Maria Ivanivna Litvinenko-Volgemut ( Ukrainian: Марія Іванівна Литвиненко-Вольгемут; 13 February 1892 3 April 1966) was a Ukrainian

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

singer and music teacher. She was named

People's Artist of the USSR People's Artist of the USSR, also sometimes translated as National Artist of the USSR, was an honorary title granted to artists of the Soviet Union. The term is confusingly used to translate two Russian language titles: Народный арти ...

in 1936 and awarded the Stalin Prize in 1946.

Biography

Maria Litvinenko was born in

Kiev Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

, then part of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

, on 13 February 1892, in the family of a worker of the

Arsenal Factory Arsenal Special Device Production State Enterprise (), also known as the Arsenal Factory, is one of the oldest factory, factories in Kyiv. History Pre-1918 The factory was established in 1764 as a repair and production facility of the Imperia ...

. From the age of seven she sang in the church choir, where she learnt solfeggio. In 1912, she graduated from the Kiev School of Music of the

Russian Musical Society The Russian Musical Society (RMS) () was the first music school in Russia open to the general public. It was launched in 1859 by the Grand Duchess Elena Pavlovna and Anton Rubinstein, one of the few notable Russian pianists and composers of th ...

(vocal class of M. Alekseeva-Yunevich). In 1912–1914, she performed at the M. Sadovsky Theater in Kiev. In 1914–1916, she performed at the in

Petrograd Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

(present-day Saint Petersburg). In 1919, she was part of the first opera theater in Kiev, the , with

Les Kurbas Oleksandr-Zenon Stepanovych Kurbas (; 24 February 1887 – 30 November 1937), was a Ukrainians, Ukrainian movie and theater director. He is considered by many to be the most important Ukrainian theater director of the 20th century. He formed, ...

and

Anatol Petrytsky Anatolii Halaktionovych Petrytskyi (; – 6 March 1964) was a Soviet and Ukrainian painter, stage and book designer. Biography Petrytsky was born in the family of a railwayman. From 1912 to 1918, he studied at the Kyiv Art School. Was an ap ...

. In 1920-1922 she was a soloist of a troupe organized by her, the "First Labor Cooperative of Ukrainian Artists" in

Vinnytsia Vinnytsia ( ; , ) is a city in west-central Ukraine, located on the banks of the Southern Bug. It serves as the administrative centre, administrative center of Vinnytsia Oblast. It is the largest city in the historic region of Podillia. It also s ...

. In 1923–1935, she was a soloist of the Ukrainian State Capital Opera (now the Kharkiv State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre named after Mykola Lysenko). In 1935-1953 she was a soloist of the

National Opera of Ukraine The Kyiv Opera group in Ukraine was formally established in the summer of 1867, and is the third oldest opera in Ukraine, after Odesa Opera and Lviv Opera. The Kyiv Opera Company perform Kyiv Opera House, named after Taras Shevchenko. Hist ...

. During the

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

they were evacuated to Ufa (1941-1942) and then to

Irkutsk Irkutsk ( ; rus, Иркутск, p=ɪrˈkutsk; Buryat language, Buryat and , ''Erhüü'', ) is the largest city and administrative center of Irkutsk Oblast, Russia. With a population of 587,891 Irkutsk is the List of cities and towns in Russ ...

(1942-1944). During this period, she performed for the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

. In 1944-1964 she taught at the

Kiev Conservatory The Ukrainian National Tchaikovsky Academy of Music (), formerly Kyiv Conservatory, is a national music tertiary academy in Kyiv, Ukraine. Its courses include postgraduate education. History The Kyiv Conservatory was founded on 3 November 1913 at ...

. Maria Ivanovna Litvinenko-Volgemut died on 3 April 1966 in Kiev and buried in the

Baikove Cemetery Baikove Cemetery () is a historic cemetery memorial in Holosiivskyi District of Kyiv, Ukraine. It is a National Historic Monument of Ukraine and is known as a necropolis of distinguished people. History The cemetery was established in 1833 a ...

Awards

(1936) * Stalin Prize (1946) for outstanding achievements in (soprano) opera performance. *

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (, ) was an award named after Vladimir Lenin, the leader of the October Revolution. It was established by the Central Executive Committee on 6 April 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration bestowed by the Soviet ...

(1946) *

Order of the Red Banner of Labour The Order of the Red Banner of Labour () was an order of the Soviet Union established to honour great deeds and services to the Soviet state and society in the fields of production, science, culture, literature, the arts, education, sports ...

(1936, 1948, 1951)

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Litvinenko-Volgemut, Maria Ivanovna 1892 births 1966 deaths 20th-century Ukrainian women opera singers Musicians from Kyiv Academic staff of Kyiv Conservatory Communist Party of the Soviet Union members R. Glier Kyiv Institute of Music alumni Recipients of the title of Merited Artist of Ukraine Recipients of the title of People's Artists of Ukraine People's Artists of the USSR Recipients of the Stalin Prize Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour Operatic sopranos from the Russian Empire Soviet music educators Soviet operatic sopranos Ukrainian music educators Ukrainian women music educators Ukrainian operatic sopranos Burials at Baikove Cemetery