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Sergei Lemeshev

January 01, 1970

Sergei Yakovlevich Lemeshev (Russian: Серге́й Я́ковлевич Ле́мешев; 10 July [O.S. 27 June] 1902 – 27 June 1977) was a Soviet and Russian opera singer and director. People's Artist of the USSR (1950).

Sergei Lemeshev
Lemeshev as Lensky in Eugene Onegin
Born
Sergei Yakovlevich Lemeshev

(1902-07-10)10 July 1902
Staroe Knyazevo, Tverskoy Uyezd, Tver Governorate, Russian Empire
Died27 June 1977(1977-06-27) (aged 74)
Moscow, Soviet Union
OccupationOperatic singer
Years active1926–1975

Biography edit

Early life and career edit

Lemeshev was born into a peasant family, and his father wanted him to become a cobbler. In 1914, he left a parish school and was sent to be trained to make shoes in Saint Petersburg. In 1917, he graduated from school in Tver, where he received vocal training. He began first at a local workers' club and later moved to Moscow.

Between 1921 and 1925, he studied at the Moscow Conservatory with Nazari Raisky. In 1924, he sang in the opera studio of Konstantin Stanislavski. From 1926 and 1931, he sang in the theatres of Sverdlovsk, Harbin, and Tbilisi.

In 1931 Lemeshev was invited to the Bolshoi Theatre, made his debut and eventually became the theatre's soloist. His lyrical tenor of an unusually soft and light timbre almost at once brought him love and popularity among admirers of the operatic art. Nevertheless, Lemeshev was a great worker and worked hard to develop each of his opera roles. His vocal and artistic qualities, evident to every listener, are beauty of timbre, musicality, effortlessness of vocal production, expressiveness, very clear diction and incredible pianissimo. The best years of his operatic career were from 1931 to 1942. He was also an outstanding concert singer and a brilliant performer of traditional Russian folk songs. In 1938, he became the first artist to sing all 100 romances by Tchaikovsky in 5 concerts. Folk songs broadcast on the radio further sealed his stature as a truly national singer.

Health edit

The beginning of the Great Patriotic War was crucial for Lemeshev; during one evacuation he caught a very bad cold which resulted in two attacks of pneumonia, complicated by pleurisy and tuberculosis of the right lung. He was treated with artificial pneumothorax, which induced the therapeutic collapse of one lung. Although singing was forbidden, he adapted by being more conscious and sensitive with regard to his technique, and continued to sing with one lung from 1942 to 1948, when the other lung was also artificially collapsed and re-inflated. During that period he recorded Lakmé, The Snow Maiden, Les pêcheurs de perles, Mozart and Salieri and pieces from operas like The Barber of Seville and Rigoletto.

In 1947, he toured and performed at the Berlin State Opera. Along with his friendly rival, tenor Ivan Kozlovsky, he was the leading tenor at the Bolshoi until 1956.

Repertoire edit

Lemeshev's operatic repertoire consisted primarily of Russian works along with a particularly significant number of French and a few Italian and German pieces. Almost all works were performed in the Russian language. Unfortunately, very few complete recordings are available, with only excerpts available in spite of Lemeshev's numerous performances on stage in roles such as the Duke in Rigoletto and Almaviva in The Barber of Seville.

Signature role as Lensky in Eugene Onegin edit

Lemeshev's signature role was as Lensky in Eugene Onegin by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, and he performed it more than 500 times from 1927 onwards. He performed it for the last time on his 70th birthday, after suffering three heart attacks and having a lung removed.

Other key roles edit

In 1953 Lemeshev was given the prestigious title People's Artist of the USSR. He was also appointed assistant manager of the Bolshoi from 1957 to 1959. He debuted as director in 1951, with the production of La traviata in the Maly Opera Theatre in Leningrad (now known as the Mikhailovsky Theatre). Following this, he was made director for the production of Massenet's Werther in 1957 at the Bolshoi.

Toward the end of his career, he mainly gave concerts of Russian classic romances and folk songs, with performances aired on the radio, and taught in the Moscow Conservatory as associate professor.

He was buried in the Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow.

Personal life edit

Six marriages and numerous affairs focused the attention of Lemeshev's fans on his personal life. His fourth wife was the famous soprano Irina Maslennikova, who gave birth to Lemeshev's daughter Maria. Ultimately, he found his life partner in singer Vera Kudryavtseva. Their marriage lasted for over 20 years, until Lemeshev's death in 1977.

Legacy edit

He authored the book "The Way to Art", published in 1968.

Asteroid number 4561 received the name Lemeshev in 1978, a year after Sergei Lemeshev's death.

