Lev Valerianovich Leshchenko (; born 1 February 1942), is a Russian singer, who is best known for his rendition of " Den Pobedy" and the

1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad () and officially branded as Moscow 1980 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 19 July to 3 August 1980 in Moscow, Soviet Union, in present-day Russ ...

closing ceremony theme song " Do svidanya, Moskva".

Biography

Lev Leshchenko was born on 1 February 1942 in Moscow,

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. His father, Valerian Andreyevich Leshchenko (1904–2004), was a Red Army officer who was at war outside of Moscow. His grandfather was from the village of Nizy in the Kharkov province, which at that time was part of the Russian Empire. In 1900, he moved to the Kursk province, where he got a job as an accountant at a factory. Grandfather Leshchenko was a musical person: he sang in the church choir, played many instruments. Lev Valeryanovich's father moved to Moscow in 1931. Having gone through the Winter War, and then the Great Patriotic War, he rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel and was awarded many orders. He was awarded medals for his participation in the

Second World War 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 ...

. His mother, Klavdiya Petrovna Leshchenko (née Fedoseyeva; 1915–1943), died shortly after Lev was born, so he was raised by his stepmother Marina Mikhailovna. His grandparents, along with his stepmother Irina Pavlovna Leshchenko, whom his father married in 1948, brought Leshchenko up in Sokolniki, Moscow. During his childhood, he was introduced to classical music and theatre, and began performing songs by

Leonid Utyosov Leonid Osipovich Utesov, also spelled Utyosov or Utiosov, born Lazar (Leyzer) Iosifovich Vaysbeyn or Weissbein (, Odessa – 9 March 1982, Moscow), was a famous Soviet estrada singer, and comic actor, who became the first pop singer to be award ...

. Between 1959 and 1960, Leshchenko worked as a stagehand at the State Academic Bolshoi Theatre, and before being conscripted into the

army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

in 1961, he worked as an adjuster at a precision measuring instrument factory. Leschenko served in the mechanical vehicle division of the Soviet Army, positioned in the

German Democratic Republic East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

. On 27 January 1962, Leshchenko (then a private) became a soloist within the Soviet Red Army Ensemble, and received an offer to remain in the army. Leshchenko accepted every role offered to him by the ensemble, from singing in a quarter, conducting concerts and even reading verses, where it is said his entertainment career began. At the same time, he was preparing for the theatrical examinations of the

Russian Academy of Theatre Arts The Russian Institute of Theatre Arts (GITIS) () is the largest and oldest independent theatrical arts school in Russia. Located in Moscow, the school was founded on 22 September 1878 as the Shostakovsky Music School. It became the School of Mu ...

(abbreviated as GITIS), the most respected theatrical school of the

, which he passed and was successfully admitted to in September 1964. Leshchenko began touring with concert bands, visiting some of the more isolated parts of the country. In 1969, Leshchenko was admitted as a member of the Moscow Operetta Theatre. He took up many minor musical roles, but was aware of his musical gift and was constantly looking for soloist acts. On 13 February 1970, having won a contest held by the state radio station, Leshchenko became a solo vocalist for the Soviet state radio station. In 1975, Leshchenko performed " Den Pobedy", an immensely popular Soviet song dedicated to

Victory Day Victory Day is a commonly used name for public holidays in various countries, where it commemorates a nation's triumph over a hostile force in a war or the liberation of a country from hostile occupation. In many cases, multiple countries may ob ...

, which was initially disliked by the authorities due to its unconventional music style. His rendition has become by far the most well known. In 1999 Leshchenko was given a star on the Star Square in Moscow. In March 2014 he signed a letter in support of the position of the President of Russia

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...

on the Russian annexation of

Crimea Crimea ( ) is a peninsula in Eastern Europe, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov. The Isthmus of Perekop connects the peninsula to Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukrain ...

. For this he was banned from entering

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

. Crimea has been under dispute by Russia and Ukraine since March 2014.

