Valery Vinogradov is a well-known Soviet and Russian rock musician, a contemporary of Viktor Tsoi and Boris Grebenshchikov, a virtuoso guitarist who performed compositions in various rock styles. Unfortunately, in Soviet times, his work did not receive public recognition, but later, after the collapse of the USSR, the albums of various groups, in the writing of which Valery took part, became quite popular both in Russia and in the CIS countries.
Biography
Valery Armenakovich Vinogradov was born on May 26, 1956 in Moscow. There is practically no reliable information about his parents. It is only known that Valery has two brothers, Eduard and Yuri, whose activities are also associated with music. The musician barely talks about his childhood, starting a story about his biography since the founding of the Center group. There are many interesting facts about the musical activity of a virtuoso. However, not one of them is directly connected with his personal life.
early years
The early years of musician Valery Vinogradov passed in an atmosphere of constant search for themselves and ways of creative expression. Having learned to play the guitar, the young man decides to create his own group, but at this stage of his life it turns out to be impossible for the young musician.
Vinogradov begins his career as a session musician, alternately becoming part of one or the other collective, actively trying himself in various genres of rock music. For several years of this lifestyle Vinogradov wrote more than a dozen songs in the style of art rock, jazz rock, funk and soul. Also, the young musician gained enormous experience in improvisation sessions, learned to speak to the public and finally overcome the fear of the stage.
Nickname
Valery believed that his real surname - Sargsyan - was not quite harmonious for the stage image of the musician, so he decided to use the new surname - Vinogradov - as an artistic pseudonym. Such a choice was partly influenced by the sound of the name of the artist. The new name - Valery Vinogradov - was indicated as part of the group’s members on all album covers, harmoniously fitting into the general list of names of the band’s musicians. Since the late eighties, the musician was known only under a new name, which brought him a certain popularity due to the beautiful and romantic sound.
Collective "Center"
The Center group arose in the late seventies and immediately headed for the then completely unknown genre - freerock (English free - "free" and rock - "rock music"). The works performed in this musical direction were distinguished by a bright melody and a large improvisational component.
In his interviews, Valery Vinogradov repeatedly said that the Center’s first albums were unique to the Soviet Union, since no one played similar music in those years not only in Russia but also in the CIS. Unfortunately, contemporaries did not appreciate the work of the Center team, and the recordings did not get wide distribution, becoming quite popular only after the start of the so-called “second wave of rock and roll popularity in the USSR”.
The work of Valery Vinogradov within the group can be called truly unique, as the musician always worked in an atmosphere of close cooperation with other members of the team, which led to the creation of incredibly distinctive compositions that became classics of improvisation in Russian rock music.
In 1986, Vinogradov leaves the group and devotes some time to developing his own solo projects, but in the late nineties he decides to return to the team.
Solo work
In the period from 1986 to 1998, Valery Vinogradov managed to try to realize himself in many sectors of the music business. First of all, the virtuoso found a new collective, “Central Russian Upland”, which performed melodic hard rock with elements of an author’s song. The band urgently needed a guitarist, and virtuoso musician Vinogradov became an incredibly valuable find for them.
Together with the "Central Russian Upland" Valery recorded several full-length albums, after which he decided to move to the USA, finding work in the national team of the famous Joanna Stingray, who was delighted with the skills of the Russian guitarist.
The musician began to receive offers from other foreign bands. However, poor English knowledge and homesickness prevented Vinogradov from settling in America and fully engaging in the music business. Valery also considered the main thing in the creation of music - improvisation and the process of composing, and not making money, which has long become the basis of Western show business.
Work in the United States continued for two years, after which Vinogradov, not satisfied with the quality of the game, which was shown by other musicians, left the project. Several months went by in search of a group that could provide Valery Vinogradov the very level of free quality improvisation that had long been characteristic of the sound of his past project, the Center.
The terms of cooperation, more or less similar to those required by the virtuoso, were able to offer the Sheriff group. At first, the guitarist was just a session musician in the band, but later accepted the offer to become a permanent member, actively creating new material for the project. Soon, the remaining members of the group began to express dissatisfaction with the fact that Valery Vinogradov creates too many high-quality compositions, thereby limiting the participation of other musicians and interfering with their self-expression. Valery decided to leave the group, remaining with the majority of its members in good friendly relations.
Producer career
The next step in finding himself for Vinogradov was producing. Using his authority and wide connections in the world of domestic show business, he begins to work with the Moscow rock group Super Duper, not only creating new songs for it that instantly become popular, but also actively promoting the team on the rock stage in Russia and the CIS countries .
Personal life
Little is known about the family of Valery Vinogradov. The musician jealously guards his happiness, not letting annoying journalists into his personal life. It is only known that the musician has a wife, Vera (a linguist by profession) and a son Alexei, who played for some time in the Center group on a synthesizer.
Views on the music
Vinogradov differs from other performers in his field with an original opinion regarding rock music and music in general. Virtuoso believes that the main aspect of creative expression in any field will always be complete freedom of action, due to which the boundaries and framework will disappear in the process of creating something new. Vinogradov believes that only putting this principle at the forefront, you can achieve some success in the field of art.