Mkhat house in Bryusov Lane. Bryusov Lane

RBC Real Estate continues to publish a series of materials dedicated to the houses of the Soviet elite in Moscow. Moscow expert and architectural historian Denis Romodin talks about the places and areas of residence of general secretaries, marshals and academicians of the Soviet Union. The topic of the next publication is the house of artists of the Bolshoi Theater in Bryusov Lane (current address: Bryusov Lane, 7). The building was specially built for the theatrical intelligentsia in the 1930s

Bryusov (or as it was called until 1962 - Bryusovsky) lane amazingly incorporated a whole series of apartment buildings built for the Soviet creative elite in the 1920-1950s - this is the House of Artists at No. 12, built in 1928 according to the project architect I. Rerberg; and the famous House of Composers in the housing cooperative "Teacher of the Moscow Conservatory", built at No. 8/10 in 1953-1956 by the architect I. Marcuse; as well as residential building No. 17, built in 1928 according to the design of A. Shchusev for Moscow Art Academic Theater. In the same lane, the architect Shchusev designed a monumental house at No. 7 that stands out for its scale, known as the House of Bolshoi Theater Artists.

The project for this house was prepared back in 1932, when a housing cooperative for Bolshoi Theater workers was created. The studio of the architect D. Friedman (according to other sources, the architect L. Polyakov, who moved from Leningrad to Moscow) took up the work. However, later the design was transferred to Alexey Shchusev, who developed a new construction plan in 1933, in which the architect completely moved away from the avant-garde, previously presented in his work,- in previous years, he designed many striking buildings in Moscow, such as the Lenin Mausoleum, the building of the Mechanical Institute on Bolshaya Sadovaya, 14, the People's Commissariat of Agriculture on Sadovo-Spasskaya, 11/1, houses for Moscow Art Theater workers on Bryusov Lane. In the early 1930s, Shchusev had already begun to work on changing the project of the Mossovet hotel, which had previously been developed by the duo of architects L. Savelyev and O. Stapran. In the changes in the composition and facades of the future Moscow Hotel one could see the architect’s search and the beginning of his mastery of the classical heritage, and in the house on Bryusov Lane these searches were already completed with a completely classical solution.

The house for artists of the Bolshoi Theater, built in 1935, is divided into three parts - a central building, recessed from the alley, and two protruding side ones. This made it possible to fit a nine-story residential building into a narrow alley and provide light to the apartments. Unlike house No. 17, in house No. 7 Shchusev designed apartments with larger windows due to the high ceilings. To improve illumination, starting from the third floor, bay windows are placed on two side wings without glazing the window frames. For a monumental appearance, the facades are lined with “Riga” plaster interspersed with quartz chips, marble and granite. The entrance portals and plinth are finished with natural pink granite. The last two floors received rounded windows and a powerful cornice - the architect repeated this decision in the Moscow Hotel and his residential buildings designed in the same years.

In the same house, the architect introduced a special soundproofing system, since the apartments were intended for artists of the Bolshoi Theater. Shchusev also needed to design large rooms for the possibility of rehearsals, develop the dimensions of the spaces to accommodate the piano and its delivery to the apartments.

The layout of the apartments was initially more similar to the pre-revolutionary one - a suite of front rooms, bedrooms for the owners, a separate sanitary unit, a kitchen and a servants' room. The floors in all living rooms were covered with stacked parquet, sanitary facilities and kitchens were covered with tiles. The staircases have the same tiles and polished stone chips. For the walls in the living rooms, a beige-yellowish color was chosen, characteristic of that time. The apartments were furnished with antiques from a large selection of ready-made furniture. Moreover, the residents of this house were creative people - the memorial plaques on the facade with the names listed below speak for themselves: sculptor I. D. Shadr; conductors N. S. Golovanov and A. Sh. Melik-Pashaev; ballet dancers A. B. Godunov, L. I. Vlasova and O. V. Lepeshinskaya; opera singers I. S. Kozlovsky, A. S. Pirogov, M. P. Maksakova, N. A. Obukhova, A. V. Nezhdanova. By the way, in honor of Nezhdanova, Bryusov Lane was temporarily renamed - in 1962-1994 it was called Nezhdanova Street. She herself lived in apartment No. 9. In honor of her, the famous architect I. Zholtovsky with his colleague N. Sukoyan and sculptor I. Rabinovich completed a sketch of an elegant and monumental memorial plaque on the facade of the house. In the neighboring apartment No. 10 there is now a museum-apartment of her husband, conductor N. S. Golovanov. These two apartments retain the amazing atmosphere of a huge and at the same time elegant house, which has become the decoration of the alley.

