Sergei Yakovlevich Lemeshev (; – 27 June 1977) was a Soviet and Russian opera singer and director.

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 ...

(1950).

Biography

Early life and career

Lemeshev was born into a peasant family, and his father wanted him to become a cobbler. In 1914, he left a parish school and was sent to be trained to make shoes in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

. In 1917, he graduated from school in Tver, where he received vocal training. He began first at a local workers' club and later moved to Moscow. Between 1921 and 1925, he studied 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 ...

with Nazari Raisky. In 1924, he sang in the opera studio of

Konstantin Stanislavski Konstantin Sergeyevich Stanislavski ( rus, Константин Сергеевич Станиславский, p=kənstɐnʲˈtʲin sʲɪrˈɡʲejɪvʲɪtɕ stənʲɪˈslafskʲɪj, links=yes; ; 7 August 1938) was a seminal Russian and Sovie ...

. From 1926 and 1931, he sang in the theatres of Sverdlovsk,

Harbin Harbin, ; zh, , s=哈尔滨, t=哈爾濱, p=Hā'ěrbīn; IPA: . is the capital of Heilongjiang, China. It is the largest city of Heilongjiang, as well as being the city with the second-largest urban area, urban population (after Shenyang, Lia ...

, and

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი, ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), ( ka, ტფილისი, tr ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia ( ...

. In 1931 Lemeshev was invited to 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 ...

, made his debut and eventually became the theatre's soloist. His lyrical tenor of an unusually soft and light timbre almost at once brought him love and popularity among admirers of the operatic art. Nevertheless, Lemeshev was a great worker and worked hard to develop each of his opera roles. His vocal and artistic qualities, evident to every listener, are beauty of timbre, musicality, effortlessness of vocal production, expressiveness, very clear diction and incredible ''

pianissimo In music, the dynamics of a piece are the variation in loudness between note (music), notes or phrase (music), phrases. Dynamics are indicated by specific musical notation, often in some detail. However, dynamics markings require interpretation ...

''. The best years of his operatic career were from 1931 to 1942. He was also an outstanding concert singer and a brilliant performer of traditional Russian folk songs. In 1938, he became the first artist to sing all 100 romances by

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 ...

in 5 concerts. Folk songs broadcast on the radio further sealed his stature as a truly national singer.

Health

The beginning of the

Great Patriotic War The Eastern Front, also known as the Great Patriotic War (term), Great Patriotic War in the Soviet Union and its successor states, and the German–Soviet War in modern Germany and Ukraine, was a Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II ...

was crucial for Lemeshev; during one evacuation he caught a very bad cold which resulted in two attacks of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

, complicated by

pleurisy Pleurisy, also known as pleuritis, is inflammation of the membranes that surround the lungs and line the chest cavity (Pulmonary pleurae, pleurae). This can result in a sharp chest pain while breathing. Occasionally the pain may be a constant d ...

and

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

of the right lung. He was treated with artificial

pneumothorax A pneumothorax is collection of air in the pleural space between the lung and the chest wall. Symptoms typically include sudden onset of sharp, one-sided chest pain and dyspnea, shortness of breath. In a minority of cases, a one-way valve is ...

, which induced the therapeutic collapse of one lung. Although singing was forbidden, he adapted by being more conscious and sensitive with regard to his technique, and continued to sing with one lung from 1942 to 1948, when the other lung was also artificially collapsed and re-inflated. During that period he recorded '' Lakmé'', ''

The Snow Maiden ''The Snow Maiden: A Spring Fairy Tale'' ( rus, Снегурочка–весенняя сказка, Snegurochka–vesennyaya skazka, a=Ru-Snegurochka.ogg) is an opera in four acts with a prologue by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, composed d ...

'', ''

Les pêcheurs de perles ' (, ''The Pearl Fishers'') is an opera in three acts by the French composer Georges Bizet, to a libretto by Eugène Cormon and Michel Carré. It was premiered on 30 September 1863 at the Théâtre Lyrique in Paris, and was given 18 performan ...

'', '' Mozart and Salieri'' and pieces from operas like ''

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 ' ...

'' and ''

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 ...

''. In 1947, he toured and performed at the

Berlin State Opera The Staatsoper Unter den Linden ( State Opera under the Lime Trees), also known as the Berlin State Opera (), is a listed building on Unter den Linden boulevard in the historic center of Berlin, Germany. The opera house was built by order of P ...

. Along with his friendly rival, tenor Ivan Kozlovsky, he was the leading tenor at the Bolshoi until 1956.

Repertoire

Lemeshev's operatic repertoire consisted primarily of Russian works along with a particularly significant number of French and a few Italian and German pieces. Almost all works were performed in the Russian language. Unfortunately, very few complete recordings are available, with only excerpts available in spite of Lemeshev's numerous performances on stage in roles such as the Duke in

and Almaviva in

. *Rodolfo in ''

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 ...

