AKhram May 25, 2012:

Для коллекции добавлю self-composed song

Если это чисто российская специфика, то почему не написать например "Russian bard-style performances"?

Levis May 25, 2012:

Это про ночь в музее Сильно сомневаюсь, что каэспэшники сидели и бренчали на гитарках.

Samantha Payn May 25, 2012:

Singer/songwriter I think in the US/UK context the term singer/songwriter would fit the bill. Not so elegant as chansonnier, but a perfect well understood term, IMHO.

ViBe May 25, 2012:

барды = balladeers The Misha got it all right, and such words as "chansons" (I'd italicize it) or "ballad" do the job perfectly well here OR you can convert work into performers and go with "balladeers" for “исполнители авторских песен” instead.

The Misha May 25, 2012:

Susan, we don't even have any of that in this country. It's a Russian version of French chansonnier, usually a solo guy (even though if memory serves me right there were sometimes [married] couple duets in the not so good old times) who writes his own lyrics and score and sings it too. They also call them "bards" in Russian in the sense of minstrels, though of course you can't call them that in modern day English. Vladimir Vysotsky was one, then there's this perennially sad guy Rozenbaum, if he is still around that is.

NataliaShevchuk May 24, 2012:

INHO, "compositions performed by their authors"
e. g. "авторская песня"
Storytellers, like Zhvanetsky etc., also fall in this category.