"Utushka lugovaya" (russian: Утушка луговая, ''A Little Meadow Duck'') is an ancient Russian folk song.

Synopsis

A young woman or maiden, also called ''utushka lugovaya'', spends a night in the wood (or in the meadow), near a

willow Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist s ...

. Several young men pass by and make several gudocheks – each makes one for himself. The maiden asks the gudocheks not to tinkle, not to wake her (however, in some versions, her father) up.

Commentary

Historical background

According to Alexander Tereshchenko, ″Utushka lugovaya″ could be performed during traditional Russian marriage celebrations.

Pavel Svinyin Pavel Petrovich Svinyin or Svinin (Па́вел Петро́вич Свиньи́н; 19 June 1787 – 21 April 1839) was a prolific Russian writer, painter, and editor known as a "Russian Munchausen" for many exaggerated accounts of his travels. ...

wrote that the Don Cossacks used the song in

matchmaking Matchmaking is the process of matching two or more people together, usually for the purpose of marriage, in which case the matchmaker is also known as a marriage broker. The word is also used in the context of sporting events such as boxing, in ...

. Some researchers consider that image ("Utushka lugovaya"/ "Young duck") as a traditional image of the young woman or bride.

Genre characteristics

A number of sources mention the song as a ''plyasovaya'' or a ''khorovodnaya''. Alexander Potebnja regards it – for its

time signature The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note value ...

– as an example of the so-called ''summer'' or ''spring'' songs.

Settings and performance

Before 1792,

Vasily Pashkevich Vasily Alexeyevich Pashkevich also Paskevich (russian: Васи́лий Алексе́евич Пашке́вич or Паске́вич) (c. 1742, probably Ukraine – March 20, 1797 in St. Petersburg) was a Russian composer, singer, violin ...

created for his third

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

theme Theme or themes may refer to: * Theme (arts), the unifying subject or idea of the type of visual work * Theme (Byzantine district), an administrative district in the Byzantine Empire governed by a Strategos * Theme (computing), a custom graphical ...

based on the song. In the following two centuries, many composers (such as P. I. Tchaikovsky, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov,

Anatoly Lyadov Anatoly Konstantinovich Lyadov (russian: Анато́лий Константи́нович Ля́дов; ) was a Russian composer, teacher, and conductor (music), conductor. Biography Lyadov was born in 1855 in Saint Petersburg, St. Petersbur ...

, Alexander Ivanov-Kramskoi) arranged "Utushka lugovaya". The song appeared in the

repertoire A repertoire () is a list or set of dramas, operas, musical compositions or roles which a company or person is prepared to perform. Musicians often have a musical repertoire. The first known use of the word ''repertoire'' was in 1847. It is a ...

s of

Lidia Ruslanova , birth_date = , birth_place = Chernavka, Serdobsky Uyezd, Saratov Governorate, Russian Empire , death_date = , death_place = Moscow, USSR , genre = russian folk music , instrument = singing , background = solo_singer Lidia Andreyevna Ru ...

Lyudmila Zykina Lyudmila Georgievna Zykina (russian: link=no, Людми́ла Гео́ргиевна Зы́кина; 10 June 1929 – 1 July 2009) was a national folk singer of Russia. She was born in Moscow and joined the Pyatnitsky Choir in 1947. Her surna ...

, Alexandra Strelchenko, (se
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and other famous Russian folk singers.

References

External links

* * {{authority control Russian folk songs Lidia Ruslanova songs Year of song unknown Songwriter unknown