Elena Vasiliyevna Obraztsova ( rus, Еле́на Васи́льевна Образцо́ва, , ɪ̯ɪˈlʲenə vɐˈsʲilʲɪ̯ɪvnə ɐbrɐˈstsovə; 7 July 1939 – 12 January 2015) was a Soviet and Russian
mezzo-soprano. She was awarded the
People's Artist of the USSR in 1976 and
Hero of Socialist Labour in 1990.
Life
As a child, Obraztsova lived in Leningrad through the severe
long siege (more than 870 days) during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
.
In 1948, at the age of nine, she began singing in the children's chorus of the
Pioneers Palace
Young Pioneer Palaces or Palaces of Young Pioneers and Schoolchildren were youth centers designated for the creative work, sport training and extracurricular activities of Young Pioneers and other schoolchildren. Young Pioneer Palaces originat ...
in Leningrad.
From 1954 to 1957, she studied in the Tchaikovsky musical college in
Taganrog
Taganrog ( rus, Таганрог, p=təɡɐnˈrok) is a port city in Rostov Oblast, Russia, on the north shore of the Taganrog Bay in the Sea of Azov, several kilometers west of the mouth of the Don River. Population:
History of Taganrog
Th ...
and frequently participated in concerts onstage of
Taganrog Theatre
The Taganrog Drama Theater named after Anton Chekhov and decorated with Order of Honor (Russian Federation), Order of Honor (russian: Таганрогский ордена Почёта драматический театр имени А.П.Чех ...
. From 1957 to 1958, Obraztsova studied in
Rostov on Don
Rostov-on-Don ( rus, Ростов-на-Дону, r=Rostov-na-Donu, p=rɐˈstof nə dɐˈnu) is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East Eu ...
's music school. In August 1958, Obraztsova passed the examinations and became a student at the
Leningrad Conservatory
The N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov Saint Petersburg State Conservatory (russian: Санкт-Петербургская государственная консерватория имени Н. А. Римского-Корсакова) (formerly known as th ...
. In 1963 she was invited to perform in a
Bolshoi Theater production of ''
Boris Godunov'' in Moscow.
Her introduction to the opera houses of Europe and the world was a recital in the
Salle Pleyel
The Salle Pleyel (, meaning "Pleyel Hall") is a concert hall in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France, designed by acoustician Gustave Lyon together with architect Jacques Marcel Auburtin, who died in 1926, and the work was completed in 1927 by ...
in Paris.
Opera career
She played many roles throughout her career, including performances under the baton of such leading conductors as
Claudio Abbado
Claudio Abbado (; 26 June 1933 – 20 January 2014) was an Italian conductor who was one of the leading conductors of his generation. He served as music director of the La Scala opera house in Milan, principal conductor of the London Symphony ...
and
Herbert von Karajan
Herbert von Karajan (; born Heribert Ritter von Karajan; 5 April 1908 – 16 July 1989) was an Austrian conductor. He was principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic for 34 years. During the Nazi era, he debuted at the Salzburg Festival, wit ...
. In December 1977 she opened the 200th opera season in
La Scala singing ''
Don Carlos
''Don Carlos'' is a five-act grand opera composed by Giuseppe Verdi to a French-language libretto by Joseph Méry and Camille du Locle, based on the dramatic play '' Don Carlos, Infant von Spanien'' (''Don Carlos, Infante of Spain'') by Fried ...
s Eboli with Abbado as conductor. She first performed in New York in 1976, in Aida, and was called a "major artist" in reviews.
[
In 1978, she played the title role of ''Carmen'' opposite ]Plácido Domingo
José Plácido Domingo Embil (born 21 January 1941) is a Spanish opera singer, conductor, and arts administrator. He has recorded over a hundred complete operas and is well known for his versatility, regularly performing in Italian, French ...
in Franco Zeffirelli
Gian Franco Corsi Zeffirelli (12 February 1923 – 15 June 2019), was an Italian stage and film director, producer, production designer and politician. He was one of the most significant opera and theatre directors of the post-World War II era, ...
's television production of the opera. She also appeared as Santuzza in Zeffirelli's film version of ''Cavalleria rusticana
''Cavalleria rusticana'' (; Italian for "rustic chivalry") is an opera in one act by Pietro Mascagni to an Italian libretto by Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti and Guido Menasci, adapted from an 1880 short story of the same name and subsequent play ...
'' in 1982.[ In her career she performed in operas with many other well-known opera singers of her generation: Luciano Pavarotti, Joan Sutherland, Ingvar Wixell, and appeared in Don Carlos with Domingo and ]Margaret Price
Dame Margaret Berenice Price (13 April 194128 January 2011) was a Welsh soprano.
Early years
Price was born in Blackwood, near Caerphilly in South Wales. Born with deformed legs, she underwent surgery at age four and suffered pain in he ...
.[
On 27 December 1990, she was awarded the title of the ]Hero of Socialist Labor
The Hero of Socialist Labour (russian: links=no, Герой Социалистического Труда, Geroy Sotsialisticheskogo Truda) was an honorific title in the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact countries from 1938 to 1991. It repre ...
