Sergey Dmitrievich Orekhov is a unique representative of the domestic musical art: he was an outstanding seven-string guitar virtuoso performer, he gained immense popularity among lovers of the Russian romance in particular and guitar performance in general, but he remained unknown to the general public and did not achieve recognition of the official authorities.
Biography and creativity
Sergei Dmitrievich was the eldest child in the large family of the Orekhovs. They lived in Moscow, father worked as a locksmith, and mother worked as a cook. Sergey was born on October 23, 1935, then another sister and two brothers were born. The boy was creatively gifted and very enthusiastic - he drew well; in addition to school, from 14 to 16 he studied at the circus school. And at the age of 15, he began to learn to play the seven-string guitar, and the music captivated the young man so much that it became not only his profession, but his whole life. At first, Sergey and his friend tried to learn the instruments of a self-instruction manual: Sergey - a seven-stringed guitar, and his friend - a button accordion. But such classes were not enough, an experienced mentor was needed - and he was found in the person of Vladimir Mitrofanovich Kuznetsov, who was a fairly well-known Moscow tutor-tutor, developed his own method of teaching playing the string instruments and wrote a book about it.
Later, Orekhov studied in the guitar circle with guitarist V.M. Kowalski. Sergei had tremendous performance, could play his favorite instrument for ten hours a day. In addition to the seven-stringed, the young man also mastered playing the six-stringed guitar, since its popularity in Soviet society was steadily increasing.
After school, Sergei Orekhov was called up for service in the ranks of the Soviet Army. He served in Leningrad, was a radio operator. He devoted all his free time to playing the guitar, and his command even sent him to various competitions, where he invariably won. He went on stage in soldier's uniform instead of a tuxedo, and at first no one even took him seriously, but as soon as he began to play, all the listeners and the jury were completely delighted.
And yet, the years of army service played a negative role in the fate of Orekhov: once he was cold and earned a severe cold with a complication in his hands. He was admitted to the hospital, where he underwent a long course of treatment for polyarthritis, then he was even commissary. The process of rehabilitation and development of hands began, but the musician was not completely cured until the end - for the rest of his life he played the guitar, overcoming pain. But otherwise he could not, he simply could not imagine himself without music and without his favorite instrument.
Having returned from the army, Sergey Orekhov was educated at the Gensins Music College for two years, and then he began his active concert activity, in which two directions are clearly traced: solo performance and accompaniment. As a soloist, he performed classical works for a seven-string guitar, processing Russian folk songs and romances.
As an accompanist, Orekhov worked with many famous vocalists who also performed romances and songs. Since 1956, Orekhov got a job at the Moskontsert and began performing with Raisa Zhemchuzhna, an outstanding performer of gypsy romances. Their cooperation lasted seven years - until the departure of Pearl for a well-deserved rest. And in 1963, Sergei Orekhov met the singer Nadezhda Andreevna Tishininova, who later became not only his partner on the stage, but also a life partner. Together with her, Orekhov prepared large concert programs in which he performed solo numbers, and also accompanied his wife; sometimes several accompanists took part in the concert, since Orekhov found it difficult to play throughout the program.
In addition to Tishininova, Sergey Orekhov also performed with other performers. So, many years of friendship and cooperation connected him with Nikolai Ivanovich Erdenko, a gypsy singer and violinist, who at 24 was invited to the position of musical director of the Gypsy Theater "Romen". In 1980, within the framework of this theater, Erdenko created the gypsy youth jazz ensemble "Djang", with which Sergey Orekhov played many concerts, and also took part in theatrical productions. Gypsy musicians very highly appreciated Orekhov’s guitar skills and emotional performance.
In the 80s, Sergey Dmitrievich performed a duet with guitarist Alexei Perfiliev, with singer and composer Anatoly Viktorovich Shamardin, as well as with the famous balalaika player and guitarist Valery Pavlovich Mineev. He happened to accompany Alexander Vertinsky, Galina Kareva, gypsy singers Tatyana Filimonova and Sofya Timofeeva. Warm friendship connected the Orekhov-Tishinina family with the outstanding singer Vadim Kozin, who in 1945 was convicted and exiled to Magadan. Arriving on tour in Kolyma, Orekhov and his wife must have visited Kozin and played music together. Audio recordings have been preserved, where Sergey Orekhov accompanies Kozin on a guitar, who sings and plays the piano.
However, many musicians who spoke with Orekhov complained of some difficulties in working with a guitarist: he was sometimes so immersed in music and was carried away by improvisation that he forgot about partners. He generally lived in music: it constantly sounded in his head, he composed more and more new treatments and variations of songs and romances. During the performance, Orekhov closed his eyes, and the audience had the impression that he was playing, not only with his hands, but also with his face and his whole body.
The incredible performance of the musician undermined his health: instead of heeding the advice of doctors and the requests of his wife to rest and heal his heart, Orekhov burdened himself with work. And he even died of a heart attack during a rehearsal with a balalaika player Valery Mineev. This happened at the 63rd year of the musician’s life, on August 19, 1998. Sergei Dmitrievich was buried in Moscow at the Vagankovsky cemetery.
Personal life
Wife of Sergei Dmitrievich Orekhov - singer Nadezhda Andreevna Tishininova - originally from Belgorod. They met visiting mutual friends when Orekhov was 28 years old. The girl was fascinated by the personality and, especially, the skill of a young guitarist who performed classical works and romances all evening. It seemed to her that not one musician was playing, but an entire orchestra. From that moment, young people were connected not only by love, but also by joint creativity. The couple lived together for 33 years - until the death of the guitarist. There were no children in the marriage. Nadezhda Tishininova survived her husband only four years, and all this short time she could think and talk only about her beloved wife.
