![Feodor Chaliapin signed](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/Feodor_Chaliapin_signed.jpg)
Feodor Ivanovich Chaliapin ( rus, Фёдор Ива́нович Шаля́пин, Fyodor Ivanovich Shalyapin, ˈfʲɵdər ɪˈvanəvʲɪtɕ ʂɐˈlʲapʲɪn}; April 12, 1938) was a Russian
opera
Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...
singer. Possessing a
deep
Deep or The Deep may refer to:
Places United States
* Deep Creek (Appomattox River tributary), Virginia
* Deep Creek (Great Salt Lake), Idaho and Utah
* Deep Creek (Mahantango Creek tributary), Pennsylvania
* Deep Creek (Mojave River tributary), ...
and expressive
bass voice, he enjoyed an important international career at major opera houses and is often credited with establishing the tradition of
naturalistic acting in his chosen art form.
During the first phase of his career, Chaliapin endured direct competition from three other great basses: the powerful (1869–1942), the more lyrical (1871–1948), and Dmitri Buchtoyarov (1866–1918), whose voice was intermediate between those of Sibiriakov and Kastorsky. The fact that Chaliapin is far and away the best remembered of this magnificent quartet of rival basses is a testament to the power of his personality, the acuteness of his musical interpretations, and the vividness of his performances.
Spelling note
He himself spelled his surname, French-style, Chaliapine in the West, and his name even appeared on early HMV 78s as Theodore Chaliapine. In English texts, his given name is most usually rendered as Feodor or Fyodor, and his surname is most usually seen as Chaliapin. However, in the Russian pronunciation the initial consonant
Ш is pronounced like ''sh'' in ''shop'', not as ''ch'' in ''chop'', and in reference books the surname is sometimes given a strict
romanization
Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, a ...
as Shalyapin.
This spelling also better reflects the fact that the name is pronounced with three syllables (Shal-YA-pin), not four.
Early life
Feodor Chaliapin was born into a peasant family on February 1 (OS), 1873 in
Kazan
Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering an ...
, in the wing of merchant Lisitzin's house on Rybnoryadskaya Street (now
Pushkin Street) 10. This wing no longer exists, but the house with the yard where the wing was situated is still there. The next day,
Candlemas (The Meeting of Our Lord), he was baptized in Epiphany (
Bogoyavlenskaya) Church on Bolshaya Prolomnaya street (now
Bauman Street). His godparents were his neighbors: the shoemaker Nikolay Tonkov and Ludmila Kharitonova, a 12-year-old girl. The dwelling was expensive for his father, Ivan Yakovlevich, who served as a clerk in the Zemskaya Uprava (Zemstvo District Council), and in 1878 the Chaliapin family moved to the village of Ametyevo (also Ometyevo, or the Ometyev settlements, now a settlement within Kazan) behind the area of Sukonnaya Sloboda, and settled in a small house.
Early career
His vocal teacher was
Dmitri Usatov
Dimitri Andreevich Usatov (February 22, 1847 - August 23, 1913) was a Russian tenor and vocal teacher. Born a serf to Dmitri Nikolayevich Sheremetev, he studied music with Camille Everardi at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory and sang at the Bol ...
(1847-1913). Chaliapin began his career at
Tbilisi
Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million p ...
and at the Imperial Opera in
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
in 1894. He was then invited to sing at the
Mamontov Private Opera (1896–1899); he first appeared there as
Mephistopheles
Mephistopheles (, ), also known as Mephisto, is a demon featured in German folklore. He originally appeared in literature as the demon in the Faust legend, and he has since appeared in other works as a stock character (see: Mephistopheles i ...
in
Gounod's ''Faust'', in which role he achieved considerable success.
At Mamontov Chaliapin met
Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943), who was serving as an assistant conductor there and with whom he remained friends for life. Rachmaninoff taught him much about musicianship, including how to analyze a music score, and insisted that Chaliapin learn not only his own roles but also all the other roles in the operas in which he was scheduled to appear. With Rachmaninoff he learned the title role of
Mussorgsky's ''Boris Godunov'', which became his signature character.
