded in 1981.Nachal'nik Kamchatki'' (russian: links=no, "Начальник Камчатки") ,

, - , 1985 , Sound engineer , ''Zhuk na rascheske'' (russian: links=no, "Жук на расческе", lit=The Bug on the Comb) (Note: the album was not distributed) , Tamburin (russian: links=no, Тамбурин, lit=Tambourine) , - , 1985 , Sound engineer , ''Ublyuzh'ya dolya'' (russian: links=no, "Ублюжья доля", lit=A Bastard's Lot) , Oblachnyi krai (russian: links=no, Облачный край, lit=Cloud Area) , - , 1985 , Sound engineer, musician (saxophone) , ''Shestvie ryb'' (russian: links=no, "Шествие рыб") ,

Televizor Televizor (russian: Телевизор, "Television set") is a Soviet/Russian gothic rock/industrial group formed in 1984 in Saint-Petersburg. is the lead singer and founder of group. They began to perform at the Leningrad Rock Club. They are not ...

, - , 1985 , Sound engineer, musician (flute, backing vocals), dramatization , ''Energiya'' (russian: links=no, "Энергия", lit=Energy) ,

, - , 1986 , Sound engineer , ''Stremya i lyudi'' (russian: links=no, "Стремя и люди", lit=The Stirrup & The People) , Oblachnyi krai , - , 1986 , Sound engineer, musician (backing vocals) , ''Deti Dekabrya'' (russian: links=no, "Дети Декабря", lit=December Children) ,

, - , 1986 , Sound engineer, musician (flute, backing vocals) , '' Noch''' (russian: links=no, "Ночь", lit=Night) ,

, - , 1986 , Sound engineer, musician (backing vocals) , ''Smotri v oba'' (russian: links=no, "Смотри в оба", lit=Look at both) ,

Strannye Igry Strannye Igry (russian: Странные игры, Strange Games) was a Soviet Leningrad-based new wave band, noted for using the ska influences (which was unusual for the Soviet music scene of the time), writing lyrics based on the translations ...

, - , 1986 , Sound engineer , ''Muzyka drachyovykh napil'nikov'' (russian: links=no, "Музыка драчёвых напильников") , Nol' (at the time of release, Nulevaya Gruppa) , - , 1987 , Sound engineer , ''BlokAda'' (russian: links=no, "БлокАда", lit=Blockade) Recorded on Tropillo's 8-track and in the 24-track Melodiya mobile studio ,

, - , 1987 , Compiler , ''Ottepel (russian: links=no, "Оттепель") (Note: concert recording of the festival in Shushary, different from the studio album published in 1991) ,

DDT Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, commonly known as DDT, is a colorless, tasteless, and almost odorless crystalline chemical compound, an organochloride. Originally developed as an insecticide, it became infamous for its environmental impacts. ...

, - , 1987 , Sound engineer (mobile studio MCI) , ''Glasnost (russian: links=no, "Гласность") , Ob'ekt Nasmeshek (russian: links=no, Объект насмешек, lit=The Object of Mockery) , - , 1987 , Sound engineer (mobile studio MCI) , ''Reagan Provocateur'' (russian: links=no, "Рейган-провокатор") ,

Avtomaticheskie Udovletvoriteli Avtomaticheskie udovletvoriteli (russian: Автоматические удовлетворители, lit=The Automatic Satisfiers, abbreviated AU) was a Soviet, and later Russian, punk band, formed in Leningrad in 1979. It is considered the fi ...

, - , 1987 , Sound engineer (mobile studio MCI) , ''Muzyka dlya mertvykh'' (russian: links=no, "Музыка для мертвых", lit=Music for the dead) ,

, - , 1987 , Sound engineer , ''Kamni Sankt-Peterburga'' (russian: links=no, "Камни Санкт-Петербурга", lit=Stones of St. Petersburg) (Note: album finished at Andrei Sokolov’s home studio) , Nikolai Korzinin In addition to rock groups, Tropillo produced recordings of the following jazz musicians: *

* Vladimir Chekasin * Valentina Ponomaryova * the duo Vladislav Makarov and Aleksandr Kondrashkin (1984)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tropillo, Andrei Audio engineers Music publishers (people) Russian record producers Russian publishers (people) Russian audio engineers Living people 1951 births