Yuliy Chersanovich Kim (russian: Юлий Черсанович Ким, ko, 율리 킴; born 23 December 1936,

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

) is a Russian

bard In Celtic cultures, a bard is a professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's ancestors and to praise t ...

, composer, poet, and songwriter. His songs, encompassing everything from mild humor to biting political satire, appear in at least fifty Soviet movies, including ''

Bumbarash ''Bumbarash'' (russian: Бумбараш, Bumbarash) is a 1971 Soviet adventure film, a musical comedy in two episodes loosely based on some early works and the novel ''Bumbarash'' by Arkady Gaidar. Plot During the Russian Civil War, former Imperi ...

'', ''

The Twelve Chairs ''The Twelve Chairs'' ( rus, Двенадцать стульев, Dvenadtsat stulyev) is a classic satirical novel by the Odesan Soviet authors Ilf and Petrov, published in 1928. Its plot follows characters attempting to obtain jewelry hidden ...

'', and '' An Ordinary Miracle'', as well as the songs "The Brave Captain," "The Black Sea," "The Whale-Fish," "Cursed Lips," "Captain Bering," and "Baron Germont Went to War." Since 1998, he has been living in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

and has made periodic tours throughout Russia, Europe, and the United States.He Couldn't Stand Judophobia Since Childhood
// Booknik, 23 December 2012 (interview, in Russian)

Biography

Kim was born in 1936 in Moscow to Kim Chersan (1904–1938), a journalist of

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

descent, and Nina Valentinovna Vsesvyatskaya (1907-1974), a teacher of

Russian language Russian (russian: русский язык, russkij jazyk, link=no, ) is an East Slavic languages, East Slavic language mainly spoken in Russia. It is the First language, native language of the Russians, and belongs to the Indo-European langua ...

and literature whose grandfather, Vasiliy Vsesvyatskiy, was a

protoiereus A ''protoiereus'' (from grc, πρωτοϊερεύς, "first priest", Modern Greek: πρωθιερέας) or protopriest in the Eastern Orthodox Church is a priest usually coordinating the activity of other subordinate priests in a bigger church. T ...

of the

Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...

in the Ugodsko-Zavodsky Uezd of the

Kaluga Governorate Kaluga Governorate (1796–1929) was a List of governorates of the Russian Empire, governorate of the Russian Empire and the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Russian SFSR. Its capital was Kaluga. Administrative division Kaluga Go ...

who baptized

Georgy Zhukov Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov ( rus, Георгий Константинович Жуков, p=ɡʲɪˈorɡʲɪj kənstɐnʲˈtʲinəvʲɪtɕ ˈʐukəf, a=Ru-Георгий_Константинович_Жуков.ogg; 1 December 1896 – ...

.Yuliy Kim: Following the Life Pass
interview in the ''

Lechaim ''Lechaim'' (Лехаим) is the flagship magazine of the Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS (FJC). History and profile ''Lechaim'' was founded in 1991. It is printed monthly in Russian, with sections on news, memoirs, Torah ...

'' magazine, June 2005 (in Russian) Kim's parents were victims of the

Great Purge The Great Purge or the Great Terror (russian: Большой террор), also known as the Year of '37 (russian: 37-й год, translit=Tridtsat sedmoi god, label=none) and the Yezhovshchina ('period of Nikolay Yezhov, Yezhov'), was General ...

of 1937 and 1938, in which his father was executed and his mother was sentenced as a " family member of a traitor of the Motherland" to five years in a

labor camp A labor camp (or labour camp, see spelling differences) or work camp is a detention facility where inmates are forced to engage in penal labor as a form of punishment. Labor camps have many common aspects with slavery and with prisons (especi ...

and three years of

exile Exile is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons and peoples suf ...

, so that Kim didn't see her until age 9. She was rehabilitated during the

Khrushchev Thaw The Khrushchev Thaw ( rus, хрущёвская о́ттепель, r=khrushchovskaya ottepel, p=xrʊˈɕːɵfskəjə ˈotʲ:ɪpʲɪlʲ or simply ''ottepel'')William Taubman, Khrushchev: The Man and His Era, London: Free Press, 2004 is the period ...

period in 1958, but before that, she was under the " 101st kilometer" law and could not live in Moscow, so Kim's family settled in

Maloyaroslavets Maloyaroslavets (russian: Малояросла́вец) is a town and the administrative center of Maloyaroslavetsky District in Kaluga Oblast, Russia, located on the right bank of the Luzha River (Oka's basin), northeast of Kaluga, the adminis ...