Popular Songs

* ''"Solovyinaya roshcha" ("Соловьиная роща")'' – "Nightingale Grove" * ''"Proshay" ("Прощай")'' – "Good Bye" * ''"Prityazhen'ye Zemli" ("Притяжение Земли")'' – "Gravity of the Earth" * ''"Den Pobedy" (День победы)'' – "The Day of the Victory" * ''"Ni Minuty Pokoja" (Ни минуты покоя)'' – "Not a Minute's Peace" * ''"Rodnaya zemlya" ("Родная Земля")'' – "Native Land" * ''"Roditelskiy dom" ("Родительский дом")'' – "The Parental Home" * ''"Ne plach' devchonka" ("Не плачь, девчонка")'' – "Don't Cry, Girl" * ''"Ty moya Moskva" ("Ты моя Москва") - You are my Moscow''

Personal life

From 1966 to 1976, he was married to Alla Abdalova. The marriage lasted 10 years, and ended in divorce, initiated by Abdalova. Since 1978, he has been married to Irina Bagudina (born May 15, 1954). Leshchenko is a member of the

United Russia The All-Russian Political Party United Russia (, ) is the Ruling party, ruling List of political parties in Russia, political party of Russia. As the largest party in the Russian Federation, it holds 325 (or 72.22%) of the 450 seats in the St ...

party.

Honours and awards

;Orders *

Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" The Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" () is a state decoration of the Russian Federation. It was instituted on 2 March 1994 by Presidential Decree 442. Until the re-establishment of the Order of St. Andrew in 1998, it was the highest order of ...

1st class (24 October 2017)Указ Президента Российской Федерации от 24.10.2017 № 512 «О награждении государственными наградами Российской Федерации»
// Официальный интернет-портал правовой информации * Orden for Service II

2nd class (30 January 2012) * Orden for Service III

3rd class (1 February 2007) * Orden for Service IV

4th class (31 January 2002) * Order friendship of peoples rib

Order of Friendship of Peoples The Order of Friendship of Peoples () was an order of the Soviet Union, and was awarded to persons (including non-citizens), organizations, enterprises, military units, as well as administrative subdivisions of the USSR for accomplishments in s ...

(14 November 1980) * Order badge of honor rib

Order of the Badge of Honour The Order of the Badge of Honour () was a civilian award of the Soviet Union. It was established on 25 November 1935, and was conferred on citizens of the USSR for outstanding achievements in sports, production, scientific research and socia ...

(17 August 1989) * OrdenDostik

Order of Friendship The Order of Friendship (, ') is a state decoration of the Russian Federation established by Boris Yeltsin by presidential decree 442 of 2 March 1994 to reward Russian and foreign nationals whose work, deeds and efforts have been aimed at ...

(Kazakhstan) ;Titles *

People's Artist of the RSFSR People's Artist of the RSFSR (, ''Narodnyj artist RSFSR'') was an honorary title granted to Soviet Union artists, including theatre and film directors, actors, choreographers, music performers, and orchestra conductors, who had outstanding achiev ...

(1983) * Honoured Artist of the RSFSR (1977) *Honoured Artist of the

Transnistria Transnistria, officially known as the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic and locally as Pridnestrovie, is a Landlocked country, landlocked Transnistria conflict#International recognition of Transnistria, breakaway state internationally recogn ...

(2015) * People's Artist of the

South Ossetia South Ossetia, officially the Republic of South Ossetia or the State of Alania, is a landlocked country in the South Caucasus with International recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, partial diplomatic recognition. It has an offici ...

(2010) * People's Artist of the

North Ossetia-Alania North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north'' is ...

(2015) * Honorary Citizen of

Kursk Oblast Kursk Oblast (, ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Kursk. As of the 2021 Russian census, 2021 census, Kursk Oblast had a pop ...

(2012) ;Awards *

Lenin Komsomol Prize Lenin Komsomol Prize () was a Soviet Union, Soviet annual award for the best works in science, engineering, literature or art carried out by young authors of age not exceeding 33 years. Komsomol was the abbreviated name of The Communist Union of ...

(1978) *Belarus president award Through Art - to Peace and Understanding (2012)

References

External links

Official website

Softpanorama c links

Lev Leshchenko
at iTunes *
Сайт поклонников творчества Льва Лещенко
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leshchenko, Lev 1942 births Living people Musicians from Moscow Soviet male singers Russian people of Ukrainian descent Full Cavaliers of the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" Recipients of the Order of Friendship of Peoples People's Artists of the RSFSR Recipients of the Lenin Komsomol Prize Russian Academy of Theatre Arts alumni Russian record producers 20th-century Russian male singers 21st-century Russian male singers Russian National Music Award winners Winners of the Golden Gramophone Award