Timeline: Vermont Public Classical

We’ve been telling the story of the Estonian "Singing Revolution," how a people used song to affect real, political and historical change.

We’ve been telling the story of the Estonian “Singing Revolution” and how non-violent, musical protest changed the course of a culture and a nation.

After World War II, the iron curtain of the Soviet Union fell on all the member states. One of the goals of Stalin’s regime was to bring uniformity across the vast territory that was now under Soviet control. Russification is a term used to describe the cultural assimilation that was taking place. Russian citizens would come by the thousands and settle in these other territories, to influence the labor force and local politics. Smaller countries, like Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia saw, not just the end of their independence but the eventual eradication of their culture, their way of life.

Has music ever changed the world? Can culture hold a people together? This story explores those questions.

Originally aired Jan 25, 2016

The years 1813 to 1816 were a dry period for Beethoven. He was wrestling with his health and with his family. His brother, Casper, had passed away and left behind a son, Karl – Beethoven’s beloved nephew. Ludwig entered into a nasty custody battle with Karl’s mother and lost. Beethoven often wrote in his journal prayers that this time of suffering would come to an end.

Originally aired Jan. 18, 2016

At the dawning of the 19th Century Beethoven had not given up hope that his doctors would find a treatment to reverse his hearing loss. His condition was not only affecting his musical output but also his social life, which was very important to him.

This episode was originally aired on Jan, 11, 2016.

Ludwig van Beethoven has been called the most admired composer in all of music history. His legacy stands as a monument for the entire 19th Century and beyond.

We’ve been tracing the Palchikoffs and Sergei’s violin through the 20th Century; starting in Russia during the civil war after the Bolshevik revolution of 1917, to the bombing of Hiroshima in 1945 and finally to California, where Sergei retired and passed away in 1969 leaving the violin to his daughter Kaleria.

We’ve been telling the story of Sergei Palchikoff, his family and his beloved violin that survived the bombing of Hiroshima 75 years ago. I’ve spent the better part of a year piecing this tale together from newspaper articles, old recordings and online resources. After the first episode aired on VPR Classical something remarkable happened. I got a phone call from Carmel, California; it was Anthony Drago, Sergei’s grandson.

On Timeline, we’ve been telling the story of the Palchikoff family, their experiences fleeing Russia, settling in Japan and surviving the bomb. It’s also the story of Kaleria’s father, Sergei and his beloved violin which today, 75 years later, is being used to play songs of peace.