In a photograph of the 1930s, the author captured close family members of the composer Tikhon Khrennikov — niece Veronica and mother Varvara Vasilievna.
Varvara Vasilievna was born in 1872 in the Kharlamov petty bourgeois family of Yelets. She graduated from the parochial school, and at the age of eighteen, in 1889, she married Nikolay Khrennikov.
Within marriage 10 children — 6 sons and 4 daughters — were born. The head of the family worked hard, so the whole house depended on Varvara Vasilievna. According to the recollections of relatives, she was distinguished by her kindness, inner nobility and great life wisdom. ‘She never shouted at us, did not scold, did not even raise her voice. As soon as she looked at me and slowly said: “Hush!” — and I stopped to pick a quarrel or get naughty. We obeyed her without question…’ — Khrennikov recalled. He inherited this character trait from his mother, and he never raised his voice in any however dramatic circumstances.
Simplicity, sincerity, restraint — these are the traits that she passed on to her children. Varvara Vasilievna wore simple clothes and did not like jewelry — she did not even have a gold wedding ring. She sewed perfectly, weaved lace, and taught these skills to her daughters.
Although Varvara Vasilievna did not have a musical education, the composer often came to her for advice and always listened to her opinion. It was a great pleasure for him that his mother was present at one of the first performances of the opera ‘In a Storm’ and was a witness to his success.
The fate of Varvara Vasilievna was not easy: her son Gleb died in the First World War, Nikolay died in 1942, Boris was convicted in 1937, Alexey was seriously ill. All these events affected her health. In 1942, her family was forced to leave for evacuation to the city of Kurgan, and she died a year later. Afterwards, her relatives reburied her in Yelets on the family plot of the old cemetery. When Khrennikov came to Yelets, he always visited his mother’s grave.
Veronica was the daughter of the eldest son, Nikolay Khrennikov. She was born in Yelets in 1925. Due to the fact that Veronica was fond of family history and communicated with relatives, she collected a photo archive of the Khrennikov family. She donated part of the family photographs to the collection of the house-museum.
Varvara Vasilievna was born in 1872 in the Kharlamov petty bourgeois family of Yelets. She graduated from the parochial school, and at the age of eighteen, in 1889, she married Nikolay Khrennikov.
Within marriage 10 children — 6 sons and 4 daughters — were born. The head of the family worked hard, so the whole house depended on Varvara Vasilievna. According to the recollections of relatives, she was distinguished by her kindness, inner nobility and great life wisdom. ‘She never shouted at us, did not scold, did not even raise her voice. As soon as she looked at me and slowly said: “Hush!” — and I stopped to pick a quarrel or get naughty. We obeyed her without question…’ — Khrennikov recalled. He inherited this character trait from his mother, and he never raised his voice in any however dramatic circumstances.
Simplicity, sincerity, restraint — these are the traits that she passed on to her children. Varvara Vasilievna wore simple clothes and did not like jewelry — she did not even have a gold wedding ring. She sewed perfectly, weaved lace, and taught these skills to her daughters.
Although Varvara Vasilievna did not have a musical education, the composer often came to her for advice and always listened to her opinion. It was a great pleasure for him that his mother was present at one of the first performances of the opera ‘In a Storm’ and was a witness to his success.
The fate of Varvara Vasilievna was not easy: her son Gleb died in the First World War, Nikolay died in 1942, Boris was convicted in 1937, Alexey was seriously ill. All these events affected her health. In 1942, her family was forced to leave for evacuation to the city of Kurgan, and she died a year later. Afterwards, her relatives reburied her in Yelets on the family plot of the old cemetery. When Khrennikov came to Yelets, he always visited his mother’s grave.
Veronica was the daughter of the eldest son, Nikolay Khrennikov. She was born in Yelets in 1925. Due to the fact that Veronica was fond of family history and communicated with relatives, she collected a photo archive of the Khrennikov family. She donated part of the family photographs to the collection of the house-museum.
