Music and Time Annotation << Back The Centenаry of the First Great Russian Workers` Orchestra N.V. Medvedeva This article discusses the various aspects of the development of the folk music group named the Russian Folk Instruments Orchestra of the Izhora Plant in the city of Kolpino. The periodization of the development of the orchestra is analyzed in the context of the 20thC Russian historical panorama – the appearance of the First Great Russian Workers` Orchestra in 1918, the 1930s, the Great Patriotic War and the post-war revival. Principle achievements are underlined of the conductors: from P.L. Stolbov (a collaborator of V.V. Andreyev) to A.N. Afanasyev. The life is outlined of the balalaika-player V.I. Bolchis, an oldest veteran of the orchestra who came back to his performing group after 20 years of Stalinist purges. The conductor Aleksandr Afanasyev was to fully reform the orchestra. The new group – the Youth Russian Folk Orchestra «Silver Strings» is currently located at the Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia as a structural sub-division. The constantly updated repertoire of the orchestra includes Russian and foreign classics, modern music, and arrangements of folk melodies. The group successfully fulfills its professional and socio-cultural tasks, while the conductor formulates the mission of the orchestra as that of preserving and enhancing Russian cultural traditions. Keywords: Russian folk instruments orchestra, folk instruments, balalaika, Izhora Plant, Kolpino, «Silver Strings», Alexander Afanasyev. Contacts: E-mail: nadia_mozart@yahoo.com Pp. 03-07.