'' by

Giacomo Puccini Giacomo Puccini (22 December 1858 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer known primarily for List of compositions by Giacomo Puccini#Operas, his operas. Regarded as the greatest and most successful proponent of Italian opera after Verdi, he ...

*Duke in ''

'' by

Giuseppe Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi ( ; ; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for List of compositions by Giuseppe Verdi, his operas. He was born near Busseto, a small town in the province of Parma ...

*Romeo in '' Roméo et Juliette'' by

Charles 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 ...

*Almaviva in ''

'' by

Gioachino Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. He gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote man ...

*Levko in '' May Night'' by

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov. At the time, his name was spelled , which he romanized as Nicolas Rimsky-Korsakow; the BGN/PCGN transliteration of Russian is used for his name here; ALA-LC system: , ISO 9 system: .. (18 March 1844 – 2 ...

*Alfredo in '' La Traviata'' by Giuseppe Verdi *Astrologer in '' The Golden Cockerel'' by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov *Vladimir Igorevich in '' Prince Igor'' by

Alexander Borodin Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin (12 November 183327 February 1887) was a Russian Romantic composer and chemist of Georgian–Russian parentage. He was one of the prominent 19th-century composers known as " The Five", a group dedicated to prod ...

*Rodolfo in ''

Luisa Miller ''Luisa Miller'' is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play '' Kabale und Liebe'' (''Intrigue and Love'') by the German dramatist Friedrich von Schiller. Verdi's initial idea f ...

'' by Giuseppe Verdi *Indian guest in ''

Sadko Sadko () is a principal character in Russian '' byliny'' (oral epic poems). He is an adventurer, merchant, and '' gusli'' musician from Novgorod. The story of Sadko is best known outside Russia in the opera '' Sadko'' by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov ...

'' by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov *Lohengrin in ''

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 ...

'' by

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

*Nadir in ''

'' by

Georges Bizet Georges Bizet (; 25 October 18383 June 1875) was a French composer of the Romantic music, Romantic era. Best known for his operas in a career cut short by his early death, Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, ''Carmen'', w ...

*Doctor Faust in ''

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 ...

'' by Charles Gounod *Tsar Berendei in ''

'' by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov *Boyan in '' Ruslan and Ludmila'' by

Mikhail Glinka Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka ( rus, links=no, Михаил Иванович Глинка, Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka, mʲɪxɐˈil ɨˈvanəvʲɪdʑ ˈɡlʲinkə, Ru-Mikhail-Ivanovich-Glinka.ogg; ) was the first Russian composer to gain wide recognit ...

*Prince Sidonal in '' The Demon'' by

Anton Rubinstein Anton Grigoryevich Rubinstein (; ) was a Russian pianist, composer and conductor who founded the Saint Petersburg Conservatory. He was the elder brother of Nikolai Rubinstein, who founded the Moscow Conservatory. As a pianist, Rubinstein ran ...

*Dubrovsky in '' Dubrovsky'' by Eduard Napravnik *Gérald in '' Lakmé'' by

Léo Delibes Clément Philibert Léo Delibes (; 21 February 1836 – 16 January 1891) was a French Romantic music, Romantic composer, best known for his ballets and French opera, operas. His works include the ballets ''Coppélia'' (1870) and ''Sylvia (b ...

*Werther 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

Jules 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 ...

*Fra Diavolo in '' Fra Diavolo'' by

Daniel Auber Daniel-François-Esprit Auber (; 29 January 178212 May 1871) was a French composer and director of the Paris Conservatoire. Born into an artistic family, Auber was at first an amateur composer before he took up writing operas professionally whe ...

, among others.

Signature role as Lensky in ''Eugene Onegin''

Lemeshev's signature role was as Lensky in ''

Eugene Onegin ''Eugene Onegin, A Novel in Verse'' (, Reforms of Russian orthography, pre-reform Russian: Евгеній Онѣгинъ, романъ въ стихахъ, ) is a novel in verse written by Alexander Pushkin. ''Onegin'' is considered a classic of ...

'' by

Pyotr Ilyich 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 popula ...

, and he performed it more than 500 times from 1927 onwards. He performed it for the last time on his 70th birthday, after suffering three heart attacks and having a lung removed.

Other key roles

In 1953 Lemeshev was given the prestigious title

. He was also appointed assistant manager of the Bolshoi from 1957 to 1959. He debuted as director in 1951, with the production of '' La traviata'' in the Maly Opera Theatre in Leningrad (now known as the Mikhailovsky Theatre). Following this, he was made director for the production of Massenet's Werther in 1957 at the Bolshoi. Toward the end of his career, he mainly gave concerts of Russian classic romances and folk songs, with performances aired on the radio, and taught in the Moscow Conservatory as associate professor. He was buried in the

Novodevichy Cemetery Novodevichy Cemetery () is a cemetery in Moscow. It lies next to the southern wall of the 16th-century Novodevichy Convent, which is the city's third most popular tourist site. History The cemetery was designed by Ivan Mashkov and inaugurated ...

in Moscow.

