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Prehistory

The Transformations Of The Rebellion

Political Resistance

"Silent" current

Hippies

Punks

Music

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Start

Lietuviškai

The Rebellion of Youth (1964–1991)

MUSIC

And I would think I woke up at the wrong time
And that all I did was travel around the tree in the yard
What I wanted to say – I said to myself
Everyone here was dressed in red
Perhaps you know if clothes like that burn well?!

Saulės slėnis (“Valley of the Sun”) by Raganiai
Lyrics by drummer Natanas Gitkindas

Music creates and destroys; it prepares a person for the flight of the spirit, and spreads joy or tranquility without asking for anything. Tyrants have tried to force creations of the spirit to serve their fanaticism, but failed to enslave them. Jazz and rock became a way of life for the youth of the “Evil Empire”. Young hearts beat to the rhythm of music, and music turned into the world’s emotional language, a flag of identity. The power of sounds reinforced the suggestiveness of the lyrics, flying young people to the most sacred spaces of resistance, where they dreamed, talked and shouted. The listener and the artists constructed a symbolic reality, creating roles for themselves, and finding other opportunities to be somewhere other than the real world. Youthful naivety and sentimentality had a kind of natural depth that did not require special complexity. The new culture promoted uselessness, love and peace. The world was perceived directly and simply. Broader interpretations would freeze, suppress and hinder the understanding of the flow of freedom and the positive unevenness of being.

Gediminas Simniškis-Gedson, the bassist for Mind’s Disorder, Lithuania’s first punk rock band, playing the pipe during a performance.

Vilnius, 1970s. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Arvydas Makauskas)

Western music was broadcast in Lithuania from the radio stations of Europe, the United States, and the satellite states of the USSR. The young people in the Taunys family home on Rudnios Street in Vilnius, which was known among hippies as a “house of unlocked doors” – brothers Alvitas and Gintaras along with their sister Arūnė – corresponded with a BBC radio presenter, became members of the global BBC Music Club, and received BBC T-shirts as a gift. When passers-by would see the threesome on the street with those T-shirts, they, like true Soviets, took the acronym to mean “Военно-Воздушные Силы” (“Air Force”). In 1961, the first new music records to reach Lithuania were copied on old X-ray photographs with human bones. Music lovers would take those X-rays from their parents and bring them to illegal recording studios, where they would pay some guy named Romka to turn the X-ray film into a music record. This kind of “media” was called “Rock on bones”.

Aleksandras Jegorovas-Džyza (left) and Valerijus Viksmanas-Fikusas (right) at the Žirmūnai restaurant during Žirmūnų Seišenas, the first Lithuanian rock festival.

Vilnius, 26 April 1970. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Arūnė Taunytė)

The name turned into a symbol. The music of the youth, mockingly called the “music of the dogs”, cut its way through the breaking bones. In 1962, people would come to the Youth Café/Reading Room Bar in the Žinija Society building (L. Giros Street 22), which was not far from the illegal studio, to listen to live jazz (including even avant-garde), jazz pop artists and poetry, participate in discussions and hear anecdotes. The KGB paid special attention to these audiences ‒ they monitored and tracked them, and applied “preventive measures” in the form of warning talks. Over time, the Kremlin’s branch of the KGB in Lithuania became insolent towards fans of the new music – they used violence, detained them, and “treated” them in psychiatric hospitals.

Envelope of a BBC Music Club package sent to Gintaras Taunys. The Taunys family home on Rudnios Street in Vilnius, dubbed the “house of unlocked doors” by the hippie community, was home to siblings Alvitas, Gintaras, and Arūnė, who corresponded with a BBC radio host and became members of the global BBC Music Club. They received BBC T-shirts as gifts. Passersby, puzzled by the unfamiliar logo on their shirts, decoded “BBC” in Soviet fashion as Военно-воздушные силы (“Air Force”). Postmark on the envelope: London, 28 January 1972

(personal archive of Arūnė Taunytė)

