Maria Tănase
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Maria Tănase (; 25 September 1913 – 22 June 1963) was a Romanian singer and actress. Her music ranged from traditional Romanian music to
romance Romance (from Vulgar Latin , "in the Roman language", i.e., "Latin") may refer to: Common meanings * Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings * Romance languages, ...
,
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,
chanson A (, , french: chanson française, link=no, ; ) is generally any lyric-driven French song, though it most often refers to the secular polyphonic French songs of late medieval and Renaissance music. The genre had origins in the monophonic so ...
and operetta. Tănase has a similar importance in
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
as
Édith Piaf Édith Piaf (, , ; born Édith Giovanna Gassion, ; December 19, 1915– October 10, 1963) was a French singer, lyricist and actress. Noted as France's national chanteuse, she was one of the country's most widely known international stars. Pia ...
in
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or
Amália Rodrigues Amália da Piedade Rebordão Rodrigues GCSE, GCIH (23 July 1920 – 6 October 1999), better known as Amália Rodrigues () or popularly as Amália, was a Portuguese '' fadista'' (fado singer) and actress. Known as the 'Rainha do Fado' ("Queen ...
in
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
. In her nearly three-decade-long career, she became widely regarded as Romania's national diva, being admired for her originality, voice, physical beauty and charisma. In Romania, she is still regarded as a major cultural icon of the 20th century. In 2006 she was included to the list of the 100 Greatest Romanians of all time by a nationwide poll. Among her songs are ''Cine iubește și lasă'' (1937), ''Leliță cârciumăreasă'' (1939), ''Bun îi vinul ghiurghiuliu'' (1938), ''Doina din Maramureș'' (1956), ''Ciuleandra'' (1956) and ''Până când nu te iubeam''.


