"I'll write as much music as I can."
"The January blizzard is ringing", "The Song about bears", "The Island of Bad Luck" — it is only necessary to pronounce these names, and the melodies beloved by several generations are already sounding in your head. Composer Alexander Zatsepin, who wrote the music for the films "The Caucasian Prisoner", "The Diamond Hand", "Ivan Vasilyevich Changes his Profession" and dozens of other Soviet paintings, celebrates his centenary on March 10. At the age of 100, he composes new works and has not started a day without morning exercises for four decades. Alexander Zatsepin spoke about the secret of longevity, working with Leonid Gaidai, Michael Jackson's gift and the anniversary on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater on the eve of his birthday in an exclusive interview with Izvestia.
"Everyone had enough work, the composers didn't even think about competition"
— Alexander Sergeevich, you are celebrating your centenary and are in great shape. In an interview with Izvestia, you said that the secret to feeling good lies in exercising daily and eating little — literally half a plate for lunch. Are you still so disciplined?
- yes. My secret to feeling good is that I exercise. However, I came to this at the age of 60. I think this is the right thing to do. For me, charging is useful. Having started daily classes once, I have been continuing them for 40 years. Why should I cheat on myself? And other people may not do exercises. If it's hard, it's better to walk for an hour, walk with sticks for Nordic walking. And if someone prefers active activities, then run daily. But at least some physical exercises must be done.
— You have caught the golden age of Soviet cinema. Tariverdiev, Sviridov, Petrov, and Artemyev wrote music with you at the same time. Was there any competition among the composers?
"I don't think so." Everyone wrote in their own style, and the music turned out to be interesting. Everyone had enough work, the composers didn't even think about competition. She wasn't there. (He smiles.)
— How did you look for films for which you had to write music?
— I wasn't looking for films for myself, they were just offered to me. And I either accepted or refused. The directors found me by themselves, on the phone. And if they were colleagues from other republics, they called Mosfilm. They knew how to connect us. During the existence of the USSR, I have worked in all the republics.
— Andrei Konchalovsky used to say that music in movies is a crutch for a director. Do you think a melody could be better than the footage and eventually make the picture a higher class?
— Music is necessary for a director to create a film. She doesn't have to be better or worse than him. With music, you can emphasize a particular scene, highlight it, and even color it in one color or another, if necessary. So Konchalovsky is right.
"I was relaxing on the set, watching the artists work"
— There is an opinion that a film designed for a mass audience is unlikely to be a masterpiece.
— Well, there were great movies. I am against this opinion.
A shot from the film "The Diamond Hand", directed by Leonid Gaidai
— Gaidai's comedies also refute this opinion. Have you solved the secret of Leonid Iovich? Why does the light genre remain unsurpassed in his performance?
"What's the secret?" Leonid Gaidai shot eccentric comedies. He worked in a style that no one could make a movie in. That's why Leonid Iovich is the only one, unsurpassed. And there's nothing to compare him with anyone else.
— Have you ever gone to the set of Gaidai for inspiration?
— I came to the set once, but not to recharge the atmosphere, but just to meet Gaidai. He was just filming "Ivan Vasilyevich changes his profession." Leonid Kuravlev, Yuri Yakovlev, and Savely Kramarov were on the set. They were preparing a scene where they sang in the royal chambers "Suddenly, as in a fairy tale, the door creaked." Leonid Kuravlev suddenly had a pack of Marlboro cigarettes in his hands. And this scene was very memorable to the audience. They were filmed in fragments. It was impossible to charge from the room. Rather, I was relaxing on the set, watching the artists work.
"All our songs were about movies, not girls"
— Have you dedicated your music to anyone?
— I didn't tell anyone.
Composer Alexander Zatsepin
— What about the girl you love? Maybe, in order to perpetuate her name, you asked Leonid Derbenev to write lyrics to a song based on your music?
— How could I ask Derbenev for someone when he was writing for a movie? All our songs were about movies, not girls. (Laughs.)
— Have you ever thought about why Soviet composers wrote beautiful music, but now there are only a few melodists? Maybe modern authors don't get enough criticism and they don't have enough difficulties?
— You know, they used to scold our music very often. And even such recognized melodists as Dmitry Shostakovich, Vano Muradeli, Igor Talkov, came under criticism. Don't think that everything was allowed to us then. We had enough opponents.
What's wrong with the melodies? The fact is that things are changing very fast in our lives right now. And there should be such music composed by young people, too. If there was no light music, jazz and The Beatles would not have appeared. Then they got used to these melodies, and they were replaced by a new sound. In the 1970s, rock appeared, which gained recognition. And so on. Everything is changing. And it's not that there are no melodists. There is a time for everything. Maybe they will appear in a year, or even in five. That's life. Maybe someone will write a beautiful song tomorrow.
— What should be done to not just shine on stage, but to go down in history?
— I don't know how to show up. There is no need to do anything for this purpose. You just have to work hard. If you're a composer, then try to write more. And not to leave what first came to mind, but to select the best from the melodies.
— You said that music develops according to a sine wave. And the last star in the USA is Michael Jackson. In which of the artists do you see such creative potential?
— So far, I have not seen in any artist such a gift as Michael Jackson had. If it doesn't catch your eye, you won't look deeper, you won't understand what an artist is capable of. Perhaps someone else will appear and write good music, and become a famous artist.
"I'm not a vain person"
— And which of the Russian young artists pleasantly surprises you?
"I can't tell you. I don't have time to listen to music right now, I have a lot of work to do. With Muse Lee, we have made five musicals and one ballet in almost a year and a half.
— What kind of work are you currently working on?
— We are working on a new musical "Ivan Vasilyevich changes his profession." The muse wrote the libretto. There are still a lot of plans, and the further you go, the more! I'll write as much music as I can. And it is not known exactly how long. (Laughs.)
Composer Alexander Zatsepin and Muse Lee
— What do you dream about?
— About doing a new job, a musical and a ballet.
— Your friend, People's Artist of the USSR, choreographer Mikhail Lavrovsky, told me that he is ready to put on a play to your music on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater. How is the work progressing?
— We hope that something will be done this year. Maybe ballet. But it is very difficult to stage a play at the Bolshoi Theatre.
— Who is the main teacher for you, the authority on life?
— Of course, parents. They raised me. They sent him to a music school, they made sure that he grew up respectable, they gave him advice on what to do and what not to do. Naturally, all these lessons have been learned, for which I am grateful to them.
— How do you see an ideal anniversary?
— I will have a wonderful anniversary at the Bolshoi Theater. You can invite a lot of people. I won't list them all. I'm sure everyone will come.
President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin and composer Alexander Zatsepin, awarded the medal "Hero of Labor of the Russian Federation"
— A year ago, when the president presented you with the Hero of Labor star in the Kremlin, you invited him to your anniversary. Are you expecting a special guest on March 10th?
— I hope that the president will come to my anniversary. It seems that Vladimir Vladimirovich agreed. But whether he can or not, I don't know. He might not have time for that. If the president shows up, I will be very pleased. I will be very glad!
— Is it important to you that you are not forgotten, that the awards are not bypassed?
"I'm not a vain person. Of course, it's nice to be rewarded. It's like suddenly receiving some kind of gift. But in order for me to expect or achieve something, to be marked with something, to be given some kind of title - no, I don't care about that. I was given the title of People's Artist of Russia. And they also awarded the golden star of the Hero of Labor. That's enough for me.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
