An old Russian folk song is like water held back by a dam. It looks as if it were still and were no longer flowing, but in its depths it is ceaselessly rushing through the sluice gates and the stillness of its surface is deceptive. By every possible means, by repetitions and similes, the song slows down the gradual unfolding of its theme. Then at some point it suddenly reveals itself and astounds us. That is how the songs sorrowing spirit comes to expression. The song is an insane attempt to stop time by means of its words.

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About Boris Pasternak

Boris Pasternak was a 19th-century Russian and soviet writer. Boris Leonidovich Pasternak was a Russian and Soviet poet, novelist, and literary translator. Read more on Wikipedia →

Themes

  • Music — The universal language of melody, rhythm, and harmony

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