Ivan Semyonovich Kozlovsky (21 December 1993) was a Soviet

lyric tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below mi ...

and one of the most well known stars of Russian opera, as well a producer and director of his own opera company, and longtime teacher at the

Moscow Conservatory The Moscow Conservatory, also officially Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory () is a higher musical educational institution located in Moscow, Russia. It grants undergraduate and graduate degrees in musical performance and musical research. Th ...

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 ...

(1940) and

Hero of Socialist Labour The Hero of Socialist Labour () was an Title of honor, honorific title in the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact countries from 1938 to 1991. It represented the highest degree of distinction in the USSR and was awarded for exceptional achievem ...

(1980). According to Steven Kotkin (''Waiting for Hitler'', 594-95), he was

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...

's favorite singer.

Biography

Ivan Kozlovsky was born in the village of Marianivka near

Bila Tserkva Bila Tserkva ( ; , ) is a city in central Ukraine. It is situated on the Ros (river), Ros River in the historical region of right-bank Ukraine. It is the largest city in Kyiv Oblast (which does not include the city of Kyiv) and serves as the ...

, the Kyiv Governorate, in Ukraine and began to sing at the age of seven in the choir of the St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery. He went on to study drama, piano and singing (with the famous

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...

Olena Muravyova) at the

Kyiv National I. K. Karpenko-Kary Theatre, Cinema and Television University Kyiv National Ivan Karpenko-Karyi, Ivan Karpovych Karpenko-Karyi Theatre, Cinema and Television University () is the national university specializing exclusively in performing arts and located in Kyiv, Ukraine.Alexander Koshetz's choir in Kyiv. This instruction was cut short after two years, due to the outbreak of the civil war in the aftermath of the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...

. Kozlovsky sang in a vocal quartet under the direction of O. Sveshnikov. His voice enabled him to join the army engineers, as a lead singer in a military band. He made his operatic début in 1920 as ''

Faust Faust ( , ) is the protagonist of a classic German folklore, German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust (). The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a deal with the Devil at a ...

'' at the

Poltava Poltava (, ; , ) is a city located on the Vorskla, Vorskla River in Central Ukraine, Central Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Poltava Oblast as well as Poltava Raion within the oblast. It also hosts the administration of Po ...

theatre, where he sang until 1923. He followed this with engagements at the

Kharkiv Kharkiv, also known as Kharkov, is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city in Ukraine.

opera in 1923-4, and the

Yekaterinburg Yekaterinburg (, ; ), alternatively Romanization of Russian, romanized as Ekaterinburg and formerly known as Sverdlovsk ( ; 1924–1991), is a city and the administrative centre of Sverdlovsk Oblast and the Ural Federal District, Russia. The ci ...

(then called Sverdlovsk) opera theatre in 1924-6, before becoming one of the leading tenors at the

Bolshoi Theatre The Bolshoi Theatre ( rus, Большо́й теа́тр, r=Bol'shoy teatr, p=bɐlʲˈʂoj tʲɪˈat(ə)r, t=Grand Theater) is a historic opera house in Moscow, Russia, originally designed by architect Joseph Bové. Before the October Revolutio ...

in Moscow from 1926 to 1954. He had a memorable audition at the Bolshoi in 1924, reportedly reaching the highest notes of the register with ease (throughout his career, he developed a reputation for singing the highest note possible and hanging onto it for the added adulation). At the Bolshoi, he came under the mentorship of Leonid Sobinov, the leading Russian tenor at the time. Kozlovsky went on to sing in over 50 operas as the leading tenor of the Bolshoi. In 1938, Kozlovsky organized and directed a concert ensemble of opera singers, VTO Soviet Opera Ensemble, directing himself in ''

Werther ''Werther'' is an opera (''drame lyrique'') in four acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Édouard Blau, Paul Milliet and Georges Hartmann (who used the pseudonym Henri Grémont). It is loosely based on Goethe's epistolary novel ''The S ...

'' by Massenet and '' Orfeo ed Euridice'' by

Gluck Christoph Willibald ( Ritter von) Gluck (; ; 2 July 1714 – 15 November 1787) was a composer of Italian and French opera in the early classical period. Born in the Upper Palatinate and raised in Bohemia, both part of the Holy Roman Empire at ...

