Moscow Nights

"Moscow Nights" (rus. Подмосковные вечера (podmoskovnie vechera)) is a Russian song, and one of those best known outside its homeland.

The song was originally created as "Leningradskie Vechera" ("Leningrad Nights") by composer Vasily Solovyov-Sedoi and poet Mikhail Matusovsky in 1955 (when both had well-established careers), but at the request of the Soviet Ministry of Culture, the version "Подмосковные вечера" (transliterated as "Podmoskovnye Vechera"; more or less "Evenings in Moscow Oblast") was prepared, with corresponding changes to the lyrics.

In 1956, Podmoskovnye Vechera was recorded by Vladimir Troshin, a young actor of the Moscow Art Theatre, for a documentary about the athletic competition Spartakiad of the Peoples of the RSFSR, for a scene where the participants rest in the Podmoskovye, or the Moscow suburbs. It found little notice in the context of the film, but gained a significant popularity thanks to radio broadcasts.

In 1957, the song won both the international song contest and the first prize at the World Festival of Youth and Students held in Moscow, quite to the surprise of its creators. The song spread around the world, achieving particular popularity in mainland China; Van Cliburn's 1958 piano performance of the tune contributed to this international spread.

In the Soviet Union, the tune has been the time signal sounded every 30 minutes on the Mayak music and news radio station since 1964. The shortwave radio station Radio Moscow's English-language service has played an instrumental version of "Moscow Nights", between informing listeners of frequency changes and the hourly newscast since the start of the 24 hour English Service in 1978.

The British jazz group, Kenny Ball and his Jazzmen, had a hit with the song in 1961 under the title "Midnight in Moscow", and film exists which shows them playing it at a concert in Moscow. This version peaked at number two on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in early 1962; in March of that year, it spent three weeks at number one on the American Easy Listening chart.

The Russian pop singer Vitas recorded a version of the song with his countertenor voice. He performed it on several Chinese festivals before its release on Masterpieces of Three Centuries, released on November 25, 2010.

The song is known in the Yiddish language as Bloye Nekht fun Tel-Aviv. The words of this version have been written by Wolf Younin and it is performed by Hilda Bronstein and her band Chutzpah!.

Famous quotes containing the words moscow and/or nights:

    Napoleon is a torrent which as yet we are unable to stem. Moscow will be the sponge that will suck him dry.
    Mikhail Kutuzov (1745–1813)

    I knew that I had seen, had seen at last
    That girl my unremembering nights hold fast
    Or else my dreams that fly
    If I should rub an eye,
    And yet in flying fling into my meat
    A crazy juice that makes the pulses beat....
    William Butler Yeats (1865–1939)