[ Schonberg, 339.] Chaliapin returned the favor by showing Rachmaninoff how he built each of his interpretations around a culminating moment or "point". Regardless of where that point was or at which dynamic within that piece, the performer had to know how to approach it with absolute calculation and precision; otherwise, the whole construction of the piece could crumble and the piece could become disjointed. Rachmaninoff put this approach to considerable use when he became a full-time concert-pianist after
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
.
Geoffrey Norris
Geoffrey Norris (born 1947) is an English musicologist and music critic. His scholarship focuses on Russian composers; in particularly, Norris is a leading scholar on the life and music of Sergei Rachmaninoff, about whom he has written in num ...
(ed.), Stanley Sadie (1980) ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians''. London: MacMillan, p. 714. .
On the strength of his Mamontov appearances, the
Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow engaged Chaliapin, and he appeared there regularly from 1899 until 1914. During the First World War of 1914-1918 Chaliapin also appeared regularly at the
Zimin Private Opera in Moscow. In addition, from 1901, Chaliapin began touring in the West, making a sensational debut at
La Scala that year as the devil in a production of
Boito's ''
Mefistofele
''Mefistofele'' () is an opera in a prologue and five acts, later reduced to four acts and an epilogue, the only completed opera with music by the Italian composer-librettist Arrigo Boito (there are several completed operas for which he was libre ...
'', under the baton of one of the 20th century's most dynamic opera conductors,
Arturo Toscanini. At the end of his career, Toscanini observed that the Russian bass was the greatest operatic talent with whom he had ever worked. The singer's
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is oper ...
debut in the 1907 season was disappointing due to the unprecedented frankness of his stage acting; but he returned to the Met in 1921 and sang there with immense success for eight seasons, New York's audiences having grown more broad-minded since 1907. In 1913 Chaliapin was introduced to London and Paris by the brilliant entrepreneur
Sergei Diaghilev
Sergei Pavlovich Diaghilev ( ; rus, Серге́й Па́влович Дя́гилев, , sʲɪˈrɡʲej ˈpavləvʲɪdʑ ˈdʲæɡʲɪlʲɪf; 19 August 1929), usually referred to outside Russia as Serge Diaghilev, was a Russian art critic, pa ...
(1872-1929), at which point he began giving well-received solo recitals in which he sang traditional Russian folk-songs as well as more serious fare. Such folk songs included "Along Peterskaya" (which he recorded with a British-based Russian folk-instrument orchestra) and the song which he made famous throughout the world: "
The Song of the Volga Boatmen
The "Song of the Volga Boatmen" (known in Russian as Эй, ухнем! y, ukhnem!, "Yo, heave-ho!" after the refrain) is a well-known traditional Russian song collected by Mily Balakirev and published in his book of folk songs in 1866. It was ...
". In 1925, when he performed in New York, his piano accompanist was a young
Harry Lubin
Harry Lubin (March 5, 1906 – July 21, 1977) was an American composer, arranger, and pianist. He is known for composing the theme and much of the music for the second season of the television series '' The Outer Limits'' and ''One Step Beyond'' ...
(1906-1977), later to become a composer of music for the television series
''The Outer Limits''.
Later life
Chaliapin toured Australia in 1926, giving a series of recitals which were highly acclaimed.
Privately, Chaliapin's personal affairs were in a state of disarray as a consequence of the
Russian Revolution of 1917
The Russian Revolution was a period of political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and adopt a socialist form of government ...
. At first he was treated as a revered artist of the newly emerged
Soviet Russia
The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Russian SFSR or RSFSR ( rus, Российская Советская Федеративная Социалистическая Республика, Rossíyskaya Sovétskaya Federatívnaya Soci ...