Lemeshev-mania

Lemeshev's talent, artistry, acting skills and conspicuous charm very quickly made him a public idol. Almost all his performances during the 1930s and 1940s were accompanied by crowds of fans following him through the streets, spending days and nights near his house

While Lemeshev was one of the leading tenors of the Bolshoi Theatre, he was admired by female fans, who were jokingly called "lemeshistki." The theatre lobby was a venue for scuffles between the "lemeshistki" and the "kozlovityanki" (female fans of Lemeshev's rival Ivan Kozlovsky

Additionally, the film " Musical Story, The Musical Story" (1940

in which he played the main role, brought him the State Stalin Prize, Stalin prize, and even more widespread furore and fame all over the

USSR 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 ...

Personal life

Six marriages and numerous affairs focused the attention of Lemeshev's fans on his personal life. His fourth wife was the famous soprano Irina Maslennikova, who gave birth to Lemeshev's daughter Maria. Ultimately, he found his life partner in singer Vera Kudryavtseva. Their marriage lasted for over 20 years, until Lemeshev's death in 1977.

Legacy

He authored the book "The Way to Art", published in 1968.

Asteroid An asteroid is a minor planet—an object larger than a meteoroid that is neither a planet nor an identified comet—that orbits within the Solar System#Inner Solar System, inner Solar System or is co-orbital with Jupiter (Trojan asteroids). As ...

number 4561 received the name Lemeshev in 1978, a year after Sergei Lemeshev's death.

Recordings

- ''

'', cond. Georgy Doniyakh, Leningrad, Maly Theatre (CD) Label: Aquarius (1954 Live recording) *

- ''

'', cond. Boris Khaikin, Bolshoi Theatre (CD) Label: Opera D'oro (1956 studio recording, remastered), 1999 * Rimsky-Korsakov - '' May Night'', cond. Vasili Nebolsin, Bolshoi Theatre (3 LP Monarch MWL 338-340), about 1948. *Scenes and Arias from Operas - Sergei Lemeshev (CD) Label: Yedang Entertainment, 2002 *Lebendige Vergangenheit: Sergei Lemeshev, Preiser Records Audio CD (July 4, 1998) *A large number of CD's (42 so far) including 'live' concerts have been published by Aquarius, http://aquarius-classic.ru/albums?tid=6&ver=eng
more information

Quotations about Lemeshev

"Soft spoken and self-effacing, Lemeshev hated his star status and all the pomp and partying that it implied. His workaholic attitude and exactingness were legendary and directors, conductors, accompanists, and fellow singers always found him a nice and easygoing man everyone loved to work with…" (''Voice of Russia''

"He sang ''sul soffio'' (leaning on the breath), avoided stressful abdominal respiration (only Caruso could do it), and directed the sound current to the mask, the method of singing which was so much Lauri-Volpi's gospel." (''Dr. Joseph Fragala''

"He developed a mixed voice of incomparable beauty, which made it possible for him to take the highest notes with such beautiful richness that even specialists could not explain how it was done technically….His high C’s … sounded virile and full…His manner of lowering his larynx a bit on high notes allowed him to perform the parts which ordinary lyric tenors did not sing, oles such asRodolfo in La Bohème, Levko in May Night, Dubrovsky, Fra Diavolo…" (''A.Orfenov''

Bibliography

Vasiliev, Viktor Dmitrievich: ''Doroga k Lemeshevu'', Tver', 2002,

External links

*
Sergei Lemeshev at the Allmusic.comGrandi TenoriBiography of Sergei Lemeshev

History of the Tenor / Sergei Lemeshev / Sound Clips and Narration
* /www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbuHuhiXVZA YouTube: SERGEI LEMESHEV - "Questa o Quella & La Donna e Mobile" from ''Rigoletto'' (in Russian)* /www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MeiqoSk5W8 YouTube: Sergei Lemeshev - "Una furtiva lagrima" from ''L'elisir d'amore'' (in Italian)* /www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Vb8PdrQsyQ YouTube: Sergei Lemeshev - Pearlfishers/Nadir's romance (1938)* /www.youtube.com/watch?v=xB8WYlQ8D64 YouTube: Sergei Lemeshev - "На заре ты ее не буди/Don't wake her at dawn" (Russian romance)* /www.youtube.com/watch?v=496zJwbh8r4 YouTube: Sergei Lemeshev - "Тройка/Troika" (Russian folk song)* /www.youtube.com/watch?v=xN_a8qk9nsI YouTube: "The Musical Story" (1941) {{DEFAULTSORT:Lemeshev, Sergei 1902 births 1977 deaths 20th-century Russian male opera singers People from Kalininsky District, Tver Oblast People from Tver Governorate People from Tverskoy Uyezd Communist Party of the Soviet Union members Academic staff of Moscow Conservatory Moscow Conservatory alumni Honored Artists of the RSFSR People's Artists of the USSR Recipients of the Stalin Prize Recipients of the Order of Lenin Russian music educators Russian opera directors Russian operatic tenors Soviet male opera singers Soviet music educators Soviet opera directors Soviet tenors Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery