Poet, bard. He acted in films as an actor, screenwriter, songwriter and poet.

Parents were repressed, the boy grew up with his grandmother in Moscow, in 1940 he moved to relatives in Tbilisi.
Member of the Great Patriotic War.
Graduated from Tbilisi State University(1950). Worked as a teacher.
Published since 1953, gave concerts. One of the generally recognized founders of the "author's song". He wrote songs for the films of Marlen Khutsiev, Valery Rubinchik, Pyotr Todorovsky, Vladimir Motyl, Dinara Asanova, Andrey Smirnov and other directors.
The author of unforgettable songs: “Spring again in the world”, “I met hope again”, “Sentinels of love”. Collections of poems: "Lyrics" (1956), "Islands" (1959), "The Merry Drummer" (1964), "On the Road to Tinatin" (1964), "Magnanimous March" (1967), "Arbat, my Arbat" ( 1976). Novels: "Be healthy, schoolboy" (1961), "The front is coming to us" (1967). Historical novels: “Poor Avrosimov” (1969, “A Sip of Freedom” - 1971), “Merci, or the Adventures of Shipov. Ancient vaudeville "(1971). The novels "Journey of amateurs" (1-2 books., 1976-1978), "Date with Bonaparte" (1983).
In 1997, by decree of the President of the Russian Federation, the regulation on the Bulat Okudzhava Prize was approved for "the creation of works in the genre of author's song and poetry that contribute to Russian culture."
In Peredelkino (Moscow region) a museum of B.Sh. Okudzhava.

He sent a letter to Sergo Ordzhonikidze with a request to send him to party work in Russia, and was sent to the Urals by the party organizer to build a car-building plant in the city of Nizhny Tagil. Then Shalva Stepanovich became the 1st secretary of the Nizhny Tagil City Party Committee and soon sent his family to his Urals. Bulat began to study at school number 32.

In 1937, Okudzhava's father was arrested and shot on false charges (August 4, 1937). Shortly after the arrest of his father, in February 1937, his mother, grandmother and Bulat moved to Moscow. The first place of residence in Moscow - st. Arbat, 43, communal apartment on the 4th floor. Okudzhava's mother was already arrested in Moscow in 1938 and exiled to the Karaganda camp, from where she returned only in 1955. Two of my father's brothers were also shot as supporters of Trotsky. Bulat Okudzhava rarely spoke and wrote about his ancestors and his fate, only towards the end of his life in his autobiographical novel Abolished Theater (1993) did he talk about the hardships of his family.

Bulat Okudzhava in 1944

In 1940, Bulat Okudzhava moved to live with relatives in Tbilisi. He studied, then worked at the plant as a turner apprentice.

In April 1942, at the age of 17, Okudzhava went to the front as a volunteer. He was sent to the 10th Separate Reserve Mortar Battalion. Then, after two months of training, he was sent to the North Caucasian Front. Was a mortar man, then a radio operator heavy artillery. He was wounded near Mozdok.

By this time, his first song “We Couldn’t Sleep in Cold Cars” (1943), the text of which has not been preserved, dates back.

The second song was written in 1946 - "An old student song" ("Furious and stubborn ...").

After the war, Okudzhava entered Tbilisi State University. Having received a diploma, in 1950 he began working as a teacher - first in a rural school in the village of Shamordino, Kaluga Region, and in the district center of Vysokinichi.

From February 1952 until the end of 1953, he worked as a teacher of Russian language and literature at school No. 5 in Kaluga (Dzerzhinsky St., 49) - one of the oldest in the city. The impressions of the Kaluga period of life later formed the basis of many of his stories. Okudzhava visited the school several times, attended its anniversaries, presented the museum with books, a gramophone record with a recording of his songs. In honor of the 80th anniversary of the poet, a bas-relief of Okudzhava was unveiled at the school.

In 1954, after the meeting of the writer Vladimir Koblikov and the poet Nikolai Panchenko with readers in the Vysokinichsky district, Bulat approached them and offered to listen to his poems. Having received approval and support, he moved to Kaluga, where he began to collaborate with the newspaper "Young Leninist" and in 1956 released his first collection "Lyrics".

In 1956, after the rehabilitation of both parents and the XX Congress, he joined the CPSU.