Young people not only listened to music – they also began to write it themselves and felt like they were part of the world. In the mid-1960s, Lithuanian rock appeared. Songs by bands like Gintarėliai (“Little Ambers”), Dobilas (“Clover”), Kertukai, Antanėliai, Gėlių vaikai (“Flower Children”), Raganiai (“The Witches”), Nuogi ant slenksčio (“Naked on the Threshold”), Chairs and WC, though constrained, echoed in dance halls and other spaces, and disturbed the peace for “honest Soviet citizens”. The system created a mechanism to paralyse this life: approvals of concerts, competition repertoires and programmes, and permits to perform. The mass media accused rock artists of being unprofessional and bowing down to Western culture, and only gave a thumbs up to “professional Soviet music”, music from “socialist countries” or other “advanced” pop music. Only composers and performers who had received higher education could receive official recognition. Their music was truly professional, but often cliché, subdued and geared to the regime. Vocal and instrumental ensembles that belonged to the LSSR State Philharmonic or “merited folk ensembles” performed songs by foreign composers as well, translating the lyrics as they saw fit or appropriating their authorship. The lyrics of the song Truputį laimės (“A Little Bit of Happiness” – “And the sky is ringing from our songs, I’m happy living here” – became a popular cliché among the “Soviet Lithuanian people”. Songs like this were supposed to convince fellow countrymen that they were the happiest people in the world. Free musicians and composers tried to circumvent the barriers and hide under the wing of some factory, institution or communist organisation, but they were kept under close watch.

Rehearsal of the first production of the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar in Europe at the Culture House of Communication Workers (now the Pac Palace). On 25 December 1971, a Christian-themed performance took place in the hall of the State Art Institute of the Lithuanian SSR, during which the apostle Simon the Zealot (Rimas Jasenka) called on the Jews to rise up against the enslavers. Second from left – Vytautas Kernagis (1951–2008), one of the initiators of the opera production. At the premiere, the actors were dressed in spectacular outfits. The next day, the KGB took the opera’s director, Kęstutis Antanėlis, from his lectures for interrogation. The composer was temporarily expelled from the Vilnius Civil Engineering Institute. “I’d say that with this rock opera, Kęstutis Antanėlis built a monument for himself. He was an extraordinary artist. With his talent and enthusiasm, he accomplished a huge feat and turned it into a historical event,” said Alė Gutauskienė, a museologist at the Lithuanian Theatre, Music and Cinema Museum.

Vilnius, 1971. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Kęstutis Antanėlis family)

In 1969, by order of the authorities, the songs recorded by Gėlių vaikai and Antanėliai at the Vilnius record studio were destroyed. On 26 April 1970, hippie music groups gathered at the Žirmūnai restaurant in Vilnius ostensibly to celebrate the birthday of Oleg Sartakov, the leader of an ensemble Sartakov Yesterday and Today, but in reality, the several hundred people there held the first Lithuanian rock festival – the first pop session. The militia and lorries full of soldiers were waiting for the crowd of participants after the concert. The KGB arrested, interrogated and threatened the most active promoters of the “rotting bourgeois culture”.

Vidas Petkevičius, a student of acting at the State Conservatory of the Lithuanian SSR, performing the aria of Jesus Christ during a rehearsal. The first production of the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar in Europe.

Vilnius, 1971. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Kęstutis Antanėlis family)

On 20–21 February 1971, the pop club Smūtkeliai, under the banner of the Komsomol organisation, put together a grandiose event in the hall of the Kaunas Polytechnic Institute Faculty of Automation featuring the most famous bands of that time. The KGB didn’t manage to ban it, but it “controlled” it in every way, interfering with the event and persecuting the organisers and participants. Hippies from Lithuania and all corners of the USSR flocked to the festival. The KGB took them off of trains or buses, caught them wherever they could, and sent them out of Kaunas. Gintaras Kušlys, who compiled the book Smūtkeliai, remembers: “[…] hippies were running back and forth, trying to get into the concert, and the militiamen were chasing them… It was really a sight to see. […] it was like a repetition for the ‘Kalanta events’ of 1972 […]” A month later, Smūtkeliai was closed, and the KGB eventually sent Algimantas Šešelgis, one of the organisers of the event, to “serve” in the occupation army near the dangerous USSR–China border. The regime’s lackeys banned the band Raganiai from rehearsing in the hall of the Kaunas Polytechnic Institute and playing at student dances.