, among other productions. He was awarded the prestigious designation of

in 1940. Kozlovsky was well known to be a favorite singer of

. Kozlovsky gained great renown throughout the Soviet Union, but was never allowed to leave its borders. Kozlovsky had a friendly rivalry with Sergei Lemeshev, another opera singer immensely popular in Soviet Union. They often sang the same roles, and Soviet opera lovers were divided into supporters of one or the other. The theatre lobby was a venue for scuffles between fans jokingly called the "lemeshistki" and the "kozlovityanki

Kozlovsky married the popular actress Alexandra Herzig (1886–1964), who was 14 years older than he and much better known, causing the public to refer to him as "Herzig's husband". Later, when he attained greater fame, Herzig became known as "Kozlovsky's wife". After his first marriage ended in divorce, Kozlovsky remarried, this time to an actress 14 years younger, Galina Sergeyeva. Sergeyeva played the female lead in the films ''Pyshka (Пышкa)'' (" Boule de Suif," 1934), ''Lyubov Alyony (Любoвь Aлёны)'' ("Alyona's Love", 1934), and ''Vesennie dni (Весенние дни)'' ("Spring Days", 1934). They had two daughters; their marriage did not last long.

Kozlovsky and solo performances

Kozlovsky gave many concerts throughout the Soviet Union, singing Russian and Ukrainian songs and romances, as well as German

lieder In the Western classical music tradition, ( , ; , ; ) is a term for setting poetry to classical music. The term is used for any kind of song in contemporary German and Dutch, but among English and French speakers, is often used interchangea ...

Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; ; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. Despite his short life, Schubert left behind a List of compositions ...

Schumann Robert Schumann (; ; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and music critic of the early Romantic music, Romantic era. He composed in all the main musical genres of the time, writing for solo piano, voice and piano, chamber ...

, and

Liszt Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic period. With a diverse body of work spanning more than six decades, he is considered to be one of the most pro ...

. He taught singing at the

from 1956 to 1980. After 1954, Kozlovsky continued to appear occasionally at the Bolshoi, giving his final appearance in 1970 in the role of Yurodivy (the Simpleton) in ''Boris Godunov''. He continued to appear frequently in public and even sang on 4 July 1985 at Mark Reizen's 90th birthday at the Bolshoi. The last concert given by Kozlovsky took place in 1990 at the

in Moscow. He even had an interview after his final performance. Three years later, he died in Moscow at the age of 93.

Kozlovsky and Ukrainian music

Kozlovsky throughout his life was an active proponent of Ukrainian music, and performed works by Ukrainian composers such as Mykola Lysenko, Yakiv Stepovy, Kyrylo Stetsenko, and Mykola Arkas. In 1924, he sang the role of Yontek in Moniuszko's '' Halka'' in Ukrainian. In 1940, he directed the first performance of the Ukrainian opera '' Kateryna'' by Mykola Arkas, and in 1954 Mykola Lysenko's '' Natalka Poltavka''. In 1970, he funded the construction of a music school in his home village of Marianivka. He recorded 22 records of Ukrainian folk songs, romances and arias in Ukrainian. Kozlovsky was also the author of numerous memoirs about Ukrainian singers O. Petrusevych, Mykhailo Donets, M. Mykysh, Borys Hmyria and others.

Legacy

Kozlovsky sang more than 50 operatic roles, and was especially famous as Lensky in ''Eugene Onegin'', Berendey in '' The Snow Maiden'', Levko in '' May Night'', the Indian Guest in '' Sadko'', Vladimir in '' Prince Igor'', Nero in the opera by Anton Rubinstein, Dubrovsky in the opera by Eduard Nápravník, and so on. He also was outstanding in the western repertoire: ''Faust'' (

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 ...

), ''

'', ''

Rigoletto ''Rigoletto'' is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the 1832 play '' Le roi s'amuse'' by Victor Hugo. Despite serious initial problems with the Austrian censors who had c ...

'', ''

The Barber of Seville ''The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution'' ( ) is an ''opera buffa'' (comic opera) in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was based on Pierre Beaumarchais's French comedy ' ...

'', ''

Lohengrin Lohengrin () is a character in German Arthurian literature. The son of Parzival (Percival), he is a knight of the Holy Grail sent in a boat pulled by swans to rescue a maiden who can never ask his identity. His story, which first appears in Wo ...