Denis Romodin specially for RBC Real Estate

A walk with a child is an opportunity to be together, talk, have a heart-to-heart talk. This is an accessible way of communication even for a very busy person - after all, you can always find a little time to walk with your son or daughter in the park, embankment or old city streets. begins to collect places suitable for such bonding walks and their stories.

In the very center of the capital there is a place where you can take a walk, and breathe in the spirit of antiquity together with the bohemian spirit, and pray from the heart. This is Bryusov Lane.

Street on the river

And as soon as this ancient (even the oldest) corner of our capital was not called, covered with all sorts of legends, and all kinds of conversations... And Uspensky enemy, and Vrazhsky Lane - there were never any traces of enemies here, but from “enemies” it became maybe the name is simply a ravine (well, how funny these toponyms of ours are, how much unexpected and even funny things are hidden in them - historical, of course, too)...

In this enemy there flowed a river - so small that it didn’t even have a name. It still flows today, but only underground, hidden more than two hundred years ago in a pipe. On excursions, children are told mainly about the Neglinka flowing in the pipe underground. But how many nameless rivers, rivulets and streams flow underground like this one. Can't count!

photosight.ru. Photo: Tatyana Tsyganok

This lane is also known as Resurrection, since the Church of the Resurrection of the Word has stood here since the beginning of the 17th century. First wooden, then stone - it burned more than once, but was never closed. Never! Even in the terrible Stalinist times of persecution of the church. And this despite the fact that the temple is located just a few hundred meters from Red Square and the Kremlin. Truly the Lord has preserved!

From the middle of the 18th century, Bryusov Lane became a street. For for a hundred years the glorious Bryus family had already lived here, who moved to Muscovy, to serve the Russian sovereign, the “quiet” Alexei Mikhailovich, from England. The first was Yakov Vilimovich Bruce - a descendant of the kings of Scotland and a military man. His son was also a military man. At first, his grandson followed the same path - also Yakov Vilimovich Bruce - from a young age he was an associate of the future Tsar Peter the Great.

However, then Yakov Vilimovich became a purely scientific person. Knowing several languages, having studied maritime affairs, he was also an expert in painting, and collected a unique library and a rich herbarium. But they say he didn’t disdain astrology either. And even - shh! - witchcraft. Moscow legend says that the first Russian Freemason flew through the air from his home to the Sukharev Tower (which was built by Jacob Bruce in order to observe the stars). But how did he fly, on what?.. Then there were no hot air balloons. All we know is that he moved around like this at night. When no one saw...

The last of the Bryusov estates, Yakov Vilimovich's nephew, Count Alexander, was neither able to fly nor spy on the heavenly bodies... However, he managed to take part in a considerable number of campaigns, rose to the rank of lieutenant general and even became the vice-governor of Moscow.

So who is the street named after? Here's a question for you. Guess for yourself.

Much later this street was named after Antonina Vasilievna Nezhdanova, the famous Russian singer and once the first soprano of the Bolshoi Theater. But this is not long, just over thirty years - from the 62nd to the 94th year of the last century. However, even then the lane that connects the thoroughfare Tverskaya with the intimate Bolshaya Nikitskaya in just five walking minutes was called “Bryusov” by Muscovites in the old fashioned way. And 20 years ago the street was returned to its historical name. And, we dare to hope, now forever.

