“The Tired Toys are Sleeping”: Lullabies in the City

Abstract

This paper is dedicated to the lullaby “The Tired Toys Are Sleeping” from the popular Soviet series “Goodnight, Little Ones!”. The data collected through primary research conducted by the author in Saint Petersburg from 2008 to 2024 show that this song is one of the most frequently mentioned lullabies in the modern urban repertoire. The study examines the inclusion of a new media-based format of lullabies into daily oral practices. This paper analyzes the textual, visual, and musical components of the program in which the lullaby was featured. As a result of this analysis, the author draws the following conclusions. Unlike traditional lullabies, which are addressed to infants, this lullaby, played from a screen, was intended for a wide audience. The text contains formal elements of the lullaby genre, such as the motif of wishing sleep and markers like “bau-bai”. However, it is more aligned with authorial lullabies and the literaturebased canon established during the Soviet era than with traditional folk lullabies. Throughout the series’ existence, its opening sequence changed multiple times, starting with a black-and-white hand-drawn version and culminating in the audience’s favorite introduction by A. M. Tatarsky, created using plasticine animation. Broadcasted every evening and designed for a broad audience, the lullaby, in combination with its musical and visual elements, took on a personal character due to its direct address to the child, the male vocal performance, and the animated components that aided in text comprehension. An initially media-based lullaby thus became integrated into private family practices and entered the oral tradition.