. However, the harsh realities of everyday life under the new regime, and the unstable climate which followed because of the ensuing
Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
, combined with, reportedly, the encroachment on some of his property by the
Communist authorities, caused him to remain perpetually outside Russia after 1921. He still maintained, however, that he was not anti-Soviet. Chaliapin initially moved to Finland and later lived in France. Cosmopolitan Paris, with its significant Russian émigré population, became his base, and ultimately, the city of his death. He was renowned for his larger-than-life carousing during this period, but he never sacrificed his dedication to his art.
Chaliapin's attachment to Paris did not prevent him from pursuing an international operatic and concert career in England, the United States, and further afield. In May 1931 he appeared in the Russian Season directed by
Sir Thomas Beecham
Sir Thomas Beecham, 2nd Baronet, CH (29 April 18798 March 1961) was an English conductor and impresario best known for his association with the London Philharmonic and the Royal Philharmonic orchestras. He was also closely associated with th ...
at London's
Lyceum Theatre. His most famous part was the title role of ''Boris Godunov'' (excerpts of which he recorded 1929–31 and earlier). He is remembered also for his interpretations of
Ivan the Terrible in
Rimsky-Korsakov
Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov . At the time, his name was spelled Николай Андреевичъ Римскій-Корсаковъ. la, Nicolaus Andreae filius Rimskij-Korsakov. The composer romanized his name as ''Nicolas Rimsk ...
's ''
The Maid of Pskov
''The Maid of Pskov'' (russian: Псковитянка, Pskovityanka, links=no, Pskov female resident ), also known as ''Ivan the Terrible'', is an 1872 opera originally in three acts (six scenes) by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. The libretto is by the ...
'' and
Salieri in ''
Mozart and Salieri'',
Mephistopheles
Mephistopheles (, ), also known as Mephisto, is a demon featured in German folklore. He originally appeared in literature as the demon in the Faust legend, and he has since appeared in other works as a stock character (see: Mephistopheles i ...
in
Gounod
Charles-François Gounod (; ; 17 June 181818 October 1893), usually known as Charles Gounod, was a French composer. He wrote twelve operas, of which the most popular has always been ''Faust (opera), Faust'' (1859); his ''Roméo et Juliette'' (18 ...
's ''
Faust
Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust ( 1480–1540).
The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a pact with the Devil at a crossroa ...
'',
Don Quixote
is a Spanish epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts, in 1605 and 1615, its full title is ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'' or, in Spanish, (changing in Part 2 to ). A founding work of West ...
in
Massenet
Jules Émile Frédéric Massenet (; 12 May 1842 – 13 August 1912) was a French composer of the Romantic music, Romantic era best known for his operas, of which he wrote more than thirty. The two most frequently staged are ''Manon'' (1884) ...
's ''
Don Quichotte
''Don Quichotte'' (''Don Quixote'') is an opera in five acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Henri Caïn. It was first performed on 19 February 1910 at the Opéra de Monte-Carlo.
Massenet's ''comédie-héroïque'', like many dramatiz ...
'', and King Philip in
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 ...
's ''
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 ...
''.
Largely owing to his advocacy, Russian operas such as Mussorgsky's ''Boris Godunov'' and ''
Khovanshchina
''Khovanshchina'' ( rus, Хованщина, , xɐˈvanʲɕːɪnə, Ru-Khovanshchina_version.ogg, sometimes rendered ''The Khovansky Affair'') is an opera (subtitled a 'national music drama') in five acts by Modest Mussorgsky. The work was writt ...
'',
Glinka's ''
Ivan Susanin
Ivan Susanin ( rus, Иван Сусанин, p=ɪˈvan sʊˈsanʲɪn; died 1613) was a Russian national hero and martyr of the early-17th-century Time of Troubles. According to the popular legend, Polish troops seeking to kill Tsar Mikhail hire ...
'',
Borodin
Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin ( rus, link=no, Александр Порфирьевич Бородин, Aleksandr Porfir’yevich Borodin , p=ɐlʲɪkˈsandr pɐrˈfʲi rʲjɪvʲɪtɕ bərɐˈdʲin, a=RU-Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin.ogg, ...
