Even the harshest critics of the Russian Armed Forces will have a hard time finding fault with the Ensemble of Song and Dance's Eurovision-worthy rendition of "Skyfall," the theme song to the most recent James Bond film of the same name.
Proving that Russian soldiers also have a sensitive side, their performance of the tune by British singer Adele on Channel 5, a nationwide television channel, has led many to comment that their version is more well-suited to the film than the original.
Formed in 1928, the Ensemble is named after Alexander Vasilyevich Alexandrov, its first director.
They can be heard singing "It's a Long Way to Tipperary" in the German World War II Movie "Das Boot" and have performed in Roger Waters' 1990 concert in Berlin celebrating the fall of the Berlin Wall.
Their performance in front of a crowd of 70,000 people in Helsinki, Finland with local band Leningrad Cowboys is the subject of cult filmmaker Aki Kaurismäki's rockumentary "Total Balalaika Show."
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