Shadows of the past

The unforgettable performer of the now almost forgotten romance Nadezhda Andreevna Obukhova also lived on this street. “Shadows of the past” - the simple words of an urban romance - she, like no one else, knew how to turn into a short, but always surprisingly lively story of someone’s deep feelings. From here, from house No. 7, the “queen of Russian romance” - perhaps the only opera singer with a unique mezzo-soprano who could sing an old romance in a salon (and not in a classical) manner - left for the Bolshoi Theater. On the opera stage, Obukhova reigned just as completely as in the music salon.

Yes, house No. 7... The largest, perhaps, in Bryusov... and certainly the most glorious. House of Bolshoi Theater Artists. The main theater of the country.

“Shadows of the Past” was also sung as a duet in this house. An ancient chronicle brought to us a half-worn recording of a romance sung by Obukhova in the company of the country's first tenor Ivan Kozlovsky in the apartment of Antonina Vasilyevna Nezhdanova. The apartment, however, had already become a museum (quite soon after the death of the legendary singer) and from here TV programs of the good old-fashioned genre were periodically broadcast in the force of “it was, it was...”. And although now this may seem completely incredible, but... It really happened. And it seems like not that long ago...

In the always neatly tidy front garden near the house, the famous bass Mark Reisen was walking in a huge white hat - quite wide-brimmed and ancient, but somehow never worn out and always fashionable. Elegant and handsome into old age, Reisen appeared on the Bolshoi stage for the last time at the age of 90 to sing Gremin’s aria in Eugene Onegin. And what?.. The voice sounded like never before!

Basically, house 7 was inhabited by opera houses. Alexander Pirogov - he surprisingly knew how to hide his short stature to everyone when he sang his crowning Boris in Mussorgsky's opera; Bronislava Zlatogorova - famous not only for her deep mezzo, but also for her large antique furniture collection; Elizaveta Shumskaya is the virtuoso Violetta from La Traviata and Kozlovsky’s favorite partner...

The tenor himself, who until his last days protected his unique voice with a warm scarf in any weather, at the same time did not shy away from daily exercise under any circumstances. Walks - half an hour, no more - were made arm in arm with the faithful housekeeper Nina Feodosyevna - from the house to the Church of the Resurrection. They say that once the famous singer sang here and on the choir, together with Nezhdanova... They say... But he was a faithful parishioner. That's for sure. And the artist’s funeral service was performed by Metropolitan Pitirim of Volokolamsk and Yuryev himself - another legend of Bryusov Lane.

Tall and stately, with jet-black hair (and then white as a harrier), the handsome man, who was the honorary rector of the temple, came to serve on Sundays (and sometimes on weekdays) and was always surrounded by a host of annoying admirers. They annoyed the ruler in pre-perestroika times by attracting attention to the bishop’s person that was excessive for Soviet times. And then, when times changed and it became unnecessary for those who should have been observing the clergy - and the bishop’s admirers became quite old. The circle began to dissolve and sadly thinned out. Old women, regardless of gender and rank, gradually left for another world. And in 2003, the bishop himself left. Ten years after Kozlovsky's death. And Bryusov Lane had also changed considerably by that time...

...There are no others... And about those who lived here, memorial plaques remind me in terse lines... The worst one is on house No. 12. The director Vsevolod Meyerhold, a great theatrical visionary and experimenter, lived here. Having put a green wig on Bulanova's head from Ostrovsky's "Forest", he was a loyal friend and adherent of the Soviet regime, but he was mercilessly destroyed by the same regime.

His plaque is adjacent to the memorial to Sofia Giatsintova. The actress was not only the first star of the Theater. Lenin's Komsomol, but passion also served the Soviet regime so faithfully. However, Sofya Vladimirovna was much luckier than Vsevolod Emilievich. They say because the actress managed to be in the right place at the right time and play the role of Lenin’s own mother, which allowed Giatsintova to live comfortably until she was almost 90 years old, without leaving the theatrical stage.

House of Artists in Bryusov. Photo: Alexander Ivanov.

Hello, new life...

What's in Bryusov now?

The famous artist Nikas Safronov moved to these parts to wander around ... the roof of his apartment at night. Known for his various escapades, the servant of the muses bought several houses at once at house number 17, in which the most famous ballerina of the Bolshoi Theater, Ekaterina Vasilievna Geltser, a friend of Marshal Mannerheim, once lived.

