Shifris Solo Germanovich

The article is a biographical essay by O. Lazarev, published in 2002, dedicated to the life of Solo Germanovich Shifris (1913–2001), senior lecturer in the Department of Foreign Languages at Tomsk State University (TSU) and founder of the Chamber Music Lovers Club.

The article describes in detail the life trajectory of S. G. Shifris: from a European education to Siberian exile and a subsequent successful career in Tomsk.

Key aspects of the biography:

• Education and languages: S. G. Shifris was born in Chernivtsi (he was successively a citizen of Austria-Hungary, Romania, and the USSR). He received a humanities education at a gymnasium and graduated from the University of Nancy in France (1931–1935), receiving a doctorate in economics and law. He spoke eight languages.
• Exile period: In June 1941, he was exiled with his parents to Siberia (Krasnoyarsk, then Novy Vasyugan), which he himself described as "the tragedy of my life." In exile, he experienced poverty, forced physical labor (logging, water carrier, accountant), and the loss of his father and his future wife's first husband.
• Family and Adaptation: In March 1945, he married Mina Noikhovna, who had also been exiled and was highly resilient and educated. The couple had three children (Gennady, Nora, and Beatrice), who later received university educations and defended their PhD dissertations in the natural sciences.
• Career in Tomsk: After restrictions were lifted in 1956, he began working as a German teacher. In 1958, he moved to Tomsk and joined the French Department at Tomsk State University, where he worked for over forty years.
• Social activities: In 1973, together with cellist V.V. Maksimov, he founded the Chamber Music Lovers Club at the House of Scientists, becoming its permanent president.

The article emphasizes the intelligence, elegance, and resilience of S. G. Shifris, as well as the international and intellectual atmosphere that developed among the special settlers in the Vasyugan region.

List of mentioned persons:

• Gorbachev - Politician, mentioned in the context of perestroika and fear for the future.
• Lazarev, O. - Author of the article "From Paris to Siberia".
• Maksimov, V.V. - Tomsk cellist, co-founder of the Chamber Music Lovers Club.
• Maksheev, Vadim - Famous Tomsk writer.
• Milda Yanovna is a doctor, originally from the Baltics, who treated the author of the article as a child.
• Petko (Uncle Efim) - Ukrainian, an acquaintance of S. G. Shifris's son, who instilled in him an interest in carpentry.
• Ryzhenkov, Arsenty Vasilievich - Chairman of the collective farm "Zarya" during the period of exile of S. G. Shifris.
• Stalin - Politician, mentioned in the context of the attitude of S. G. Shifris's parents to the authorities.
• Trikhter, Ignatz - The first husband of Mina Noikhovna (the future wife of S. G. Shifris), died in exile in 1943.
• Shifris, Alain - A prominent French journalist and writer, a relative of S. G. Shifris.
• Shifris, Beatrice - Daughter of S. G. Shifris, candidate of chemical sciences.
• Shifris, Gennady Solovich - Son of S. G. Shifris, candidate of chemical sciences, former head of the laboratory, general director of the LLC.
• Shifris, Herman - Father of S. G. Shifris, owner of a fur workshop, philanthropist, died in exile in 1942.
• Shifris, Mina Noikhovna - Wife of S. G. Shifris, an educated person, knew five languages.
• Shifris, Nora Solovna - Daughter of S. G. Shifris, candidate of biological sciences.
• Shifris, Solo Germanovich - Senior Lecturer at the Department of Foreign Languages at Tomsk State University, founder of the Chamber Music Lovers Club, the central character of the article.

This article is a biographical essay dedicated to Solo Germanovich Shifris, a senior lecturer in the Department of Foreign Languages at Tomsk State University (TSU), and the founder and permanent president of the Chamber Music Lovers' Club at the House of Scientists in Tomsk.

The key stages of S. G. Shifris’s life are highlighted:

• Early life and education : Born and raised in Chernivtsi (in Romania until 1940), where he studied a variety of languages and humanities. He earned a bachelor's degree from the school in 1931.
• University education : Entered the University of Nancy, France, in 1931, where he graduated in January 1934.
• Musical education : Meeting Suzanne Mange in Nancy, who instilled in him a deep interest in classical music. The patronage of his father, Hermann Schifris, who supported artists and instilled in his son a love of art from childhood, is mentioned.
• Moving to Siberia and Career : Evacuation from Chernivtsi to Siberia in June 1941. Work as a German teacher at Novo-Vasyugansk Secondary School. From the late 1950s, he worked at Tomsk State University in the German and French Department.
• Social activities : In 1973, together with the principal cellist of the Tomsk Symphony Orchestra, V.V. Maximov, he founded the Chamber Music Lovers' Club at the House of Scientists, which became his main passion. The club, which had been operating for fifteen years at the time of publication, brings together true art connoisseurs.

The article emphasizes S. G. Shifris's active life position, his cheerfulness, ineradicable nobility, and desire to introduce people to beauty, including classical music and other forms of art.

List of mentioned persons:

• Ageev, Maxim - Student of the Department of Journalism at TSU, author of the article.
• Maksimov, V.V. (Vitaly Vasilyevich) - First cellist of the Tomsk Symphony Orchestra, Honored Artist of the RSFSR, co-founder of the Chamber Music Lovers Club.
• Mange, Suzanne - A female student, an acquaintance of S. G. Shifris at the University of Nancy, instilled in him a love for classical music.
• Shifris, German - The father of Solo Germanovich Shifris, a philanthropist, instilled in his son a love of art.
• Shifris, Solo Germanovich - Senior Lecturer, Department of Foreign Languages, Tomsk State University, founder and permanent president of the Chamber Music Lovers Club.