June 29, 1941 the Soviet Pravda broadsheet newspaper published a poem by Mikhail Isakovskiy called the Marching Song that began with the words
We bid farewell to cities and towns,
The road is calling for us,
We’re young and outrageous,
We are leaving at dawn.
The poem was immediately turned into a song. The words were so inspiring that several melodies composed by different authors saw light almost simultaneously.
But it was Matvey Blanter’s song that was destined to gain wide popularity during the war. The score was first published in autumn of 1941, and almost immediately it was recorded under the lead of Semyon Tchernetsky, legendary military conductor and composer. The song first performer was Pyotr Kirichek, soloist of the Bolshoi Theater. All this we’ve learnt from the Evening Moscow newspaper issued on October 7, 1941.
References: «Советская музыка» (Soviet Music), «Военный альбом» (Military Album), «Победа.екатеринбург.рф» websites.