They say that the legendary military leader, even in Soviet times, crossing the border incognito (oh, how romantic!), came from Finland, which by that time he ruled and ruled, to look at his enchantress. Now half of Geltser’s apartment is occupied by another ballerina, Ilse Liepa, who named her cat Vaska, or rather Vasilyevna, in honor of the patronymic of Mannerheim’s great passion.

Another sign of new times - only this time inanimate - is the monument to Mstislav Rostropovich. The great and, as always, very focused cellist was seated at his instrument in the corner of the park by the ubiquitous Alexander Rukavishnikov. He sat me down right in front of the entrance to the temple, which the musician, by the way, loved to go into.

Another celestial being looks at Rostropovich from another square. Composer Aram Khachaturian. Both lived nearby, in the House of Composers. It was built already in the 50s, next to the artists’ cooperative. And some of the first generation of inhabitants can still be found here. For example, Lyudmila Lyadova...

And so - a young, unfamiliar tribe... Near the House of Composers they built some kind of cube of an incomprehensible design. Either a cube, or a parallelepiped, or... Nervous multi-colored graffiti on the wall... And house 19 - one of the most elegant buildings on the street, a hundred years old, protected by the state - was demolished. By installing a mediocre glass “tower” with a basement for foreign cars. They say that people live in it too...

Heavenly Helpers

Let's go to the temple one last time. In front of the image of the Mother of God “Seeking the Lost”, parents have long prayed for their lost children, crying in front of the icon of the Heavenly Intercessor so that the Lord would return understanding to their careless disciples.

This icon came here from the Church of the Nativity of Christ in Palashi, where Marina Tsvetaeva and Sergei Efron were once married in front of it. And she had to endure a lot of trials - she was broken into pieces by Napoleonic soldiers, and burned - after long ago she was brought to church by a bankrupt widower-nobleman with three daughters. Legend has it that, left a beggar with three teenage children, he was in extreme despair, and the Virgin Mary remained his only hope. With the last of his strength, he prayed in front of the icon, and when he married his daughters, he gave the shrine to the temple.

And they pray in front of the ancient image of St. Nicholas. He is always the first assistant for students. And they turn to Spridon, the miracle worker of Trimifunts...

Gorgots Ilya. Bryusov Lane. Watercolor.

***

...And it’s better to enter Bryusov Lane from Tverskaya. And not even to enter, but to enter... For the street opens with a “triumphal” arch with powerful granite columns. It's like stepping into a formal ballroom. And - there is so much space, history, life in front of you...

Let's go in!..

Entrance to Bryusov. Photo: artema-lesnik.livejournal.com

In the 1920s, a wave of construction of a new type of cooperative housing swept across Moscow. Actors, musicians, engineers and officials united en masse into cooperatives to build their own houses: among the most well-coordinated were those created by Bolshoi Theater artists and Vakhtangovites. The six buildings built for them are still inhabited by the descendants of the primos and composers.

House of Artists of the Bolshoi Theater. Photo: wikimapia.org / Enormousrat

Three addresses in Bryusov and one in Karetny: houses of Bolshoi Theater actors

Bryusov Lane, 7

Carriage row 5/10

Because of its nondescript appearance even by constructivist standards: five floors, one entrance, mouse-colored, the building rarely attracts the attention of Muscovites. But the house has been included in the register of cultural heritage monuments for several years now. The building was built for employees of the State Academic Bolshoi Theater in 1935 according to the design of the famous capital architect Alexey Shchusev. The house was erected by order of a cooperative of theater workers. Immediately after the completion of construction, she settled here Bolshoi soloist Antonina Nezhdanova, it was her name that from 1962 to 1994 the entire lane would bear. The artist's neighbors were ballerina Olga Lepeshinskaya, singers Maria Maksakova and Nikadr Khanaev, theater artist Fyodor Fedorovsky, conductor Alexander Melik-Pashaev and many other well-known theater employees at that time. It is interesting that the memorial apartment in the building remained only after one tenant - musician Nikolai Golovanov, who lived in apartment number 10.

