Moscow Revives Tradition Of Railway Terminal Concerts

"Long Journey" is the name of a concert that's taking place at Moscow's Savyolovsky Terminal on December 11. Intended as part of the effort to restore the old tradition of railway terminal concerts, the soiree was organised by the Moscow Railway and the Ministry of Railways. Back in the 19th century, when Russia was building its first railways, the word "vokzal" /Russian for "terminal"/ was short for "vokalnaya zala," or "singing hall." Indeed, the country's first railway terminal, Pavlovsky vokzal, was erected outside St. Petersburg in 1838 as a leisure facility. The first tradition-reviving concert, timed to coincide with two railway anniversaries -- the centenary of the Trans-Siberian main line and the 150th birthday of regular railway communication between Moscow and St. Petersburg -- was held at the Savyolovsky Terminal in April, 2001. On December 11, passengers will get a chance to hear some live singing by artists from the Moscow Theater of Romance.