Kremlin looks for a new national anthem, may adapt Soviet anthem

Kremlin looks for a new national anthem, may adapt Soviet anthem
Dadan Upadhyay

Moscow, Nov 5 : The Kremlin is looking for a new national anthem, capable of giving a sop to the sagging morale of millions of Russians, in the faceof crumbling old infrastructure, increasing foreign debt and threat of depopulation.

A special commission on Russia's new national anthem is expected to submit its proposals this month to President Vladimir Putin, to make the finalchoice or put the issue to a nationwide referendum very soon.

Putin had set up the special commission, headed by Vladimir Yakovlev, thepowerful governor of St Petersburg, last month, at the first meeting of his newly-created consultative State Council.

Russia has been without an official national anthem since the collapse ofSoviet Union. Former Russian President Boris Yeltsin chose a temporarystand-in, a "Patriotic Song" composed by the 19th century Russian composerMikhail Glinka, and decreed it as national anthem in 1993. But it was neverapproved by the State Duma, the lower house of parliament.

The new national anthem not only lacked parliamentary approval, it'swordless tune failed to catch on with the people. The music is toocomplicated, for just anyone to sing along to.

The problem got intensified recently when the Russia's gold-winningathletes appeared faintly embarrassed when it was played at Sydney Olympics.Even Russian press blamed the poor performance of the Russian athletes inthe first week of Sydney Olympics on a low morale caused by an unspiringnational anthem. Yakovlev told mediapersons that special commission was considering three options : to preserve the Glinaka tune with words for it; to choose another song, such as the patriotic My Fatherland is Wide; or to restore the old Soviet anthem, but with new words.

Recently, Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov said that he was in favour ofadapting the music from the old Soviet anthem, with new words.

"The Soviet anthem's melody is solemn and easy to remember. It sent goose bumps down my spine when I was in the army," he told reporters.

Kasyanov is not alone in his preference for a new national anthem. Putinis also reportedly in favour of this option. It also coincides with the view of the Russia's mainstream Communist Party.

According to a public opinion poll, twenty-one percent of respondentswanted to restore the Soviet anthem, even with old words, eighteen percentwanted the old tune with new words, while only fifteen percent preferredGlinka's melody. A further 15 percent wanted a new national anthem. Many music critics are baffled at the Kremlin's attempt to restore the Soviet anthem tune.

Otto Latsis, a well-known political analysts with Izvestia newspaper, saidthat the issue was not about the merits of the Soviet anthem's musiccomposed by Alexander Alexandrov, a general who headed the Red Army songand dance ensemble.

The issue is that this was the music of the old Soviet national anthem,which before getting support of Putin and Kasyanov, had the support ofStalin.