Эй, ухнем! - The Song of the Volga Boatmen

This is our performance of the Song of the Volga Boatmen. It is the song of the Burlaki, seasonal workers tasked with the arduous task of hauling cargo ships up the Volga river. It tells of their hard work and endurance, but also their love for the mighty Volga river.

This project was inspired by the performance of the Kovcheg Ensemble and the art of Ilya Repin. It is meant to be an appreciation of the common Slavic history and the hardships of simple workers. We do not support the current Russian government and their war on Ukraine.

We are singers from the Boys Choir Lucerne. Check out our live concerts: https://www.boys-choir-lucerne.ch/


Lyrics and Translation

Chorus

Эй, ухнем!
Ещё разик, ещё да раз!

Yo, heave ho!
Once more, once again, still once more!

Verses

Разовьём мы берёзу,
разовьём мы кудряву!

We will unravel the birch tree,
We will unfurl the curly one!

This roughly refers to the symbolism of the birch tree for celebrating youth and femininity.

Эх ты, Волга, матьрека,
широка и глубока.

Oh, you Volga, Mother River, so vast and so deep.

Ей, что нам всего милей?
Волга, Волга, матьрека.

Hey, who do we love the most? Mother Volga!


Full Credits

Directed by
Fabian Lyck

Soprano
Jonas Lüscher

Tenor
Florian Kothbauer
Loris Sikora

Baritone
Leo Chen
Maximilian Künzi

Bass
Fabian Lyck
Minh Toan Tran

Percussion
Loris Sikora

Camera
Pascal Sommer
Maximilian Huber
Benjamin Schmid

Boat captains
Olivier St-Arnaud
Loris Sikora

Crew
Marius Lüscher
Matthias Lüscher

Costumes
Fabio Simbürger
Judith Erni
Fabian Lyck

Casting
Victor d'Episcopo

For inquiries: [email protected]