In 1956-1960, another residential building was built in Karetny Ryad for the growing troupe of Bolshoi Theater artists. Despite its impressive size, there were almost no truly famous residents in the house. Those who settled here from the very beginning achieved the greatest popularity Leonid Utesov and settled later TV presenter Leonid Yakubovich.

Memorial plaque to Leonid Osipovich Utesov at house 5, st. Carriage Row in Moscow. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org

Bryusov Lane, 12. Photo: wikimapia.org / Bakurin

The building was built in 1928 architect Ivan Rerberg. A five-story building with external elevator shafts can easily be confused with mass development, for which the first cooperative buildings of the NEP era prepared the basis. After construction was completed, the architect himself and his family settled in the house, ballerinas Victoria Krieger and Marina Semyonova, actors Sofya Giatsintova and Anatoly Ktorov. The most famous and unlucky residents were the guests of apartment 11, Vsevolod Meyerhold and his wife Zinaida Reich. The director himself was shot in 1940, his wife was killed in that very apartment. Immediately after Reich’s death, according to legend, the living space was divided into two parts: one half was occupied by driver of Lavrentiy Beria, and the other is a girl named Vardo Maximilishvili. The young woman is credited in various sources with serving as an NKVD officer, personal secretary and even Lavrentiy Beria’s mistress. Now the housing has been turned into a museum open to the public.

Bryusov Lane, 17

Just as nondescript as its neighbors, the cooperative house of Moscow Art Theater artists became the first project of Alexei Shchusev in Bryusov Lane. The construction took only one year: the minimalist building was conceived in 1927, and was occupied already in 1928.

Bolshoy Levshinsky Lane, 8a. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org

The building is slightly higher than the neighboring artistic buildings and has 6 floors. Local apartments were distinguished by increased comfort: almost all of them were created taking into account the personal wishes of future residents. Even a swimming pool was originally designed in one of the sections on the ground floor. Actors Nina Litovtseva, Vasily Kachalov, Ivan Moskvin, director Leonid Leonidov, ballerina Ekaterina Geltser and choreographer Vasily Tikhomirov settled in the house. Already in the middle of the 20th century, the famous Soviet dancer Maris Liepa. Several years ago, virtually the entire top floor and attic of the building was purchased by artist Nikas Safronov- here is his workshop and residential apartments.

Two houses of the Vakhtangovites

Bolshoi Nikolopeskovsky Lane, 12

Built in 1928, the house was intended for artists of the Vakhtangov Theater. The building was designed by the little-known architect Yakov Rabinovich. The five-story building of regular shape is divided into four entrances and 38 apartments. Among the guests on the first floor, he stood out actor Boris Shchukin.

Bolshoi Nikolopeskovsky Lane, 12/ Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org

On the second floor lived Joseph Rappoport, Anatoly Goryunov, Vasily Kuza, Ruben Simonov. The artists chose the house manager Lev Ruslanov. Many years later his son Vadim Ruslanov will describe the life and everyday life of the first generation of “Vakhtangovites” in his book “House in Levshinsky”. The work features a very lively and cohesive inner life of the courtyard: joint dance evenings, games of tennis, volleyball, a skating rink filled for the winter and evenings on the bench under Shchukin’s windows.

In 1937, a second house was built for the artists of the Vakhtangov Theater. This time, the eight-story residential building is located very close to the place of service, in Bolshoi Nikolopeskovsky Lane. The most famous local residents turned out to be two actors - father and son - Mikhail Derzhavins. The latter still lives here with wife Roxana Babayan.

"Bryusov 19" is a new de luxe complex in the very center of the capital, in the Tverskoy district, a stone's throw from Tverskaya and less than a kilometer from the Kremlin. This is one of the most prestigious places in the capital. In Bryusov Lane there are residential buildings built for the creative elite - “House of Artists of the Moscow Art Theater” (No. 17), “House of Artists of the Bolshoi Theater” (No. 7), “House of Composers” (8/10), “House of Artists” (No. 4 ), “House of Artists” (No. 12). In the ancient lane, the city estate of Bryusov (17th century), the Church of the Resurrection of the Word and the Anglican Cathedral of St. Andrew have been preserved.

