Korobeiniki

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For other uses, see Korobeiniki (disambiguation).
A song book cover, 1900

"Korobeiniki" (Russian: Коробе́йники, tr. Korobéyniki, IPA: [kərɐˈbʲejnʲɪkʲɪ], lit. 'The Peddlers') is a nineteenth-century Russian folk song that tells the story of a meeting between a korobeinik (peddler) and a girl, describing their haggling over goods in a metaphor for seduction.

Outside Russia, "Korobeiniki" is widely known as the Tetris theme tune, from its appearance in Nintendo's Game Boy version of the game (titled "A-Type") as arranged by the Japanese composer Hirokazu Tanaka in 1989.

The song "Korobeiniki" is based on the poem of the same name by Nikolay Nekrasov, which was first printed in the Sovremennik magazine in 1861.[1] Its increasing tempo and the dance style led to it quickly becoming a popular Russian folk song.[2] Early musical compositions of the song were published by Yakov Prigozhy [ru] and Alexander N. Chernyavsky (Чернявский, Александр Николаевич) in 1898.[3] Varvara Panina made gramophone records of the song with several recording companies in 1905 and later.[3][4]

Melody[edit]

\relative a' { \time 4/4 e4. gis8 b4 gis8 e8 a4. c8 e4 d8 c8 b4. c8 d4 e4 c4 a4 a2 \repeat volta 2 { f'4. g8 a4 g8 f8 e4. f8 e4 d8 c8 b4. c8 d4 e4 c4 a4 a2 } }

Lyrics sample[edit]

Russian lyrics Transliteration English translation
1 Ой полным полна моя коробушка
Есть и ситец, и парча.
Пожалей, душа-зазнобушка,
Молодецкого плеча. 		Oy polnym polna moya korobushka
Yest' i sitets i parcha.
Pozhaley, dusha-zaznobushka,
Molodetskovo plecha. 		Oh, my crate is so full,
I've got calico and brocade.
Take pity, oh sweety,
Of this lad's shoulder
2 Выйду, выйду в рожь высокую,
Там до ночки погожу,
Как завижу черноокую,
Все товары разложу.[5] 		Vyydu, vyydu v rozh' vysokuyu,
Tam do nochki pogozhu,
Kak zavizhu chernookuyu,
Vse tovary razlozhu. 		I will, I will go out into the tall rye,[a]
I will wait there till the night comes,
Once I see the dark-eyed lass,
I will showcase all my goods.

Critical reception[edit]

The official Tetris website wrote that Korobeiniki was "memorable enough on its own as both a poem and folk tune", independent of its adaption into the Tetris theme.[6]

Arrangements of the song[edit]

Tetris[edit]

See also: Tetris § Music

After arrangements of "Korobeiniki" first appeared in Spectrum Holobyte's Apple IIGS and Mac versions of Tetris, the song was re-arranged in 1989 by Hirokazu Tanaka[7] as the "Type A" accompaniment in Nintendo's Game Boy version 1.1. It has since become closely associated with the game in Western popular culture, and the Tetris Company has required its inclusion in every version of the game since 2002.[8] In 2008, UGO listed the song as the 3rd best video game music of all time.[9]

The Tetris Company holds a sound trademark on this variation of the song for use in video games.[10]

Doctor Spin's 1992 novelty Eurodance cover version under the name "Tetris" reached No. 6 on the UK singles chart.

Other adaptations and versions[edit]

  • Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra has recorded and performed versions of the song under the title "Peddlers" (sometimes ベドラーズ "Pedorāzu") since their eponymous debut EP in 1989.[11] Most recently it can be found on their "Ska Me Forever" (2014) album.[12]
  • The string quartet Bond included a version on their 2000 debut album Born called Korobushka which they often perform at their live concerts.
  • American rock band Ozma released a rock version on their 2001 album The Doubble Donkey Disc, used in 2013 on the movie Kick Ass 2.
  • An Italian house remix of the song called "Cammino Contento" was featured in the 2005 compilation album by Gigi D'Agostino, Disco Tanz.
  • Arranged by Yoko Shimomura.[13] The song is retained in later versions of Smash Bros. as well.[14][15]
  • A trance cover arranged by Ryu* is featured on the Exit Trance release Exit Trance Presents FamiTrance EX (EXIT TRANCE PRESENTS ファミトランス EX, EXIT TRANCE PRESENTS Famitoransu EX, 2009) under the title "Korobushka". The song was later included on his album Ageha as "Korobushka (Ryu*Remix)".
  • In 2006, Jablay, sung by Titi Kamal for original soundtrack of Mendadak Dangdut samples and slightly modifies Korobeiniki on chorus part.[16]
  • The Timbers Army sings this melody with altered lyrics during Portland Timbers games, usually accompanied by a simple dance with a large visual effect.[17][18][19]
  • The German Techno Band Scooter used the melody for it in their song "Whistling Dave" from the 2007 album Jumping All Over the World.
  • A version of this song was arranged for the game The End Is Nigh titled ??? – Korobeiniki (Russian Folk 1861) by video game composer team Ridiculon (Matthias Bossi and Jon Evans).
  • German band dArtagnan both used the music for their song Trink mein Freund and released a folk rock version of Korobeiniki (in Russian) in their 2022 album Felsenfest.[20][21]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ "into the tall rye" is a sexual innuendo akin to Comin' Thro' the Rye by Robert Burns

References[edit]

  1. ^ Cornwell, Neil (1998), "Reference Guide to Russian Literature", p. 574
  2. ^ Lane, Christy & Langhout, Susan (1998), "Multicultural Folk Dance Guide", pp. 19–22
  3. ^ a b "Сл. Н. Некрасова" [Words by N. Nekrasov] (in Russian). Retrieved 2023-12-25.
  4. ^ [1] Search for "Варя Панина" at russian-records.com
  5. ^ "Николай Некрасов: Коробейники". Nekrasov.niv.ru. Archived from the original on 2017-05-08. Retrieved 2011-02-21.
  6. ^ "The History of the Tetris Theme Music". Tetris. 8 June 2017. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  7. ^ Square Enix Music Online, Hirokazu Tanaka: Brief Profile
  8. ^ Johnson, Bobbie (June 1, 2009). "How Tetris conquered the world, block by block". The Guardian. Archived from the original on March 29, 2015.
  9. ^ Rosenberg, Adam (2008-01-11). "Tetris – 'Korobeiniki', as inspired by the original Russian folk song – Best Video Game Music of All Time". UGO.com. Archived from the original on 2011-10-31. Retrieved 2018-08-22.
  10. ^ Trademark Applications and Registrations Retrieval, Latest Status Info. Accessed 2009-03-13.
  11. ^ "Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra – Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra (1989, Vinyl)". Discogs. 1989.
  12. ^ "Ska Me Forever". Amazon.
  13. ^ Tetris: Type A – Super Smash Bros. Brawl. GilvaSunner. 2011-01-13. Archived from the original on 2021-01-30. Retrieved 2021-08-11 – via YouTube.
  14. ^ "List of SSB4 Music (Nintendo series)". 7 December 2021.
  15. ^ "List of SSBU Music (Other series)". 12 December 2021.
  16. ^ Jablai. Various Artists. 2019-04-10. Archived from the original on 2021-12-12. Retrieved 2021-08-11 – via YouTube.
  17. ^ Williams, Meagan (August 25, 2011). "Timbers Army Tetris dance". Portland Pulp. Archived from the original on July 24, 2012. Retrieved August 23, 2021.
  18. ^ "Portland Timbers release free custom, web-based video game, 'Set Piece'". Portland Timbers News. June 15, 2016. Retrieved August 23, 2021.
  19. ^ "Tetris / Korobushka Chant: PT Songs". FanChants. Retrieved August 23, 2021.
  20. ^ dArtagnan - Trink mein Freund (Offizielles Video), retrieved 2022-07-23
  21. ^ Korobeiniki, retrieved 2022-12-30
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