Kaluga Oblast Kaluga Oblast (russian: Калу́жская о́бласть, translit=Kaluzhskaya oblast) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the city of Kaluga. The 2021 Russian Census found a population of 1,069,904. G ...

. In 1951, the family moved to

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...

. Kim returned to Moscow in 1954 to enter the

Moscow State Pedagogical Institute Moscow State Pedagogical University or Moscow State University of Education is an educational and scientific institution in Moscow, Russia, with eighteen faculties and seven branches operational in other Russian cities. The institution had underg ...

. In 1959, Kim graduated from the Department of History and Philology of

Moscow State Pedagogical University Moscow State Pedagogical University or Moscow State University of Education is an educational and scientific institution in Moscow, Russia, with eighteen faculties and seven branches operational in other Russian cities. The institution had underg ...

. During his student years, he began writing poems and setting some of them to music. Upon graduation, he was sent to teach in the village of Il'pyrsky,

Kamchatka The Kamchatka Peninsula (russian: полуостров Камчатка, Poluostrov Kamchatka, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and wes ...

, near Anapka, where he taught for three years. He taught history,

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

geography Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and ...

, and other subjects, and also directed a number of

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

plays with the schoolchildren. Since then, the sea has become one of the main themes of his songs. In 1969, he signed An Appeal to The UN Committee for Human Rights. After returning to

, Kim worked as a school teacher, and at the same time participated in the

Soviet dissident Soviet dissidents were people who disagreed with certain features of Soviet ideology or with its entirety and who were willing to speak out against them. The term ''dissident'' was used in the Soviet Union in the period from the mid-1960s until ...

movement, which cost him his job in 1968. Subsequently, Kim earned a living by writing songs for plays and movies as well as publishing plays under the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

Yu. Mikhailov, which he used until 1986. At the same time, while he was barred from giving concerts, he continued his singing underground. With the advent of

glasnost ''Glasnost'' (; russian: link=no, гласность, ) has several general and specific meanings – a policy of maximum openness in the activities of state institutions and freedom of information, the inadmissibility of hushing up problems, ...

, Kim was finally able to perform legally. Since the breakup of the Soviet Union, he has been acclaimed throughout the

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

-speaking world and has performed in numerous locations in Russia, Europe, and the United States. He has received numerous awards, such as the

Bulat Okudzhava Bulat Shalvovich Okudzhava (russian: link=no, Булат Шалвович Окуджава; ka, ბულატ ოკუჯავა; hy, Բուլատ Օկուջավա; May 9, 1924 – June 12, 1997) was a Soviet and Russian poet, writer, musici ...

Prize of the Russian Federation. Today, Yuliy Kim's discography includes over 20 titles on CD, audio and video tape, and DVD. His songs have been included in almost all anthologies of author’s song as well as many anthologies of modern Russian poetry. His first wife was Irina Yakir — granddaughter of

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...

commander

Iona Yakir Iona Emmanuilovich Yakir (russian: Ио́на Эммануи́лович Яки́р; 3 August 1896 – 12 June 1937) was a Red Army commander and one of the world's major military reformers between World War I and World War II. He was an ear ...

. They married in 1966, and in 1998 they immigrated to Israel. After Irina's death in 1999, Kim married Lidia Lugovaya, Irina's close friend since school days.While Everyone's at Home
//

Channel One Russia Channel One ( rus, Первый канал, r=Pervyy kanal, p=ˈpʲervɨj kɐˈnal, t=First Channel) is a Russian state-controlled television channel. It is the first television channel to broadcast in the Russian Federation. Its headquarters ...

, 21 December 2008 (interview at Kim's apartment) He currently splits his time between Jerusalem and Moscow.

Selected filmography

References

External links

Yuliy Kim's bio

Yuliy Kim at bards.ru
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kim, Yuliy 1936 births 20th-century Russian male singers 20th-century Russian singers 21st-century Russian male singers 21st-century Russian singers Koryo-saram Living people Russian bards Russian singer-songwriters Soviet dissidents Moscow State Pedagogical University alumni Russian male singer-songwriters Soviet male singer-songwriters Russian emigrants to Israel Russian people of Korean descent Soviet people of Korean descent Israeli people of Korean descent Israeli people of Russian descent Writers from Moscow