"Bryusov 19" is one of the most original houses in Moscow. In the center there is a large atrium across all floors. The façade is unusual - it is decorated with columns in the shape of palm tree trunks. The architectural project was developed in the studio of Alexey Bavykin and was awarded the prestigious professional award Building Awards-2008.

Apartments in the residential complex "Bryusov 19"

The project is designed for 27 apartments area from 130 to 280 sq.m. Ceiling height - 3.2 m. On the upper floors - two duplex penthouses with a luxurious terrace with views of the Kremlin and the domes of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. Each apartment is equipped with a Smart Home system, satellite TV, fire alarm, and dedicated Internet lines.

Description and infrastructure

The non-standard eight-story building gracefully fits into the easy turn of the alley. The “wood” façade is finished with travertine. A light atrium permeates all floors. Panoramic elevators are installed here - when moving up, the eye gradually opens up to a view of the Kremlin. The building's engineering systems meet de luxe class standards.

An underground parking lot is equipped for parking, capable of providing 2 parking spaces for each apartment. An additional convenience is a car wash.

The infrastructure of the complex is closed, club type. On the ground floor there is swimming pool, bath complex, gym, stylish club room.

Bryusov Lane.
I want to tell you about one of the cozy corners of old Moscow, which is very dear and interesting to me, because it is connected with the history of my city and my family. We will talk about a quiet lane between Tverskaya and Nikitskaya streets, which has been called Bryusov since the 18th century.
The lane is named after the surname of the homeowner - Count Alexander Romanovich Bruce, Lieutenant General, Vice-Governor of Moscow and nephew (and heir) of the famous Field Marshal Yakov Vilimovich Bruce, comrade-in-arms of Peter I. The Bryusov estate is house No. 2/14. The Bruces are descendants of Scottish kings, but since 1647 they moved to Russia. Father A.R. Bruce - Roman Vilimovich Bruce - the first chief commandant of St. Petersburg and the elder brother of Yakov Vilimovich Bruce, who, in turn, was known as a physicist, mathematician, astrologer, translator and diplomat (and, according to rumors, a warlock and sorcerer). It was he who came up with the idea of ​​​​the ring construction of Moscow. The house has been in the possession of the Bryus family since the 30s of the 18th century; in the 1770s it was rebuilt, the second and third floors were added. In 1812, like many other houses, it was damaged by fire, but a year later it was restored. The main facade of the building underwent changes twice: in 1813 and at the end of the 19th century. In 2007-2009, restoration of this historical building was carried out.
By the way, the Bryuss owned the house for a little less than a hundred years, but the name of the lane, Bryusov, was firmly assigned to it. In Soviet times, the lane was renamed Nezhdanova Street, named after the People's Artist of the USSR - singer A.N. Nezhdanova (who lived in house No. 7), but in 1994 the historical name was returned.
In the 16th century, on the site of modern Bryusov Lane, there was a deep and long ravine, along the bottom of which flowed a stream - the right tributary of the river. Neglinnaya. Next to it, there has long been a wooden church in honor of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the first mention of which in historical sources dates back to 1548. From the name of the temple, this place in Moscow (or, as they used to say in the old days, “tract”) received the name “Uspensky Enemy” (ravine). This tract was the oldest in the so-called “White City” of Moscow. Later, residents began to call this lane simply Vrazhsky or Voskresensky (due to the Church of the Resurrection built in 1634).