Biography

Born in
Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...
suburb of Cărămidarii de Jos, or Cărămidari, Maria Tănase attended Primary School number 11 from Tăbăcari. Her father, Ion Coanda Tănase, was a master gardener and a florist, also owner of a big nursery on the outskirts of Bucharest, which employed female workers from different various regions of Romania. These women, in turn, would share traditional folk songs and tales which deeply enthralled little Maria, which was to leave a permanent mark on her. She made her stage debut in Cărămidarii de Jos, at the "Ion Heliade Rădulescu" High School. In 1934, she joined the "Cărăbuş" Theatre of Constantin Tănase with the help and advice of newspaper writer Sandu Eliad, who, at that time was her partner. Her real debut took place on 2 June 1934 with the stage name ''Mary Atanasiu''. In the fall of 1937 she recorded her first folk songs at the Columbia studio in Bucharest. On 20 February 1938 her voice was heard for the first time on the radio. Shortly after, she started to develop a local and international following. She represented Romania at the 1939 New York World's Fair. During the first months of the
National Legionary State The National Legionary State was a totalitarian fascist regime which governed Romania for five months, from 14 September 1940 until its official dissolution on 14 February 1941. The regime was led by General Ion Antonescu in partnership with the ...
, Maria Tănase was banned from performing in public and her recordings were destroyed. During World War II, together with
George Enescu George Enescu (; – 4 May 1955), known in France as Georges Enesco, was a Romanian composer, violinist, conductor and teacher. Regarded as one of the greatest musicians in Romanian history, Enescu is featured on the Romanian five lei. Biogr ...
,
George Vraca George Vraca (; 1896–1964) was a Romanian stage and film actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such ...
, and Constantin Tănase, she was making stage tours singing in front of soldiers injured on the battlefield. In December 1943, she sang at the
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festivities at the Royal Cavalry Regiment, where
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of Romania, Ion Antonescu,
Mihai Antonescu Mihai Antonescu (18 November 1904 – 1 June 1946) was a Romanian politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister during World War II, executed in 1946 as a war criminal. Early career Born in Nucet, Dâmbovița County, w ...
, and all the members of the government were present as guests. In 1944 Maria Tănase took time to sing in
Edmond Audran Achille Edmond Audran (12 April 184017 August 1901) was a French composer best known for several internationally successful comic operas and operettas. After beginning his career in Marseille as an organist, Audran composed religious music and ...
's operetta "Mascota" (The Mascot). After
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 ...
, she performed in ''Review Ensemble'' Theatre and ''"Constantin Tănase"'' Satirical and Musical Theatre. She had parts in the plays "
The Living Corpse ''The Living Corpse'' (russian: Живой труп, italic=yes, link=no) is a Russian play by Leo Tolstoy. Although written around 1900, it was only published shortly after his death—Tolstoy had never considered the work finished. An immediate ...
" by
Leo Tolstoy Count Lev Nikolayevich TolstoyTolstoy pronounced his first name as , which corresponds to the romanization ''Lyov''. () (; russian: link=no, Лев Николаевич Толстой,In Tolstoy's day, his name was written as in pre-refor ...
in 1945, and "Horia" by Mihai Davidoglu in 1956. In 1946 she held the main part in the musical comedy "The Hollywood Sphinx", by
Ralph Benatzky Ralph Benatzky (5 June 1884 – 16 October 1957), born in Mährisch Budwitz ( Moravské Budějovice) as Rudolph Franz rantišekJosef Benatzky, was an Austrian composer of Moravian origin. He composed operas and operettas, such as '' Casanova ...
. She sang in the movie "Romania" in 1947, and in 1958 she performed in both " Ciulinii Bărăganului" (The Thistles of the Bărăgan), and the short-reel film "Amintiri din București" (Memories from Bucharest). During these years Maria was also touring a lot, she had over forty trips only to
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. In 1952, Maria Tănase was offered a position at the Music School No. 1 in Bucharest, in the newly created traditional folk song department; 1962 found her guiding "Taraful Gorjului" (The Gorj Folk Music Band) in
Târgu Jiu Târgu Jiu () is the capital of Gorj County in the Oltenia region of Romania. It is situated on the Southern Sub-Carpathians, on the banks of the river Jiu. Eight localities are administered by the city: Bârsești, Drăgoieni, Iezureni, Polat ...
and the artists from "taraf", at her own request. On 1 May 1963, after a concert in
Hunedoara Hunedoara (; german: Eisenmarkt; hu, Vajdahunyad ) is a city in Hunedoara County, Transylvania, Romania. It is located in southwestern Transylvania near the Poiana Ruscă Mountains, and administers five villages: Boș (''Bós''), Groș (''Grós' ...
, she was forced to cancel her tour and any other performances due to sickness. On 22 June 1963, she died of cancer. She was buried at the
Bellu Cemetery Șerban Vodă Cemetery (commonly known as Bellu Cemetery) is the largest and most famous cemetery in Bucharest, Romania. It is located on a plot of land donated to the local administration by Baron Barbu Bellu. It has been in use since 1858. Th ...
in Bucharest, Romania. In 1955, Maria Tănase received the State Prize and in 1957 she was honored with the medals "Ordinul Muncii" (The Order for Activity), "Premiul de Stat" (The State Award), and the title "Artistă Emerită" (Honoured Artist of the Republic) for her contributions to the arts. However, within her lifetime, she had also been fondly remembered by many Romanians as their own
Edith Piaf Edith is a feminine given name derived from the Old English words ēad, meaning 'riches or blessed', and is in common usage in this form in English, German, many Scandinavian languages and Dutch. Its French form is Édith. Contractions and var ...
, the legendary French singer. Tănase died in June 1963 of lung cancer, three months short of her 50th birthday, whereas Edith Piaf died in October, two months away from her 48th. Throngs of people had filled the streets of Bucharest on the days of her death, to memorialize the lady who helped popularize the folk music of their country.


Legacy

In 1939, after meeting Tănase for the first time, Constantin Brâncuși told her: "''When I hear you singing, Maria, I would be able to carve for each song of ours a
Bird in Space ''Bird in Space'' () is a series of sculptures by Romanian sculptor Constantin Brâncuși. The original work was created in 1923 and made of marble. This sculpture is also known for containing seven marble figures and nine bronze casts. Brancusi ...
!''" He regarded her as a "''symbol of all Romanians''". Famous Russian soprano
Lydia Lipkowska Lydia Yakolevna Lipkowska (Russian: Лидия Яковлевна Липковская. Ukrainian: Лідія Яківна Липковська; 10 May 1882 – 22 March 1958) was a Russian operatic soprano of Ukrainian origin who had an acti ...
was also fascinated by her artistry: "''No one managed to impress me so deeply with the interpretation of traditional songs and pop music pieces in the way she did. Her voice penetrates me, stirs me, disturbs me so strongly that I always leave as if I tasted a miraculous potion; I feel like I don't have control over my own feelings!''"
Nicolae Iorga Nicolae Iorga (; sometimes Neculai Iorga, Nicolas Jorga, Nicolai Jorga or Nicola Jorga, born Nicu N. Iorga;Iova, p. xxvii. 17 January 1871 – 27 November 1940) was a Romanian historian, politician, literary critic, memoirist, Albanologist, poet ...
famously called her "Pasărea măiastră" ("The Majestic Bird").
Mihail Sadoveanu Mihail Sadoveanu (; occasionally referred to as Mihai Sadoveanu; November 5, 1880 – October 19, 1961) was a Romanian novelist, short story writer, journalist and political figure, who twice served as acting head of state for the communis ...
considered her "''the first authentic rhapsodist''" of the Romanians. The 2009 Laureate of the Nobel Prize in Literature,
Herta Müller Herta Müller (; born 17 August 1953) is a Romanian-born German novelist, poet, essayist and recipient of the 2009 Nobel Prize in Literature. Born in Nițchidorf (german: Nitzkydorf, link=no), Timiș County in Romania, her native language is G ...
, has spoken many times about the influence that Maria Tănase had on her: "''When I first heard Maria Tănase she sounded incredible to me, it was for the first time that I really felt what folklore meant. Romanian folk music is connected to existence in a very meaningful way. However, German folklore was not at all inspiring for me.''" British musician
Nigel Kennedy Nigel Kennedy (born 28 December 1956) is an English violinist and violist. His early career was primarily spent performing classical music, and he has since expanded into jazz, klezmer, and other music genres. Early life and background Kenn ...
with Polish
Kroke Kroke is a Polish instrumental ensemble of world music. The band's name refers to the Yiddish language name for Kraków (, ). The band was founded in 1992 by three friends and graduates of the Academy of Music in Kraków. Initially, they we ...
band celebrated her legacy with a recording titled "Tribute to Maria Tănase", which was included on his 2003 album '' East Meets East''. The musical themes of this track are Maria Tănase's song ''Luncă, luncă'' (''Meadow, Meadow'') and Gheorghe Zamfir's ''Sârba bătrânească''. The character of Florica in the first novel of
Olivia Manning Olivia Mary Manning (2 March 1908 – 23 July 1980) was a British novelist, poet, writer, and reviewer. Her fiction and non-fiction, frequently detailing journeys and personal odysseys, were principally set in the United Kingdom, Euro ...
's '' Fortunes of War'' trilogy is supposed to have been based upon Maria Tănase. In 2013, musical group
Pink Martini Pink Martini is an American band that was founded in 1994 by pianist Thomas Lauderdale in Portland, Oregon. Group members call it a little orchestra that crosses several styles, such as classical, latin, traditional pop, and jazz. The co-lead vo ...
named Maria Tănase one of their greatest inspirations and covered the song ''Până când nu te iubeam''. In 2013 Romanian singer Oana Cătălina Chițu who lives in Berlin, published album ''Divine'' with songs from the repertoire of Maria Tănase. On 25 September 2013, Google Romania celebrated Maria Tănase's legacy with a
doodle A doodle is a drawing made while a person's attention is otherwise occupied. Doodles are simple drawings that can have concrete representational meaning or may just be composed of random and abstract lines or shapes, generally without ever lift ...
, which marked what would have been her 100th birthday.


References


Further reading

* * * * * *


External links


Biography on hrmusic.comMaria Tănase's songs

Biography on lautari.ro
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tanase, Maria 1913 births 1963 deaths Musicians from Bucharest Romanian women in World War II Romanian cabaret performers 20th-century Romanian women singers 20th-century Romanian singers Deaths from cancer in Romania Deaths from lung cancer Burials at Bellu Cemetery