's ''
Prince Igor
''Prince Igor'' ( rus, Князь Игорь, Knyáz Ígor ) is an opera in four acts with a prologue, written and composed by Alexander Borodin. The composer adapted the libretto from the Ancient Russian epic '' The Lay of Igor's Host'', which re ...
'' and Rimsky-Korsakov's ''
The Tsar's Bride
''The Tsar's Bride'' (russian: Царская невеста, translit=Tsarskaja nevesta) is an historical verse drama in four acts by Lev Mei from 1849.Golub (1998, 951). Fifty years later Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov used the play as the basis for ...
'' and ''
Sadko
Sadko (russian: Садко) is the principal character in a Russian medieval epic '' bylina''. He was an adventurer, merchant, and '' gusli'' musician from Novgorod.
Textual notes
"Sadko" is a version of the tale translated by Arthur Ransome ...
'', became well known in the West.
Chaliapin made one sound film for the director
G. W. Pabst
Georg Wilhelm Pabst (25 August 1885 – 29 May 1967) was an Austrian film director and screenwriter. He started as an actor and theater director, before becoming one of the most influential German-language filmmakers during the Weimar Republic.
...
, the 1933 ''
Don Quixote
is a Spanish epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts, in 1605 and 1615, its full title is ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'' or, in Spanish, (changing in Part 2 to ). A founding work of West ...
''. The film was made in three different versions – French, English, and German, as was sometimes the prevailing custom. Chaliapin starred in all three versions, each of which used the same script, sets, and costumes, but different supporting casts. The English and the French versions are the most often seen, and both were released in May 2006 on a DVD. Pabst's film was not a version of the Massenet opera but a dramatic adaptation of
Miguel de Cervantes
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra (; 29 September 1547 (assumed) – 22 April 1616 NS) was an Early Modern Spanish writer widely regarded as the greatest writer in the Spanish language and one of the world's pre-eminent novelists. He is best kno ...
' novel, with music and songs by
Jacques Ibert
Jacques François Antoine Marie Ibert (15 August 1890 – 5 February 1962) was a French composer of classical music. Having studied music from an early age, he studied at the Paris Conservatoire and won its top prize, the Prix de Rome at his firs ...
.
In 1932, Chaliapin published a memoir, ''Man and Mask: Forty Years in the Life of a Singer''. While touring Japan in 1936 he was suffering from a toothache, and a hotel chef devised a way to cook a steak to be extra tender for him. This dish is known in Japan as a to this day.
Chaliapin's last stage performance took place at the
Monte Carlo Opera
Monte may refer to:
Places Argentina
* Argentine Monte, an ecoregion
* Monte Desert
* Monte Partido, a ''partido'' in Buenos Aires Province
Italy
* Monte Bregagno
* Monte Cassino
* Montecorvino (disambiguation)
* Montefalcione
Portugal
* Mont ...
in 1937, as Boris. He died the following year of
leukemia
Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ...
, aged 65, in Paris, where he was interred. In 1984, his remains were transferred from Paris to Moscow in an elaborate ceremony. They were re-buried in the
Novodevichy Cemetery.
Personal life
Chaliapin was married twice. He met his first wife, Italian ballerina Iola Tornaghi (1873–1965), in Nizhny Novgorod. They married in Russia in 1898 and had six children: Igor,
Boris (1904–1979), Irina, Lidia and twins
Feodor Jr. (1905–1992) and Taniya. Igor died aged four. Feodor Jr. was a character actor featured in Western motion pictures including ''
Moonstruck
''Moonstruck'' is a 1987 American romantic comedy-drama film directed and co-produced by Norman Jewison, written by John Patrick Shanley, and starring Cher, Nicolas Cage, Danny Aiello, Olympia Dukakis, and Vincent Gardenia. The film follows L ...
'' and ''
The Name of the Rose
''The Name of the Rose'' ( it, Il nome della rosa ) is the 1980 debut novel by Italian author Umberto Eco. It is a historical murder mystery set in an Italian monastery in the year 1327, and an intellectual mystery combining semiotics in ficti ...
'' opposite
Sean Connery. Boris was a well-known graphical artist, who painted the portraits used on 414 covers of the ''
Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...