Rehearsal of the first European production of the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar at the Culture House of Communication Workers (now the Pac Palace). Vidas Petkevičius performs the aria of Jesus Christ. Second from the left is sculptor Mindaugas Nakas (St. Peter), and fourth is Aleksandras Babkovskis, guitarist and keyboardist of the band Antanėliai.

Vilnius, 1971. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Kęstutis Antanėlis family)

On 25 December 1971, the European premiere (and second worldwide) of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar took place in the auditorium of the State Art Institute of the Lithuanian SSR. This was the first and last performance of this opera in occupied Lithuania. The next day, Kęstutis Antanėlis, who had staged the opera, was taken out of class by the KGB for questioning. The composer was temporarily expelled from the Vilnius Civil Engineering Institute and deprived of the right to continue his studies at an institution of higher education. For this event that became a legend, the talented director had put together about 35 actors and musicians, most of whom were students from the Lithuanian SSR State Conservatory and the M. K. Čiurlionis School of Art.

Rehearsal of the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar. From left: Vidas Petkevičius, Rimas Jasenka, Donatas Janušas. In the opera, the apostle Simon the Zealot (Rimas Jasenka) called on the Jews to rise up against their oppressors.

Vilnius, 1971. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Kęstutis Antanėlis family)

After the events following the self-immolation of Romas Kalanta in 1972, the occupation system began to restrict Lithuanian cultural life even more. However, as its economic and military power weakened over time, the empire was unable to control the accelerated transformation. The subcultural field was expanding, and new music was penetrating into the opened spaces. After perestroika began, more and more rock groups pushed their way into the public eye; their songs rallied the youth to rebellion, putting the final nails in the coffin of the dying empire with their inspiriting lyrics. Roko Maršas (“The March of Rock”) swept through Lithuania along with rock music from other music festivals.

Aleksandras Babkovskis, keyboardist and guitarist of the band Antanėliai, during a rehearsal of the opera Jesus Christ Superstar.

Vilnius, 1971. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Kęstutis Antanėlis family)

The crowd goes wild at the first rock festival in Lithuania, organized by Alvitas Taunys and his friends at the Žirmūnai restaurant.

Vilnius, 26 April 1970. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Arūnė Taunytė)

Aleksandras Babkovskis, keyboardist and guitarist of Antanėliai, during a rehearsal of the opera Jesus Christ Superstar.

Vilnius, 1971. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Kęstutis Antanėlis family)

The rock band Antanėliai on a concert tour in Poland. Front row from left: Rimas Jasenka, Kęstutis Antanėlis, Alfonsas Vaškevičius. Back row from left: Donatas Janušas, Aleksandras Babkovskis.

Polish People’s Republic (now Republic of Poland), 1969. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Kęstutis Antanėlis family)

Sculptor Mindaugas Nakas, who performed the role of St. Peter in the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar.

Occupied Lithuania, early 1970s. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Kęstutis Antanėlis family)

Composers Kęstutis Antanėlis and Giedrius Kuprevičius.

Occupied Lithuania, 1980s. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Kęstutis Antanėlis family)

Rock band Raganiai (“The Witches”) performing at the “Kaunas Pop Session” festival held in the Automation Faculty Hall of Kaunas Polytechnic Institute. From left: Natanas Gitkindas, Visvaldas Žalnierius, Anatolijus Goldšteinas, Vladimiras Kotčegarovas. After the festival, the authorities banned Raganiai from rehearsing in the hall of the Kaunas Polytechnic Institute and playing at student dances.

Kaunas, 20–21 February 1971. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Natanas Gitkindas)

Rock band Gintarėliai (“Little Ambers”) performing at the “Kaunas Pop Session” festival.

