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Novgorodsev (Seva) letters received
2010C20  
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Table of contents What's This?
  • Access
  • Use
  • Acquisition Information
  • Preferred Citation
  • Biographical/Historical Note
  • Scope and Content of Collection
  • Related Materials

  • Title: Seva Novgorodsev letters received
    Date (inclusive): 1946-2004
    Collection Number: 2010C20
    Contributing Institution: Hoover Institution Library and Archives
    Language of Material: Russian
    Physical Description: 26 manuscript boxes (10.4 Linear Feet)
    Abstract: The collection consists of letters from listeners of British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Russian service broadcasts, related to social and cultural conditions, and especially to music in the Soviet Union and post-Soviet Russia.
    Creator: British Broadcasting Corporation
    Creator: Novgorodsev, Seva
    Physical Location: Hoover Institution Library & Archives

    Access

    The collection is open for research; materials must be requested in advance via our reservation system. If there are audiovisual or digital media material in the collection, they must be reformatted before providing access.

    Use

    For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.

    Acquisition Information

    Acquired by the Hoover Institution Library & Archives in 2010.

    Preferred Citation

    [Identification of item], Seva Novgorodsev letters received, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.

    Biographical/Historical Note

    1940 July 9 Born, Leningrad, Soviet Union (now St. Petersburg, Russia)
    1949 Moved to Tallinn, Estonia
    1954 Won first prize in on Estonian talent show
    1959-1964 Played in brass and jazz bands in Tallinn
    1962 Graduated from Leningradskoe vysshee inzhenernoe morskoe uchilishche imeni admirala C. O. Makarova (LVIMU), (Marine Academy)
    1962-1964 Served as a navigator for the Estonian Shipping Company
    1964-1975 Joined as a musician in the Joseph Weinstein's jazz orchestra, then head of "Dobrye molodtsy" rock group
    1973-1975 Worked for Moskontsert (Moscow Concert Association)
    1975 November 18 Left the Soviet Union for Austria, then Italy
    1977 Moved to London, England
    Since March 1977 Working for the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) as a translator, then as a radio presenter on the BBC Russian Service

    Scope and Content of Collection

    The collection consists of letters from listeners of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Russian service broadcasts, related to social and cultural conditions, especially to music in the Soviet Union and post-Soviet Russia.
    The letters are addressed to Seva Novgorodsev, a radio presenter at the BBC Russian Service who became famous throughout the former Soviet Union. He created the "Rok-posevy" music program and "the Sevaoborot" and "BibiSeva" chat shows.
    Most of the letters are from listeners and concern Seva Novgorodsev's musical and chat programs, including program comments, suggestions, and requests for information. These programs were the source of information not only about rock music but also about everyday life in Soviet Union. The letters were later used by the broadcaster in his programs, making a strong connection with the audience and creating an atmosphere of cultural dialogue.
    As Seva Novgodsev noted in his correspondence to the Hoover Institution, "These letters should be valued in the context of the years in which they were written. They show a gradual evolution of individual freedom in the USSR and young people's realizations of their own rights, daring to say what would be unthinkable before. They are also particularly valuable because of their informal nature and sincerity. Some of the letters come from the rural areas and they provide a glimpse of reality in those places. In short the letters witness the last years of Soviet communism from unexpected and previously unavailable source."
    Some letters are accompanied by clippings, articles, brochures, and sound recordings. These materials may be found in the Printed matter and Sound recordings series, as well as in Letters from listeners.
    Additional letters sent from fan clubs may be found in the Letters from fan clubs series. As Seva Novgordsev notes, "In 1988, Shura of Medvezhegorsk began collecting fan club rock-transfers via BBC. Thus began Norris (Independent Combined Information Rock Syndicate). In its heyday it had more than twenty offices around the USSR."
    Sources:
    Seva Novgorodsev e-mail correspondence to Lyalya Kharitonova of the Hoover Institution, June 5, 2010
    Seva Novgorodsev's website, http://seva.ru , accessed June 2010

    Related Materials

    Conference on Cold War Broadcasting Impact proceedings, Hoover Institution Library & Archives
    Charles D. Ablard papers, Hoover Institution Library & Archives
    Vl. Zhabinskii papers, Hoover Institution Library & Archives
    Alexander Vardy papers, Hoover Institution Library & Archives

    Subjects and Indexing Terms

    Radio broadcasting -- Soviet Union
    Radio broadcasting -- Russia (Federation)
    Music -- Soviet Union
    Soviet Union -- Social conditions
    Russia (Federation) -- Social conditions
    Music -- Russia (Federation)