In 1959 Okudzhava returned to Moscow. In the same year, he began to act as a songwriter (poetry and music) and perform them with a guitar, quickly gaining popularity. This period (1956-1967) includes the composition of many of Okudzhava’s most famous early songs (“On Tverskoy Boulevard”, “Song about Lyonka Korolev”, “Song about the blue ball”, “Sentimental March”, “Song about the midnight trolley bus”, “ Not vagabonds, not drunkards”, “Moscow Ant”, “Song about the Komsomol Goddess”, etc.).

He worked as an editor at the Young Guard publishing house, then as head of the poetry department at the Literary Gazette. Participated in the work of the literary association "Magistral".

In 1961, he left the service and no longer worked for hire, being engaged exclusively in creative activities.

In 1961, Okudzhava made his debut as a prose writer: his autobiographical story “Be Healthy, Schoolboy” was published in the almanac “ Tarusa Pages” (it was published as a separate edition in 1987).

Novels published: "Poor Avrosimov" ("A Sip of Freedom") (1969) about tragic pages in the history of the Decembrist movement, "The Adventures of Shipov, or Ancient Vaudeville" (1971) and written on historical material early XIX century novels "Journey of amateurs" (part 1. - 1976; part 2. - 1978) and "Date with Bonaparte" (1983).

Since 1992 - Member of the Pardon Commission under the President of the Russian Federation; since 1994 - Member of the Commission on State Prizes of the Russian Federation.

He was a member of the founding board of the Moscow News newspaper, a member of the founding board of the General Newspaper, a member of the editorial board of the Evening Club newspaper, a member of the Board of the Memorial Society.

During the 1990s, Okudzhava mostly lived in a dacha in Peredelkino. During these years, Okudzhava gave concerts in Moscow and St. Petersburg, in the USA, Canada, Germany and Israel.

On June 23, 1995, the pre last concert Bulat Okudzhava at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris.

It is possible that Okudzhava's last concert was in the city of Brno, in the Czech Republic on October 27, 1995.

On June 12, 1997, Bulat Okudzhava died in Paris (in the suburb of Clamart), in a military hospital.

Before his death, Bulat Okudzhava was baptized with the name John in memory of the holy martyr John the Warrior. This happened in Paris with the blessing of one of the elders of the Pskov-Caves Monastery.

Public activity, political views, criticism

Soon this interview was quoted in the newspaper "Podmoskovye" - with serious cuts, distorting the meaning of the statements. In particular, words were omitted about the withdrawal of Khasbulatov and others under escort, and it turned out that the interviewee enjoyed the fact of the shots. Referring already to this reprint, the opponents of the poet repeatedly obstructed him. Okudzhava himself commented on his interview as follows: “In the newspaper Podmoskovnye Izvestia, I spoke out against Khasbulatov, Makashov, Rutskoi, whom I do not accept. But not against ordinary people.

When at the last concert at UNESCO on June 23, 1995 he was asked about the situation in Chechnya, he answered this way:

Our famous bard Bulat Okudzhava once said that patriotism is a primitive feeling that even a cat has. It must be said that when a person expresses a false thought, he very often refutes himself. The fact is that a cat, unlike a dog, is completely devoid of patriotism. She feels good where she lives better, where she is better fed. She is completely unattached to the house. Therefore, Bulat Okudzhava exposed himself. Since his thought is false, he gave a false example.

Vadim Kozhinov, "Sin and Holiness of Russian History", 2010, p. 369

Family and environment

• Father - Shalva Stepanovich Okudzhava, party member Soviet leader(repressed in 1937).

Bulat Shalvovich was married twice.

• The first wife - Galina Vasilievna Smolyaninova (1926-1965), he divorced her in 1964, died of a heart attack.

• The son from his first marriage, Igor Okudzhava (1954-1997), served time in prison, took drugs. :* The daughter from her first marriage died in early infancy, according to other evidence, having just been born.

• The second wife is Olga Vladimirovna Okudzhava (d. Artsimovich), a physicist by education, niece of Lev Artsimovich.

• Son - Bulat (Anton) Bulatovich Okudzhava (b. 1965), musician, composer.

In 1981 he met the singer Natalya Gorlenko (b. June 10, 1955), with whom he had a long romance, which was reflected in his work.

Okudzhava's circle of personal friends included Bella Akhmadulina,

His father, Shalva Okudzhava, was Georgian by nationality, and his mother, Ashkhen Nalbandyan, was Armenian.

In 1934, he moved with his parents to Nizhny Tagil, where his father was appointed first secretary of the city party committee, and his mother was appointed secretary of the district committee.