'' magazine between 1942 and 1970.
While married to Tornaghi, Chaliapin lived with Marina Petsold (1882–1964), a widow who already had two children from her first marriage. She had three daughters with Chaliapin: Marfa (1910–2003), (1912–2009), and Dasya (1921–1977). Chaliapin's two families lived separately, one in Moscow and the other in Saint Petersburg, and did not interact. Chaliapin married Petsold in 1927 in Paris.
Chaliapin had his portrait painted a number of times by the Russian artist
Konstantin Korovin
Konstantin Alekseyevich Korovin (russian: Константи́н Алексе́евич Коро́вин, first name often spelled Constantin; 11 September 1939) was a leading Russian Impressionist painter.
Biography
Youth and education
Konstan ...
. They had been introduced to each other in 1896 and became close friends.
Gallery
File:Sergei Prokudin-Gorskii - Feodor Chaliapin as Mephisto cr.jpg, Chaliapin as Mephisto
Mephisto or Mephistopheles is one of the chief demons of German literary tradition.
Mephisto or Mephistopheles may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''Méphisto'', a 1931 French film
* Mephisto (1981 film), ''Mephisto'' (1981 film), a German- ...
. Photograph by Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky
Sergey Mikhaylovich Prokudin-Gorsky ( rus, Сергей Михайлович Прокудин-Горский, p=sʲɪrˈɡʲej mʲɪxəjɫəvʲɪtɕ prəkudʲin ˈɡorskʲɪj, a=ru-Prokudin-Gorskii.ogg; – September 27, 1944) was a Ru ...
File:Sergei_Prokudin-Gorskii_-_Feodor_Chaliapin_as_Boris_Godunov cr.jpg, Chaliapin as Boris Godunov
File:Колокольня Богоявленской церкви в Казани.jpg, The belltower of the Epiphany (Bogoyavlenskaya) Church in Kazan
Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering an ...
. The Chaliapin Chamber Hall is located on the second floor of the belltower.
File:Boris Kustodiev - Portrait of Fyodor Chaliapin - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Portrait
A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, personality, and even the mood of the person. For this r ...
'' by Boris Kustodiev
Boris Mikhaylovich Kustodiev (russian: Бори́с Миха́йлович Кусто́диев; – 28 May 1927) was a Russian and Soviet painter and stage designer.
Early life
Boris Kustodiev was born in Astrakhan into the family of a profe ...
, 1921
Honours and awards
![Фёдор Шаляпин](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/42/%D0%A4%D1%91%D0%B4%D0%BE%D1%80_%D0%A8%D0%B0%D0%BB%D1%8F%D0%BF%D0%B8%D0%BD.jpg)
* 1902 –
Order of the Golden Star of Bukhara
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
* 1907 – Golden Cross of the
Prussian eagle The state of Prussia developed from the State of the Teutonic Order. The original flag of the Teutonic Knights had been a black cross on a white flag. Emperor Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick II in 1229 granted them the right to use the b ...
* 1908 – Commander of the officer's rank
* 1910 –
Soloist of His Majesty (Russia)
* 1912 – Soloist of His Majesty the King of Italy
* 1914 – British award for special achievements in the arts
* 1914 –
Order of St. Stanislaus
The Order of Saint Stanislaus ( pl, Order Św. Stanisława Biskupa Męczennika, russian: Орден Святого Станислава), also spelled Stanislas, was a Polish order of knighthood founded in 1765 by King Stanisław August Ponia ...
, 3rd class (Russia)
* 1916 – The title of the officer
* 1918 –
People's Artist of the Republic
People's, branded as ''People's Viennaline'' until May 2018, and legally ''Altenrhein Luftfahrt Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung, GmbH'', is an Austrian airline headquartered in Vienna. It operates scheduled and charter passenger flights ma ...
(The Soviet government withdrew the title in 1927)
* 1934 – Commander of the
Legion of Honour
The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...