Recordings edit

more information

Bibliography edit

Vasiliev, Viktor Dmitrievich: Doroga k Lemeshevu, Tver', 2002, ISBN 5-87049-247-5

External links edit

  • Sergei Lemeshev at IMDb
  • Sergei Lemeshev at the Allmusic.com
  • Lemeshev sings Tchaikovsky's songs (free Mp3 downloads)
  • Operatic arias & folk songs (free Mp3 downloads)
  • Biography (in Russian)
  • Peoples.ru
  • Grandi Tenori
  • Biography of Sergei Lemeshev
  • History of the Tenor / Sergei Lemeshev / Sound Clips and Narration
  • YouTube: SERGEI LEMESHEV - "Questa o Quella & La Donna e Mobile" from Rigoletto (in Russian)
  • YouTube: Sergei Lemeshev - "Una furtiva lagrima" from L'elisir d'amore (in Italian)
  • YouTube: Sergei Lemeshev - Pearlfishers/Nadir's romance (1938)
  • YouTube: Sergei Lemeshev - "На заре ты ее не буди/Don't wake her at dawn" (Russian romance)
  • YouTube: Sergei Lemeshev - "Тройка/Troika" (Russian folk song)
  • YouTube: "The Musical Story" (1941)

January 01, 1970
sergei, lemeshev, sergei, yakovlevich, lemeshev, russian, Серге, ковлевич, Ле, мешев, july, june, 1902, june, 1977, soviet, russian, opera, singer, director, people, artist, ussr, 1950, lemeshev, lensky, eugene, oneginbornsergei, yakovlevich, lemeshev, 1902, j. Sergei Yakovlevich Lemeshev Russian Serge j Ya kovlevich Le meshev 10 July O S 27 June 1902 27 June 1977 was a Soviet and Russian opera singer and director People s Artist of the USSR 1950 Sergei LemeshevLemeshev as Lensky in Eugene OneginBornSergei Yakovlevich Lemeshev 1902 07 10 10 July 1902Staroe Knyazevo Tverskoy Uyezd Tver Governorate Russian EmpireDied27 June 1977 1977 06 27 aged 74 Moscow Soviet UnionOccupationOperatic singerYears active1926 1975 Contents 1 Biography 1 1 Early life and career 1 2 Health 1 3 Repertoire 1 4 Signature role as Lensky in Eugene Onegin 1 5 Other key roles 2 Personal life 3 Legacy 4 Recordings 5 Bibliography 6 External linksBiography editEarly life and career edit Lemeshev was born into a peasant family and his father wanted him to become a cobbler In 1914 he left a parish school and was sent to be trained to make shoes in Saint Petersburg In 1917 he graduated from school in Tver where he received vocal training He began first at a local workers club and later moved to Moscow Between 1921 and 1925 he studied at the Moscow Conservatory with Nazari Raisky In 1924 he sang in the opera studio of Konstantin Stanislavski From 1926 and 1931 he sang in the theatres of Sverdlovsk Harbin and Tbilisi In 1931 Lemeshev was invited to the Bolshoi Theatre made his debut and eventually became the theatre s soloist His lyrical tenor of an unusually soft and light timbre almost at once brought him love and popularity among admirers of the operatic art Nevertheless Lemeshev was a great worker and worked hard to develop each of his opera roles His vocal and artistic qualities evident to every listener are beauty of timbre musicality effortlessness of vocal production expressiveness very clear diction and incredible pianissimo The best years of his operatic career were from 1931 to 1942 He was also an outstanding concert singer and a brilliant performer of traditional Russian folk songs In 1938 he became the first artist to sing all 100 romances by Tchaikovsky in 5 concerts Folk songs broadcast on the radio further sealed his stature as a truly national singer Health edit The beginning of the Great Patriotic War was crucial for Lemeshev during one evacuation he caught a very bad cold which resulted in two attacks of pneumonia complicated by pleurisy and tuberculosis of the right lung He was treated with artificial pneumothorax which induced the therapeutic collapse of one lung Although singing was forbidden he adapted by being more conscious and sensitive with regard to his technique and continued to sing with one lung from 1942 to 1948 when the other lung was also artificially collapsed and re inflated During that period he recorded Lakme The Snow Maiden Les pecheurs de perles Mozart and Salieri and pieces from operas like The Barber of Seville and Rigoletto In 1947 he toured and performed at the Berlin State Opera Along with his friendly rival tenor Ivan Kozlovsky he was the leading tenor at the Bolshoi until 1956 Repertoire edit Lemeshev s operatic repertoire consisted primarily of Russian works along with a particularly significant number of French and a few Italian and German pieces Almost