In 1937, Okudzhava's parents were arrested. On August 4, 1937, Shalva Okudzhava was shot on false charges, Ashkhen Nalbandyan was exiled to the Karaganda camp, from where she returned only in 1955.
After the arrest of his parents, Bulat lived with his grandmother in Moscow. In 1940 he moved to live with relatives in Tbilisi.

Since 1941, since the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, he worked as a turner at a defense plant.

In 1942, after finishing the ninth grade, he volunteered for the front. He served on the North Caucasian front as a mortar operator, then as a radio operator. He was wounded near Mozdok.

“In the forty-second year, after the ninth grade, at the age of seventeen, I voluntarily went to the front. He fought, was a mortar, private, soldier. Basically - the North Caucasian front. Wounded near Mozdok German aircraft. And after the cure - the heavy artillery of the reserve of the High Command ...
That's all I was able to see.

I didn't make it to Berlin.

I was a very funny soldier. And, probably, there was a little sense from me. But I tried my best to make everyone happy. I shot when I needed to shoot. Although I'll tell you honestly that it's not big love I shot because killing people is not a very pleasant thing. Then - I was very afraid of the front.

The first day I got to the front line. Both I and several of my comrades, just like me, seventeen years old, looked very cheerful and happy. And on the chest we hung machine guns. And we went forward to the location of our battery. And everyone already imagined in their imagination how we would now fight and fight beautifully.

And at the very moment when our fantasies reached their climax, suddenly a mine exploded, and we all fell to the ground, because we were supposed to fall. But we fell as expected, but a mine fell from us at a distance of half a kilometer.

Then everyone who was nearby walked past us, and we were lying. Everyone went about their business, and we were lying. Then we heard laughter at ourselves. They raised their heads. We knew it was time to get up. They got up and left too.

This was our first baptism of fire. That was the first time I knew that I was a coward. First time. By the way, I must tell you that before that I considered myself a very brave person, and everyone who was with me considered themselves the bravest.

And then there was the war. I learned and saw a lot ... And I also learned that everyone who was with me was also afraid. Some showed the view, others did not. Everyone was afraid. This was a little comforting.

The impression from the front was very strong, because I was a boy. And then, later, when I began to write poetry, my first poems were on military theme. There were many poems. They made songs. From some. They were mostly sad songs. Well, because, I'll tell you, there's nothing fun about war."

Being a regimental leader, in 1943 at the front he composed his first song “We couldn’t sleep in cold cars ...”, the text of which has not been preserved.
Okudzhava: "There is nothing fun in war."
In 1945, Okudzhava was demobilized and returned to Tbilisi, where he passed the secondary school exams as an external student.
In 1950 he graduated from the Faculty of Philology of Tbilisi State University, worked as a teacher - first in a rural school in the village of Shamordino Kaluga region and in the regional center Vysokinichi, then in Kaluga.
He worked as a correspondent and literary employee of the Kaluga regional newspapers Znamya and Molodoy Leninets.

Okudzhava's first poem was published in 1945 in the newspaper of the Transcaucasian Military District "Fighter of the Red Army". Then the poet's poems were regularly published in other newspapers.

In 1946, Okudzhava wrote the first surviving song, Furious and Stubborn.

In 1956, after the release of the first collection of poems "Lyric" in Kaluga, Bulat Okudzhava returned to Moscow, worked as deputy editor for the literature department in the Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper, editor in the Young Guard publishing house, then head of the poetry department in Literaturnaya Gazeta ". He took part in the work of the Magistral literary association.

In 1959, the second poetic collection of the poet "Islands" was published in Moscow.

In 1962, having become a member of the Union of Writers of the USSR, Okudzhava left the service and devoted himself entirely to creative activity.
Author of lyric collections The Cheerful Drummer (1964), On the Road to Tinatin (1964), Generous March (1967), Arbat, My Arbat (1976) and others.

In 1996, Okudzhava's last collection of poetry, Tea Party on the Arbat, was published.

Since the 1960s, Okudzhava has worked extensively in the prose genre. In 1961, in the almanac Tarusa Pages, his autobiographical story “Be Healthy, Schoolboy” was published (in a separate edition in 1987), dedicated to yesterday's schoolchildren who had to defend the country from fascism. The story received a negative assessment of official criticism, which accused Okudzhava of pacifism.