Actually, it is this wonderful ancient Church of the Resurrection of the Word on the Assumption Vrazhek that is the calling card of Bryusov Lane (building No. 15). This small, modest temple is not lost against the background of the vast architectural heritage of the Russian capital. As Orthodox believers like to say, this is a place of prayer. The history of this temple is very interesting. In a fire on April 10, 1629, the wooden Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and, added to it in 1620, the chapel of the Prophet Elisha burned down. In its place, by 1634, the stone Church of the Resurrection of the Word was built. And nearby a new, also stone, temple of the Prophet Elisha was erected, built in memory of the meeting of Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich (the first tsar of the Romanov dynasty) of his father, Patriarch Philaret, who was returning from Polish captivity. When this temple, which existed until the invasion of Napoleon and the great Moscow fire in 1812, was abolished, its altar was moved to the Church of the Resurrection of the Word. (According to some sources, the throne of the Eliseevsky Church was moved in 1818, according to others, in the middle of the 19th century).
For many, it remains a mystery why, during the years of state atheistic propaganda, when many churches were closed or destroyed, in the main city of our country - Moscow, the Church of the Resurrection of the Word on the Assumption Vrazhek (in Bryusov Lane) did not stop serving for a single day?
Some explain this fact by the unusual status of the area in which Bryusov Lane is located. Nearby are the House of Composers and the House of Artists, and the Conservatory is within walking distance. Moscow's creative bohemia - literary and artistic figures, musicians, artists, artists - have long settled here. It was the participation of the capital's creative intelligentsia that helped prevent the demolition of the ancient church. In particular, this merit is attributed to the great Russian director and actor K. S. Stanislavsky, whose opinion was listened to by the most influential persons of the Soviet state.
If you enter Bryusov Lane from Tverskaya Street through a majestic arch with granite columns, then on your left you will see house No. 12, which is the first in the line of “artistic” houses on Bryusov Lane. The famous director Vsevolod Meyerhold lived there with his wife, actress Zinaida Reich, and her children from her first marriage to Sergei Yesenin. Frequent guests in the Meyerholds' house were Sergei Eisenstein, Boris Pasternak, Pyotr Konchalovsky, Dmitry Shostakovich, Mikhail Tukhachevsky, Yuri Olesha, Sergei Prokofiev, Andrei Bely. Also in this house No. 12 lived ballerinas V.V. Krieger and M.T. Semenov, artists I.N. Bersenev, A.P. Ktorov, S.V. Giatsintova, architect I.I. Rerberg and choreographer V.D. Tikhomirov. Currently, this house houses the museum-apartment of V.E. Meyerhold.
Immediately behind Meyerhold's house there is a nine-story building No. 8/10 built by Stalin, it is connected to the neighboring house. These are the so-called “musical” houses, which were built specifically for professors of the Conservatory, to which Bryusov Lane leads, and composers. Such famous people as Khachaturian, Richter, Rastropovich, Kabalevsky, Shostakovich, Vishnevskaya and Kogan lived in this house. In the park between houses No. 8/10 and No. 6, a monument to the famous composer and conductor Aram Khachaturian was erected in 2006, and in 2012, at the intersection of Eliseevsky and Bryusov lanes, a monument to the great musician Mstislav Rostropovich by sculptor Alexander Rukavishnikov was erected.
On the opposite side, where the modern building No. 19 now stands, until 2003 there was an apartment building of A.V. Andreev (built in 1881), owner of the best grocery store in Moscow at that time. This house is also involved in the world of Russian art: the famous poet K. Balmont, who later married the daughter of the aforementioned A.V. Andreev, often visited it.
A little further in the neighborhood is house No. 17, which was built for the artists of the Art Theater. Moskvin, Liepa, Kachalov and ballerina E.V. lived here at one time. Geltser. A. Duncan stayed with this ballerina on one of her visits to Moscow.
House No. 7 is the largest building in the alley. It was built according to Shchusev's design specifically for the artists of the Bolshoi Theater. Nezhdanova, Lepeshinskaya, Obukhova, Golovanov, as well as I.S. lived in this house. Kozlovsky, who often sang in the church choir of the Church of the Resurrection of the Word.
Until 1964, a three-minute walk from Bryusov Lane, my great-grandmother’s family lived in an old three-story house, which, unfortunately, has not survived. My grandmother told me about this place, and about the construction of the house of “composers” (when underground passages were found during the laying of the foundation), and about the old church with miraculous icons. Therefore, when I find myself in this corner of old Moscow, silent buildings come to life for me, the history of my city becomes reality. I am proud that I am a Muscovite!