Kaunas, 20–21 February 1971. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Virginijus Švabas)

Journalist Vaidilutė Volskytė’s article “Not workers, not students, but boys with long hair…” Volskytė responded to an anonymous letter received by the editorial office of Kauno Tiesa (“Kaunas Truth”). “[…] Moreover, the names that the musicians call themselves were never officially given to them. For now, these are stage ensembles indistinguishable from the masses, and there is no need for them to have names,” wrote V. Volskytė about the rock bands Raganiai (“The Witches”), Gintarėliai (“Little Ambers”), Gėlės (“Flowers”), and others who performed at the “Kaunas Pop Session” festival held on February 20–21, 1971, at the Kaunas Polytechnic Institute’s Faculty of Automation hall and were persecuted by the authorities.

Newspaper Kauno Tiesa (“Kaunas Truth”), 10 April 1971.

Farewell of Algimantas Šešelgis, one of the leaders of the youth club “Smūtkeliai,” as he was drafted into the occupying forces. The KGB sent A. Šešelgis to “serve” in the occupying army near the dangerous USSR–China border.

Kaunas, August 1972. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Algimantas Šešelgis)

Composer Valentinas Bagdonas, in his article “Musical Education and the Composer” in the weekly Literatūra ir menas (“Literature and Art”), criticizes Lithuanian rock musicians and briefly describes his impressions of the “Kaunas Pop Session” rock festival held on February 20–21, 1971, at the Faculty of Automation hall of the Kaunas Polytechnic Institute.

Literatūra ir menas (“Literature and Art”) weekly, 10 April 1971.

Antanas Stancevičius – leader of the progressive rock band Nuogi ant slenksčio (“Naked on the Threshold”).

Kaunas, 1974. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Gintaras Kušlys)

Robertas Šertvytis – one of the leaders of the club “Smūtkeliai”.

Occupied Lithuania, 1968. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Robertas Šertvytis)

Rock band Dainiai (“The Bards”).

Occupied Lithuania, 1972. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Gintaras Kušlys)

Members of the punk rock band Komanda V (“Team V”) Nėrius Pečiūra-Atsuktuvas and Vikintas Darius Šimanskas-Varveklis at the opening concert of the Vilnius Rock Club in the Vilnius athletics arena.

Vilnius, 8 March 1987. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Nėrius Pečiūra)

The punk rock band Už Tėvynę (“For the Homeland”) at the Vilnius Punk-88 festival. Shot from the documentary film Lietuva – tai jėga! (“Lithuania is a Force”).

Vilnius, 1 September 1988. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Nėrius Pečiūra)

Anatolijus Lomonosovas formed a classical Indian music ensemble in Lithuania. In the center is Jūratė Adlytė (tanpura), on the left – Rytis Kamičaitis (tabla), and on the right – Anatolijus Lomonosovas (sitar).

Vilnius, Turniškės, 1986. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Gitenis Umbrasas)

Vytautas Šiškauskas with his hippie school friends.

Vilnius, 1975–1976. Photo author unknown (personal archive of Alius Jurkonis)

Protocol No. 30 of the meeting of the KPI (Kaunas Polytechnic Institute) Bureau of the Leninist Communist Youth Union of Lithuania, held on February 23, 1971. The meeting addressed the leaders of the pop club “Smūtkeliai”, Algirdas Šešelgis and Robertas Šertvytis, regarding the concert held on February 21–22 in the Faculty of Automation hall. The summoned were reprimanded for the repertoire of the rock band Raganiai, other ensembles who were not allowed “to perform even at the institute level”, the “hippies” sitting in the front rows of the event, and the open windows of the hall. Questions were raised about where the youths obtained music recordings, whether there were any “non–Komsomol members” among the club members, and whether “comrade Šertvytis was aware of the foreign radio program ‘Luxembourg’.” The organizers were accused of holding the concert without coordination with the party committee and rectorate. The activists explained to those summoned that “the main purpose of the meeting was to point out the pop club members’ lack of political vigilance”, which had led to “an unforgivable offense”. A month later, “Smūtkeliai” was shut down, and later the KGB sent Algimantas Šešelgis, one of the event organizers, to “serve” in the occupying army near the dangerous USSR–China border. The regime’s lackeys banned the band Raganiai from rehearsing in the Kaunas Polytechnic Institute hall and from playing at student dance events.

Kaunas, 23 February 1971 (personal archive of Algimantas Šešelgis)