In 1965, Vladimir Motyl managed to film this story, giving the film the name - "Zhenya, Zhenechka and Katyusha". In subsequent years, Okudzhava wrote autobiographical prose, which compiled the collections of stories The Girl of My Dreams and The Visiting Musician, as well as the novel Abolished Theater (1993).
In the late 1960s, Okudzhava turned to historical prose. The novels Poor Avrosimov (1969) about the tragic pages in the history of the Decembrist movement, The Adventures of Shipov, or Ancient Vaudeville (1971) and the novels The Voyage of Amateurs written on the basis of historical material of the early 19th century (1976 - the first part; 1978) were published as separate editions. - the second part) and "Date with Bonaparte" (1983).

Poetic and prose works of Okudzhava have been translated into many languages ​​and published in many countries of the world.

From the second half of the 1950s, Bulat Okudzhava began to act as an author of poetry and music for songs and their performer, becoming one of the universally recognized founders of the author's song.
Okudzhava is the author of more than 200 songs
The earliest known songs of Okudzhava date back to 1957-1967 (“On Tverskoy Boulevard”, “Song about Lyonka Korolyov”, “Song about the blue ball”, “Sentimental March”, “Song about the midnight trolleybus”, “Not tramps, not drunkards”, “Moscow ant”, “Song about the Komsomol goddess”, etc.). Tape recordings of his speeches instantly spread throughout the country. Okudzhava's songs were heard on radio, television, in films and performances.

Okudzhava's concerts were held in Bulgaria, Austria, Great Britain, Hungary, Australia, Israel, Spain, Italy, Canada, France, Germany, Poland, USA, Finland, Sweden, Yugoslavia and Japan.

In 1968, the first disc with Okudzhava's songs was released in Paris. Since the mid-1970s, his CDs have also been released in the USSR. In addition to songs based on his own poems, Okudzhava wrote a number of songs based on poems by the Polish poetess Agnieszka Osiecka, which he himself translated into Russian.
Okudzhava's concerts were held in Europe, USA, Canada and Japan
Andrei Smirnov's film "Belarusian Station" (1970) brought national fame to the performer, in which a song was performed to the words of the poet "Birds do not sing here ...".

Okudzhava is also the author of other popular songs for such films as "Straw Hat" (1975), "Zhenya, Zhenechka and Katyusha" (1967), "White Sun of the Desert" (1970), "Star of Captivating Happiness" (1975). In total, Okudzhava's songs and his poems are featured in more than 80 films.

In 1994, Okudzhava wrote his last song - "Departure".

In the second half of the 1960s, Bulat Okudzhava acted as a co-author of the script for the films Loyalty (1965) and Zhenya, Zhenechka and Katyusha (1967).

In 1966, he wrote the play A Sip of Freedom, which a year later was staged in several theaters at once.

AT last years Bulat Okudzhava was a member of the founding board of the Moscow News newspaper, general newspaper”, a member of the editorial board of the Evening Club newspaper, a member of the Council of the Memorial Society, vice president of the Russian PEN Center, a member of the pardon commission under the President of the Russian Federation (since 1992), a member of the commission on State Prizes of the Russian Federation (since 1994).

On June 23, 1995, Okudzhava's last concert took place at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris.

On June 12, 1997, Bulat Okudzhava died in a clinic in Paris. According to his will, he was buried in Vagankovsky cemetery in Moscow.

Okudzhava was married twice.

From his first marriage with Galina Smolyaninova, the poet had a son, Igor Okudzhava (1954-1997).

In 1961, he met his second wife, the niece of the famous physicist Lev Artsimovich, Olga Artsimovich. The son from his second marriage Anton Okudzhava (born in 1965) is a composer, father's accompanist at creative evenings of recent years.

In 1997, in memory of the poet, by decree of the President of the Russian Federation, the regulation on the Bulat Okudzhava Prize was approved, awarded for the creation of works in the genre of author's song and poetry that contribute to Russian culture.

In October 1999, the State memorial museum Bulat Okudzhava in Peredelkino.

In May 2002, the first and most famous monument to Bulat Okudzhava was opened in Moscow near house 43 on the Arbat.

The Bulat Okudzhava Foundation annually hosts the “Visiting Musician” evening at the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall in Moscow. Festivals named after Bulat Okudzhava are held in Kolontaevo (Moscow region), on Lake Baikal, in Poland and in Israel.

Bulat Shalvovich Okudzhava was born on May 9, 1924 in Moscow. He is widely known as one of the most talented Soviet bards, composers and poets. Bulat Okudzhava performed songs based on his own poems. With his work, he forever left his mark on the history of the author's song. The bard and the poet have been dead for almost 20 years, but his songs and poems are still popular among lovers of bard songs.