'', '' Orfeo ed Euridice'', '' La traviata'', ''

La bohème ''La bohème'' ( , ) is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions '':wikt:quadro, quadri'', ''wikt:tableau, tableaux'' or "images", rather than ''atti'' (acts). composed by Giacomo Puccini between 1893 and 1895 to an Italian libretto b ...

'', and so on. In September 1993, the belt asteroid 4944 Kozlovskij was named in honor of Ivan Kozlovsky's career (); his famous rival Sergey Lemeshev received the same honor with asteroid 4561 Lemeshev upon his death in 1978.

Quotations

"They say that Ivan Kozlovsky considered his voice as his one and only possession and prayed every morning thanking the Lord for the priceless gift He gave him..." (''Olga Fyodorova, Music portraits'', see the link below) "Lemeshev is a far more lyric and tender Gherman than those to whom we’ve become accustomed. He and Kozlovsky were long-time rivals; each sings Lensky’s aria, with quite different emphases." (''Stefan Zucker'') "31 October 2005, 17:31. Monument to known Ukrainian singer Ivan Kozlovsky to be erected in

Kyiv 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, ...

. This decision was made by Kyiv City Hall. It was decided that Pechersk district state administration is to erect the monument at its expense." (''From the official news'')

Discography

* ''The Great Russian Tenor - Ivan Kozlovsky'': Pearl GEM0221, Released 7 February 2005 ADD * ''Russian Opera at the Bolshoi: The Vintage Years'': DVD Region 1 (playable worldwide) #FD2019, Russian, English subtitles. 112m. B& W/Color, Dolby Digital audio. *

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popular ...

, ''Eugene Onegin'' Aleksandr Ivanovich Orlov: Melodiya D 0253/60 (1952), D 09377/82(1962), Chant du Monde LDX 8088/90, Bruno 23001/3, Colosseum CRLP 10270, 80 and 90 * Mussorgsky, ''Boris Godunov'', Melodiya D 0305/12 (1952), D 05836/43 (1959); Ultraphone 159/62; Bruno 23025/7; Colosseum 124/6; Period SPLP 554 (1952), 103
Also this link

Notes

References

In English: * (1992). ''Guide de L'Opéra'', Fayard. (page 427) * Ardoin, John (1995). "Ivan Kozlovsky, A Voice from Behind the Curtain", in ''Opera Quarterly 11''. (pages 95–102) In Russian: * Kuznetsova, A. ''(Кузнецова, А.)'' (1964). ''People's Artist (Народный артист)'', Art. * Sletov, V. ''(Слетов, В.)'' (1945). ''I. Kozlovsky (И. Козловский)'', Art. * Polianovsky, H. ''(Поляновский, Г.)'' (1945). ''Ivan Semyonovitch Kozlovsky (Иван Семёнович Козловский)'', Art. * Hroshyeva, E. ''(Грошева, Е.)'' (1960). ''40 Years on the Stage of the Opera (Сорок лет на оперной сцене)'', Soviet Music. In Ukrainian: * Bulat, T. ''(Булат, Т.)'' (1980). ''Ukrainian Folk Songs and Romances in the Repertoire of I.S. Kozlovsky (Українські народні пісні та романси в репертуарі І.С.Козловського)'', Folk Works and Ethnography ''(Народна творчість та етнографія)'' No. 3. * Lysenko, I. A dictionary of Ukrainian singers - Словник Співаків України - Kyiv, 1997

External links

Music Portraits

Russia in US

Opera Vivrà

Archive Music

* *

CD review

The family matters 1

The family matters 2
* On Alexandra Herzig, from Ukrainian Wikipedia
On Galina Sergeyeva

History of the Tenor - Sound Clips and Narration
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kozlovsky, Ivan 1900 births 1993 deaths Soviet male opera singers People from Bila Tserkva Raion Heroes of Socialist Labour Honored Artists of the RSFSR People's Artists of the USSR Recipients of the Stalin Prize Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Shevchenko National Prize Recipients of the title of People's Artists of Ukraine Russian opera directors Soviet tenors 20th-century Ukrainian male opera singers Ukrainian operatic tenors Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery Academic staff of Moscow Conservatory

Biography

Kozlovsky and solo performances

Kozlovsky and Ukrainian music

Legacy

Quotations

Discography

See also

Notes

References

External links