(mark of distinction - "Hammer and Sickle" gold medal ), Order of Lenin
The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration ...
by the President of USSR for her contribution to the development of Soviet Music.[
In June 2007, Obraztsova was appointed artistic director of opera at the ]Mikhaylovsky Theatre
The Mikhailovsky Theatre (russian: Миха́йловский теа́тр) is one of Russia's oldest opera and ballet houses. It was founded in 1833 and is situated in a historical building on 1, Arts Square in Saint Petersburg. It is named a ...
in St. Petersburg.[ She also trained young soloists in her own cultural center in St. Petersburg. Obraztsova regularly appeared on stage at the Mikhailovsky in the role of the Countess in ]Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popu ...
's '' The Queen of Spades''. In 2008, Obraztsova ended her artistic director contract with the Mikhailovsky to concentrate on the competition of her name and the recently announced project of International Academy of Music in St Petersburg. Obraztsova remained in collaboration with the Mikhailovsky at the General Director's Artistic Advisor.
On 7 July 2009, Obraztsova's 70th birthday was marked with a special program at the Mikhailovsky Theater that included ballet performances, opera arias, excerpts from films, and jazz and piano recitals.
Personal life
She strongly supported the Soviet Union, and signed a letter in 1974 denouncing Mstislav Rostropovich and Galina Vishnevskaya
Galina Pavlovna Vishnevskaya (russian: links=no, Галина Павловна Вишневская, Ivanova, Иванова; 25 October 192611 December 2012) was a Russian soprano opera singer and recitalist who was named a People's Artist o ...
for their support for Alexander Solzhenitsyn.[
Obraztsova expressed her support for the International Delphic Games. Greetings with her signature came to the III Delphic Games 2009 in Jeju/South Korea, under the motto "In Tune with Nature", and to the IV Junior Delphic Games 2011 in Johannesburg/South Africa with their motto "Provoke, Innovate, Inspire".
She was married twice, first to Vyacheslav Makarov, a physicist, and later Algis Ziuraitis, who was a conductor at the Bolshoi.][ She had a daughter, Elena, with Makarov.][
]
Death
Obraztsova died on 12 January 2015 in Leipzig, Saxony, Germany, while undergoing medical treatment. She was 75 years old.Умерла знаменитая оперная певица Елена Образцова
Honours and awards
* Glinka State Prize of the RSFSR (1st prize) (1962)
*1970 - Viñas prize (1st prize, International Vocal Competition in Barcelona)
*Honoured Artist of the RSFSR
Merited Artist of the Russian Federation (russian: link=no, Заслуженный артист Российской Федерации, ''Zasluzhenny artist Rossiyskoy Federatsii'') is an honorary title in the Russian Federation. The title is ...
*1970 Tchaikovsky prize (1st prize)
*Order of the Red Banner of Labour
The Order of the Red Banner of Labour (russian: Орден Трудового Красного Знамени, translit=Orden Trudovogo Krasnogo Znameni) was an order of the Soviet Union established to honour great deeds and services to th ...
, twice (1971, 1980)
* Glinka State Prize of the RSFSR - for concerts and theatrical activities 1971-1972 period (1973)
*People's Artist of the RSFSR
People's Artist of the RSFSR (russian: Народный артист РСФСР, ''Narodnyj artist RSFSR'') was an honorary title granted to Soviet Union artists, including theatre and film directors, choreographers, music performers, and orchest ...
(1973)
* Lenin Prize - for concert programs in 1973-1974 and the roles of Froska, Carmen, Azucena in the Operas "Simeon Kolko", Prokofiev
Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''., group=n (27 April .S. 15 April1891 – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, p ...
's "Carmen" by Bizet
Georges Bizet (; 25 October 18383 June 1875) was a French composer of the Romantic era. Best known for his operas in a career cut short by his early death, Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, '' Carmen'', which has become o ...
, "Il Trovatore" by Verdi
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...
(1976)
*People's Artist of USSR
People's Artist of the USSR ( rus, Народный артист СССР, Narodny artist SSSR), also sometimes translated as National Artist of the USSR, was an honorary title granted to artists of the Soviet Union.
Nomenclature and significan ...
(1976)
* Hero of Socialist Labour (27 December 1990) - for outstanding contributions to the development of Soviet musical art
*Order of Lenin
The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration ...
(27 December 1990)
*Order of Merit for the Fatherland
Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to:
* Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood
* Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...
, 3rd class (17 June 1999) - for outstanding contribution to the development of musical art
* Casta Diva prize (2002)
*Order of Merit for the Fatherland
Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to:
* Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood
* Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...
, 2nd class (10 June 2009) - for outstanding contribution to music and many years of fruitful creative activity
*Order of the Holy Prince Daniel of Moscow The Order of Holy Prince Daniel of Moscow (russian: Орден святого благоверного князя Даниила Московского) is an award of the Russian Orthodox Church, established in 1988. There are three classes.
Hist ...
, 1st class (Russian Orthodox Church, 2009) - in consideration of his labours for the good of the Church and in connection with her 70th birthday
Repertory
* 1 Concert performance of the opera/operetta
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Obraztsova, Elena
1939 births
2015 deaths
Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery
Musicians from Saint Petersburg
Recipients of the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 2nd class
Heroes of Socialist Labour
Glinka State Prize of the RSFSR winners
Honored Artists of the RSFSR
People's Artists of Russia
Lenin Prize winners
People's Artists of the USSR
Recipients of the Order of Lenin
Recipients of the Order of Holy Prince Daniel of Moscow
Russian mezzo-sopranos
Russian opera singers
Operatic mezzo-sopranos