Tachanka (song)
Tachanka (Tачанка), sometimes labelled Song of the Tachanka (Песня о Тачанке) is a Soviet revolutionary song from the late Interwar period, composed by Konstantin Listov and written by Mikhail Ruderman in 1937.[1] It describes an unnamed battle in the Russian Civil War and the Tachankas, or machine-gun carts, that were used by the Red Army at the time. The song underwent several lyrical changes over the years, and features in the repertoire of the Red Army Choir[2] and Leon Lishner.[3]
"Tachanka" | |
---|---|
Song | |
Language | Russian |
Published | 1937 |
Genre | revolutionary song |
Songwriter(s) | Mikhail Ruderman |
Composer(s) | Konstantin Listov |
Lyrics
Russian[4] | Latin transcription | Literal English Translation | Lyrical English translation[5] | |
---|---|---|---|---|
First Verse | ||||
Ты лети с дороги, птица, |
Ty leti s dorogi, ptitsa, |
Fly off the road, bird, |
Bird, fly from the road, and quickly! | |
Second Verse | ||||
И с налёта, с поворота, |
I s nalyota, s povorota, |
And with a charge, with a turn, |
Blasting, turning, fire pouring, | |
Chorus 1 | ||||
Эх, тачанка-ростовчанка, |
Ekh, tachanka-rostovchanka, |
Oh, Tachanka from Rostov, |
Hey Tachanka gun from Rostov, | |
Third Verse | ||||
Эх, за Волгой и за Доном |
Ekh, za Volgoy i za Donom |
Oh, over the Volga and over the Don |
We crossed the Don after the Volga, | |
Fourth Verse | ||||
И неслась неудержимо |
I neslas neuderzhimo |
And rushing unrestrained |
As, unstoppable and mighty, | |
Chorus 2 | ||||
Эх, тачанка-киевлянка, |
Ekh, tachanka-kievlyanka, |
Oh, Tachanka of Kiev, |
Hey Tachanka gun from Kiev, | |
Fifth Verse | ||||
По земле грохочут танки, |
Po zemle grokhochut tanki, |
On the ground the tanks rumble, |
Up above our soaring pilots,
Seek the enemy on high. Looking down they see Tachanka And salute you from the sky. | |
Sixth Verse | ||||
И врагу поныне снится |
I vragu ponyne snitsya |
And the enemy still is dreaming |
In the fields our tanks are rumbling,
See the foe is on the run. Forward then Tachanka, With each bullet from your gun. | |
Chorus 3 | ||||
Эх, тачанка-полтавчанка, |
Ekh, tachanka-poltavchanka, |
Oh, Tachanka of Poltava, |
Hey Tachanka gun from Poltava! |
1The reference to the Red cavalry is replaced in some versions with the line "near the sea of Azov" (Russian: Приазовская тачанка, transliterated: Priazovskaya tachanka)
2The reference to the Komsomol is dropped in some versions and replaced with the line "Tachanka from Ukraine" (Russian: Украинская тачанка, transliterated: Ukrainskaya tachanka).[6][7]
References
- http://www.sovmusic.ru/download.php?fname=tachanka
- https://archive.org/details/78_tachanka_red-army-choir-of-the-u.-s.-s.-r.-a.-v.-alexandrov-m.-rudermann-k.-listov_gbia0001979b
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xi1tsBw8pXs
- http://www.sovmusic.ru/text.php?fname=tachanka
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LeI6AC9EjIY
- http://www.sovmusic.ru/m/pesnya38.mp3
- http://sovmusic.ru/m/tachanka.mp3