Russian romance is a part of an endangered musical genre that is about to be brought back to life.

Carelian-born Cossack Viktor Klimenko has garnered fame in the Gospel music scene, but has now gathered together a varied group of talented artists to save a culture that is slowly withering away: the music of the Russian pre-communist era brought over by fleeing emigrants that is renowned for its gripping gypsy songs with a twist of romance.

On his side Viktor has an accomplished violinist, Mervi Myllyoja, who embellishes the musical profile of the project and leads a team of Russian musicians who skilfully play the balalaika, the accordion and everything in between. Similar to the Buena Vista Social Club, their trick is to combine the old and the new, to produce a renewed version of the lingering Russian emigrant culture, which is seemingly in dire need of swift resuscitation. Their project will be launched in a concert at Caisa on 8 February.

Six Degrees sat down with Viktor and Mervi to understand what exactly Russian emigrant culture is about, and how their endeavour got started.

Where did you get the idea for a production on Russian emigrant music?

Viktor: In a way, it’s a trauma of my own. I don’t think it ‘got started’ from anything in particular.

My family moved to Finland in the third emigration wave from communist Russia. Because of the timing, we were sort of ‘in-betweeners” among other Russian emigrants. The ones already in Finland saw us as communists, although we had just fled from communism! It was terrible to be in such a twilight zone.

Being an emigrant, I’ve spent a lot of time in search of my roots, which in a way gives vigour to my life. I’ve had to build my identity from bits and pieces, beginning from a picture of my grandfather, standing proud in his Cossack uniform. I just thought that there must be a story behind this!

Millions of people fled from Russia, and the emigrants built their own culture, which is quite unique in itself. One of its strongest traits is the strong nostalgia, and the belief that one day we’ll go back, which is well portrayed in its music. People would just wait for communism to fall, but eventually it all slowly started dying away.

Had the project been brewing in your mind for long?

Viktor: I got an additional kick of strength when I saw the Buena Vista Social Club. When Cuba went through its revolution, all old artists were thrown in the bin, where they stayed until an American guy came to dig around and ended up finding real stars in the rubble. He revived an old culture, which later on became a brand.

The music brought over by Russians who emigrated before the communist era is a dying culture, a real treat that needs to be saved before it becomes extinct. I did brand myself quite strongly in the Gospel-side, but because of my roots, and for being somewhat a legend myself, of course I’d love to bring the authentic feeling of Russian Romances and Gypsy songs for the audiences, since when I’m gone, there won’t be any more [Russian] emigrant artists left [in Finland].

Anyone can start singing old gypsy romance songs but it needs to be anchored to something, to a legend, who will tell the story.

Mervi: I had actually been systematically looking for this particular type of programme since the year 2000. It had become a real passion for me after a long search for a genre that could become ‘my own’. Luckily I then found Viktor!

How is the Russian emigrant culture doing in other parts of the world?

Viktor: In France the emigrant culture used to be strong. There were Russian schools, and a lot of Russian artists that had escaped communism. But now it seems to be slowly withering away. All the former nests of Russian emigrant culture have been assimilated to the local culture, or converted into discotheques. It’s this global culture where things are jumbled up together, to create something ‘ethnic’. Personally I’m quite disgusted by that. But I guess it’s a good marketing gimmick.

Did you compose any of your own music for the production?

Viktor: No, I don’t think that would count as culture anymore!

Mervi: The material that we intend to use is mostly of the folkloric kind, which has been passed down through generations without a written form. They originate mainly from the gypsy camps in Russia in the 1700s.

What does gypsy music have to do with the Russian emigrant culture?

Viktor: It’s a musical genre within the emigrant culture. Cossacks, like my grandfather, and the rest of the tsar’s court used to go to the gypsies when they were looking for musical entertainment. Gypsies fled as well when communism took over, becoming a part of the Russian emigrant wave.

So all the music will be a reproduction of the folklore?

Viktor: I don’t think culture is very healthy if it is copied exactly as it is. When a tradition is taken forward it should also evolve. New traditions are born all the time.

Mervi: And the concert will show what the new is...

Jenni Toriseva