all works were performed in the Russian language Unfortunately very few complete recordings are available with only excerpts available in spite of Lemeshev s numerous performances on stage in roles such as the Duke in Rigoletto and Almaviva in The Barber of Seville Rodolfo in La Boheme by Giacomo Puccini Duke in Rigoletto by Giuseppe Verdi Romeo in Romeo et Juliette by Charles Gounod Almaviva in The Barber of Seville by Gioachino Rossini Levko in May Night by Nikolai Rimsky Korsakov Alfredo in La Traviata by Giuseppe Verdi Astrologer in The Golden Cockerel by Nikolai Rimsky Korsakov Vladimir Igorevich in Prince Igor by Alexander Borodin Rodolfo in Luisa Miller by Giuseppe Verdi Indian guest in Sadko by Nikolai Rimsky Korsakov Lohengrin in Lohengrin by Richard Wagner Nadir in Les pecheurs de perles by Georges Bizet Doctor Faust in Faust by Charles Gounod Tsar Berendei in The Snow Maiden by Nikolai Rimsky Korsakov Boyan in Ruslan and Ludmila by Mikhail Glinka Prince Sidonal in The Demon by Anton Rubinstein Dubrovsky in Dubrovsky by Eduard Napravnik Gerald in Lakme by Leo Delibes Werther in Werther by Jules Massenet Fra Diavolo in Fra Diavolo by Daniel Auber among others Signature role as Lensky in Eugene Onegin edit Lemeshev s signature role was as Lensky in Eugene Onegin by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and he performed it more than 500 times from 1927 onwards He performed it for the last time on his 70th birthday after suffering three heart attacks and having a lung removed Other key roles edit In 1953 Lemeshev was given the prestigious title People s Artist of the USSR He was also appointed assistant manager of the Bolshoi from 1957 to 1959 He debuted as director in 1951 with the production of La traviata in the Maly Opera Theatre in Leningrad now known as the Mikhailovsky Theatre Following this he was made director for the production of Massenet s Werther in 1957 at the Bolshoi Toward the end of his career he mainly gave concerts of Russian classic romances and folk songs with performances aired on the radio and taught in the Moscow Conservatory as associate professor He was buried in the Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow Personal life editSix marriages and numerous affairs focused the attention of Lemeshev s fans on his personal life His fourth wife was the famous soprano Irina Maslennikova who gave birth to Lemeshev s daughter Maria Ultimately he found his life partner in singer Vera Kudryavtseva Their marriage lasted for over 20 years until Lemeshev s death in 1977 Legacy editHe authored the book The Way to Art published in 1968 Asteroid number 4561 received the name Lemeshev in 1978 a year after Sergei Lemeshev s death Recordings editTchaikovsky Eugene Onegin cond Georgy Doniyakh Leningrad Maly Theatre CD Label Aquarius 1954 Live recording Tchaikovsky Eugene Onegin cond Boris Khaikin Bolshoi Theatre CD Label Opera D oro 1956 studio recording remastered 1999 Rimsky Korsakov May Night cond Vasili Nebolsin Bolshoi Theatre 3 LP Monarch MWL 338 340 about 1948 Scenes and Arias from Operas Sergei Lemeshev CD Label Yedang Entertainment 2002 Lebendige Vergangenheit Sergei Lemeshev Preiser Records Audio CD July 4 1998 A large number of CD s 42 so far including live concerts have been published by Aquarius http aquarius classic ru albums tid 6 amp ver eng more informationBibliography editVasiliev Viktor Dmitrievich Doroga k Lemeshevu Tver 2002 ISBN 5 87049 247 5External links editSergei Lemeshev at IMDb Sergei Lemeshev at the Allmusic com Lemeshev sings Tchaikovsky s songs free Mp3 downloads Operatic arias amp folk songs free Mp3 downloads Biography in Russian Peoples ru Grandi Tenori Voice of Russia The Rivals Biography of Sergei Lemeshev History of the Tenor Sergei Lemeshev Sound Clips and Narration YouTube SERGEI LEMESHEV Questa o Quella amp La Donna e Mobile from Rigoletto in Russian YouTube Sergei Lemeshev Una furtiva lagrima from L elisir d amore in Italian YouTube Sergei Lemeshev Pearlfishers Nadir s romance 1938 YouTube Sergei Lemeshev Na zare ty ee ne budi Don t wake her at dawn Russian romance YouTube Sergei Lemeshev Trojka Troika Russian folk song YouTube The Musical Story 1941 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Sergei Lemeshev amp oldid 1209806367, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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