When I told my Russian friend about this gig, he responded dryly, “sounds like hard work”. I suspect this was primarily because of his perception of the silent film Earth.

Hailed by some as one of the greatest films of all time, Earth was made by the Ukrainian director Oleksandr Dovzhenko in 1930. A homage to the magnificence of nature, the film tells the tale of the vital and impassioned Vasily’s rise against the emerging ruling class in Russia.

Celebrated for its beautiful cinematography, the film was banned by Stalin, who had originally commissioned Dovzhenko to make propaganda.

Dustyesky Performs Music to the Screening of Earth. Photo © Dustyesky

Somewhat less seriously, Dustyesky are a choir of self-describes “blokes”, most of whom hail from Mullumbimby on the north coast of New South Wales. With tongues firmly in cheeks, the choir describe themselves as “Australia’s fake genuine Russian choir”. In the ABC Australian story that catapulted them, if not to fame, then at least to recognition among the ABC audience, the mostly middle-aged+ men were filmed singing on the rocks at Brunswick Heads, looking like they might be more comfortable on surf boards than...