After Okudzhava's father was shot in the camp, and his mother was arrested and exiled to the camp for 9 years, Bulat lived in Tbilisi with relatives. Bulat studied at school, then got a job as a turner at the plant. In 1943, participating in the battles near Mozdok, he was wounded. It was at this time that one of his first songs was released.

In 1950, Okudzhava received the profession of a teacher, graduating from the University of Tbilisi. After working as a teacher in a rural school, Bulat ended up in the village of Shamordino, Kaluga Region, where he wrote many poems that later became songs.

Okudzhava's literary career begins in 1954. For 40 years, about 15 collections with poems by Bulat Okudzhava were born. Stories, including for children, the play also took place in the work of the author.

In 1958, Okudzhava began to perform songs written by him, and over a fairly short period of time won the hearts of millions of people living in the Soviet Union. His work had a strong influence on the formation of bard songs.

Bulat Okudzhava was noted not only for his participation in episodic roles in Soviet cinema, but also wrote many famous compositions for films, and also visited the role of a screenwriter.

In the period from 1967 to 1985, five records were released with Okudzhava's author's songs (one in France, the rest in the USSR).

During his life, the bard and composer was awarded many awards, prizes and honorary titles.

As for the personal life of the bard, he had two wives. With the first wife, Galina Smolyaninova, they divorced in 1964, their son and daughter died. With his second wife, Olga Artsimovich, he lived in marriage until the end of his days, their son became a musician and composer.

Bulat Okudzhava. Biography

Bulat Shalvovich Okudzhava is a musical and literary figure of the Soviet period. He was born on May 9, 1924 in Moscow and died on June 12, 1997 in Clamart (France). His work is known to this day soviet man loved his songs and poems.

His father is Georgian (Mingrelian) by nationality, and his mother is from Armenia. Mother and father lived in Tiflis, but they left for Moscow to study, Bulat was also born there. Then, with his father, little Bulat went to live in Tbilisi, and his mother worked in the city of Moscow. As participants in the assassination attempt on the director of the Uralvagonstroy plant, his father and his two brothers were shot in 1937. Therefore, Bulat was returned to Moscow to his mother and grandmother, where they lived on Arbat Street. But in 1938 his mother was arrested, she was exiled to Karlag. She returned from the Gulag only in 1947.

Bulat Okudzhava was mobilized into the army in August 1942, since he only then turned 18. In 1944 he was demobilized, because his health deteriorated after being wounded. In 1985 he was awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st class. Bulat was enrolled after the war at the University of Tbilisi as a philologist, and at the end he worked as a teacher for several years.

Poetic and singing activity

In 1956, the debut collection of Bulat Okudzhava was released, where his poems were collected. At the same time, he moved to Moscow and became popular thanks to his songs. At the same time they wrote famous songs, such as "Sentimental March" and others. In 1962, he was approved for a small role in "The Chain Reaction", where he was the performer of his own song "Midnight Trolley". In 1968, his record appeared in France, he also recorded songs for this record in France. In 1970, his song also plays in the film "Belarusian Station". The songs of his authorship were played in the cinema more than 80 times. Already in the mid-70s, his records began to appear on the shelves of the Soviet space.

In addition to working on his works, he took up translation activities. Studied poetry and prose by various authors different countries. Together with Isaac Schwartz, he created a huge number of popular songs. Also, in one almanac, an autobiography was published, stories on historical topics were printed. He also wrote war stories for children and worked as an editor for a well-known publishing house.

Bulat Shalvovich recent times lived in the Moscow region, performed with his works in different cities Soviet Union and the West. He completed his performances in Paris.

Okudzhava died in 1997 due to complications from pneumonia in France, but his body was moved to Moscow and buried.

Bulat Okudzhava is a famous Soviet singer who became famous thanks to many bright songs. His repertoire includes about two hundred author's compositions, each of which has its own history and destiny. Bulat Okudzhava is a performer who has become a real symbol of his time, one of the brightest singers of his generation. It is for this reason that this biographical article on his life and fate seems so interesting.

The early years, childhood and the family of Bulat Okudzhava

Bulat Okudzhava was born in the capital of the USSR in a family of staunch communists, immigrants from Georgia and Armenia. The father of the future poet - Georgian Shalva Stepanovich Okudzhava - was a well-known party leader. Mother - Armenian Ashkhen Stepanovna Nalbandyan was a housewife.