(France)
Autobiographical works
Chaliapin's autobiographical collaboration with
Maxim Gorky
Alexei Maximovich Peshkov (russian: link=no, Алексе́й Макси́мович Пешко́в; – 18 June 1936), popularly known as Maxim Gorky (russian: Макси́м Го́рький, link=no), was a Russian writer and social ...
occurred in 1917. He had already begun writing his autobiography long before, in the
Crimea
Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a pop ...
. In 1917, while he was in the south of France, he was urged to write such a work by a French journalist who hoped to ghost-write it. Gorky, who was his intimate friend and was then living in
Capri, persuaded Chaliapin to stay with him there and with the help of a secretary a great deal of information was taken down which Gorky fashioned into a long manuscript, published in Russia in 1917 as a series of articles in the journal ''Letopis''. Meanwhile, Chaliapin attempted to sell it to an American publisher, who refused it on learning that it had been published in Russian. There was a rift with Gorky, and Chaliapin worked with another editor to produce a 'new' version of his original text. The new book, published in America as ''Pages of My Life'' (Harper and Brothers, New York 1927), took the story only up to 1905, and lacked the depth, style and life of Gorky's version. Then, in 1932, Chaliapin published ''Man and Mask'' (Alfred A. Knopf, New York) to celebrate the fortieth anniversary of his first stage appearance. The original manuscript of the Gorky version was first translated and published in English in 1967, by Nina Froud and James Hanley, as ''Chaliapin: An autobiography as told to Maxim Gorky'' (Stein and Day, New York), and included an appendix of original correspondence including a section relating to Gorky.
Recordings
Chaliapin possessed a high-lying bass voice with an unmistakable timbre which recorded clearly. He cut a prolific number of discs for
His Master's Voice
His Master's Voice (HMV) was the name of a major British record label created in 1901 by The Gramophone Co. Ltd. The phrase was coined in the late 1890s from the title of a painting by English artist Francis Barraud, which depicted a Jack Russ ...
, beginning in Russia with acoustical recordings made at the dawn of the 20th Century, and continuing through the early electrical (microphone) era. Some of his performances at the
Royal Opera House
The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Ope ...
,
Covent Garden, in London were recorded live in the 1920s, including a haunting version of the "Death of Boris" from ''Boris Godunov''. His last disc, made in Tokyo in 1936, was of the famous ''The Song of the Volga Boatmen''. Many of his recordings were issued in the United States by
RCA Victor. His legacy of recordings is available on CDs issued by
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...
, Preiser,
Naxos
Naxos (; el, Νάξος, ) is a Greek island and the largest of the Cyclades. It was the centre of archaic Cycladic culture. The island is famous as a source of emery, a rock rich in corundum, which until modern times was one of the best ab ...
and other commercial labels. In 2018 his complete recordings were issued on 13 CDs by
Marston Records
Marston Records is an independent American record label. The label specializes in the remastering and reissuing of very early and rare recordings. It was founded in 1997 by Ward Marston and Scott Kessler.
Releases on Marston Records
Collecti ...
. They consist of songs as well as a range of arias from Italian, French and, Russian opera.
Opinions on his art
* Opera commentator/historian Michael Scott avers that: "Chaliapin ranks with
Caruso and
Maria Callas as one of the three greatest singers and most potent and influential artists of the twentieth century."
* "At the Met he sang the role of Basilio in Rossini's ''
The Barber of Seville
''The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution'' ( it, Il barbiere di Siviglia, ossia L'inutile precauzione ) is an ''opera buffa'' in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was based ...
'' as a vulgar, unctuous, greasy priest, constantly picking his nose and wiping his fingers onto his cassock. Audiences were appalled. Defending himself, Chaliapin said in an interview that Basilio 'is a Spanish priest. It is a type I know well. He is not the modern American priest, clean and well-groomed; he is dirty and unkempt, he is a beast, and this is what I make him, a comic beast.' " (
Harold C. Schonberg
Harold Charles Schonberg (29 November 1915 – 26 July 2003) was an American music critic and author. He is best known for his contributions in ''The New York Times'', where he was chief music critic from 1960 to 1980. In 1971, he became the fi ...
