On the 107th anniversary of the proclamation of the independence of the Latvian Republic, a ceremony for the state awards took place in the festive hall of the Riga Castle.
The focus, of course, was on Raymond Pauls, who was awarded the country's highest honor - the Order of the Three Stars of the first degree. Previously, such an award was given only to kings and heads of state.
After the anthem and the president's speech, the high award was first presented to the Maestro. Raymond Voldemarovich came out with a cane accompanied by his granddaughter Anna, accepted the award, looked at it with interest, and... out of habit, immediately closed the box. And he said a few words.
"Well, I probably need to say something? I thank you for the award, for the high appreciation in the preservation of Latvian song. And I will probably joke, as always? Good. I want to say that the names of all those great people who have ever awarded me will never be mentioned in my program 'Men in Their Prime.' The joke drowned in applause!
Here it should be clarified that 'Men in Their Prime' is a cheerful humorous program by Pauls and artist Andris Keišs, which he has been performing for several years at the Daile Music House in Riga - it is nothing serious, unlike important solemn events.
Maestro's Awards
In general, Pauls has a whole collection of awards. Let's remember 2004, when Raymond Pauls was awarded the international Order of Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker - alongside former president Guntis Ulmanis. After the ceremony, Raymond said that he had many awards, and of various kinds.
"The stage is not for awards at all. But I can tell you about the title of People's Artist of the USSR. I received it in February 1985, and I have a document about the title signed by the then leader of the Soviet Union, General Secretary Konstantin Chernenko. And a couple of days after that, he died. So, I probably have the last document signed by the head of the USSR. Perhaps the General Secretary died thinking about me!"
On May 4, 2016, Raymond Pauls received the luxurious Order of the Three Stars of the second degree.
A few years ago, the national treasure was awarded the Georgian Order of Honor. "They came up with a clever move to get me to Tbilisi!" the Maestro said with a smile upon learning about it.
Shortly before the pandemic, the Emperor of Japan awarded Pauls the Order of the Rising Sun of the third degree with golden rays and a ribbon around his neck. After the pandemic, the award ceremony took place at the Japanese Embassy, where the Maestro performed his legendary hit "A Million Scarlet Roses," which has been a hit not only in Latvia and Russia but also in Japan since the eighties.
In addition, the Maestro's collection includes the Soviet Order of the Badge of Honor ("It's so heavy..." says the classic), Russian Orders of Friendship and Honor, the Latvian Order of the Cross of Recognition, and awards from Denmark and Estonia.