A couple of years after the birth of their son, the parents of the future singer returned to Tbilisi again. Here, Bulat Okudzhava's father began to rapidly climb up the party ladder. He was the secretary of the Tbilisi city committee, the 1st secretary of the Nizhny Tagil city party committee, and also held some other important positions. Following him, the family of Bulat Okudzhava often moved, but very soon the career of Shalva Stepanovich was tragically interrupted. According to a false denunciation, which was also aggravated by a quarrel with Lavrenty Beria in the past, the father of the future singer was exiled to camps and then shot. Fleeing from persecution, Bulat Okudzhava's mother brought her son back to Moscow, but later she also ended up in the Karaganda camp for the wives of traitors to the motherland. The courageous woman had a chance to return from there only twelve years later. However, that's a completely different story...

As for Bulat Okudzhava himself, after the arrest of his mother, he again went to relatives in Tbilisi. Here he studied and then worked as a turner at the factory. In 1942, Okudzhava volunteered for the front. AT Soviet army he served as a mortar and managed to take part in many bloody battles. In 1943, he was seriously wounded near Mozdok, and then sent to the front line.

It is noteworthy that already during this period Okudzhava wrote one of his very first songs - “We couldn’t sleep in cold cars”. After writing it, Bulat did not pick up the guitar for a long time.

After the war, the future singer entered Tbilisi State University. After graduating in 1950, he began working as a teacher in a rural school. During this period, Bulat Okudzhava often wrote poetry, many of which were subsequently set to music.

Star Trek Bulat Okudzhava: from literature to songs

In 1954, Bulat Okudzhava attended a meeting with readers of two famous Soviet writers Vladimir Koblikov and Nikolai Panchenko. After the end of the creative evening, he approached them and offered to listen to his poems. The poems of the young author were very liked by recognized writers, and very soon his work began to be published in the newspaper "Young Leninist". for the sake of new job in the newspaper, he moved to Kaluga, where he subsequently published his first collection of poems "Lyric" (1956).

Bulat Okudzhava - Song about fools

After the rehabilitation of his parents in 1955, he joined the CPSU, and three years later he moved to Moscow, where he began working as a songwriter. Despite the fact that there were no posters with announcements of his performances anywhere, Bulat Okudzhava's concerts were always sold out. The audience shared their impressions with their friends, and they brought their friends to the performances. Thus, already in the early sixties, Bulat Okudzhava became very popular.

He performed his songs with a guitar, and listeners really liked this almost intimate format of singing songs. Very soon, the compositions "On Tverskoy Boulevard", "Moscow Ant", "Sentimental March" and many, many others became real hits of their time.

In 1961, the first official concert of Bulat Okudzhava took place in Kharkov, which was a great success. Soon, creative evenings of the performer were held in some other cities of the USSR.

Bulat Okudzhava - Song about the Moscow ant

In 1962, the composition of Bulat Okudzhava was first heard in the cinema. The film "Chain Reaction" did not receive popular popularity, but its name is still inextricably linked with the work of the legendary singer-songwriter.

Another composition of the poet, written for the film "Belarusian Station", became really popular. After the premiere, Bulat Okudzhava's song "We Need One Victory" sounded from all tape recorders in the country. It is worth noting that to this day this legendary composition is one of the most famous songs of the author.

Subsequently, Bulat Okudzhava often collaborated with prominent Soviet directors, composing a total of more than eighty songs for various films.

In the eighties, with the mass appearance of tape recorders and other devices for playing music, he firmly established himself as one of the most famous musicians of his time. But first of all, Okudzhava was known as a poet and prose writer. His novels and short stories were published in many Soviet magazines and invariably enjoyed great success.

The Last Years of Bulat Okudzhava

With the collapse of the USSR, Bulat Okudzhava began to frequently tour European countries and other Western countries. In the early nineties, his concerts took place in Poland, France, Israel, the USA, Canada, Germany and other countries.

In the last years of his life, Bulat Okudzhava lived in Paris. There, in 1997, he died of a short illness. The poet's body was returned to Russia and buried at the Vagankovsky cemetery in Moscow.

Personal life of Bulat Okudzhava

Bulat Shalvovich was married twice. The first marriage with Galina Smolyaninova was tragic. Their daughter died in infancy, and their son Igor became a drug addict and was in prison.

The second marriage with the physicist Olga Artsimovich was more successful. In this marriage, the son Anton was born, who later became a famous composer.

According to some reports, there was also another vivid novel in the life of Bulat Okudzhava. Long time his civil wife was the singer Natalya Gorlenko. With her famous author lived for several years.