)
* Some accused Chaliapin of brawling backstage. Rachmaninoff agreed. "Feodor ''is'' a brawler. They are all scared of his very spirit. He shouts suddenly or even hits someone! And Feodor's fist is powerful ... He can take care of himself. And how else should one behave? Backstage at our own theater it's just like a saloon. They shout, they drink, they swear in the foulest language."
In a letter from November 1910 to the editor of Utro Rossii, the publication which supposedly quoted the above remarks and which attributes them to Rachmaninoff, the composer categorically denies the quotation and wrote "The article publishes without my knowledge words of mine about the Bolshoi Theater and Chaliapin...I said that we often have regrettable confusion backstage at the Bolshoi Theater...I also said that I had heard rumors that since Chaliapin had been appointed régisseur of those operas in which he sings, there is more quiet backstage. That is all I said... S. Rachmaninoff".
* Met diva
Geraldine Farrar
Alice Geraldine Farrar (February 28, 1882 – March 11, 1967) was an American lyric soprano who could also sing dramatic roles. She was noted for her beauty, acting ability, and "the intimate timbre of her voice." She had a large following a ...
said Chaliapin had a voice like "melodious thunder" but warned of his unannounced antics to hog the limelight onstage. "Chaliapin was a wonderful opera partner, but one had to be watchful for sudden departures from the rehearsal plan, and the touches of originality favorable only for the aggrandizement of Chaliapin."
[ Schonberg, 336.]
*
Dale Carnegie
Dale Carnegie (; spelled Carnagey until c. 1922; November 24, 1888 – November 1, 1955) was an American writer and lecturer, and the developer of courses in self-improvement, salesmanship, corporate training, public speaking, and interpersonal ...
, referencing a story by impresario
Sol Hurok
Sol Hurok (Solomon Israilevich Hurok; born Solomon Izrailevich Gurkov, Russian Соломон Израилевич Гурков; April 9, 1888March 5, 1974) was a 20th-century American impresario.
Early life
Hurok was born in Pogar, Chernigo ...
, says that Chaliapin was often temperamental, even acting like a “spoiled child.” On hearing the concert basso's complaint that his throat was raw and that he would not be able to sing at a scheduled performance at the
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is oper ...
, Hurok agreed immediately to cancel the engagement, commenting: “It will only cost you a couple of thousand dollars, but that is nothing in comparison to your reputation.” Chaliapin left open the possibility that he might nevertheless perform if he felt better later, and Hurok dutifully checked on him twice before the concert time. Finally he agreed to perform, provided that Hurok would announce to the audience that Chaliapin “had a very bad cold and was not in good voice.” Carnegie comments approvingly: “Mr. Hurok would lie and say he would do it, for he knew that was the only way to get the basso out on the stage.”
[Dale Carnegie, '']How to Win Friends and Influence People
''How to Win Friends and Influence People'' is a 1936 self-help book written by Dale Carnegie. Over 30 million copies have been sold worldwide, making it one of the best-selling books of all time.
Carnegie had been conducting business educati ...
'' (“Principle 9: Be sympathetic with the other person’s ideas and desires.”), Simon & Schuster, 299 pages. .
References
Notes
Bibliography
*
*
*
External links
Tatar Museums (in English)Chalyapin and KazanKazan: Kulturaincludes two recordings
ten recordings
– six photographs in character
Another biography of Fyodor ShalyapinMemorial house of F. I. Shalyapin, Moscow, many pictures, five recordings
History of the Tenor – Sound Clip and Narration
* – (Doppelgänger Шуберта в исполнении на русском языке)
*
Chaliapine discography on Russian-Records.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chaliapin, Feodor
1873 births
1938 deaths
Musicians from Kazan
People from Kazansky Uyezd
Opera singers from the Russian Empire
Operatic basses
Victor Records artists
White Russian emigrants to Finland
White Russian emigrants to France
Commandeurs of the Légion d'honneur
Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery