Sofiia Mykhailivna Yevdokymenko-Rotaru ( ; ; ; born 7 August 1947), known simply as Sofia Rotaru, is a Ukrainian pop singer of Romanian origin. Rotaru, nicknamed "Bukovinsky Solovey" ("the Nightingale from

Bukovina Bukovina or ; ; ; ; , ; see also other languages. is a historical region at the crossroads of Central and Eastern Europe. It is located on the northern slopes of the central Eastern Carpathians and the adjoining plains, today divided betwe ...

"), emerged in 1966 as a pop folk star in the movie '' Solovei iz sela Marshyntsi'' (Nightingale from Marshyntsi) in the Romanian and Moldovian-speaking world after her manager and future husband Anatoliy Yevdokymenko made her change her music style from folk to pop music with Chervona Ruta. In 1972, she released the multilingual album '' Sofia Rotaru'', re-released three times and covered by numerous singers, establishing herself as a viable pop artist in the countries of the former Soviet Union. She first gained international recognition after participating in 1968 in the International Youth Song Festival in Bulgaria and winning first prize at the Golden Orpheus in 1973 and second prize in the category of Polish songs at the

Sopot International Song Festival The Sopot International Song Festival or Sopot Festival (later called ''Sopot Music Festival Grand Prix'', ''Sopot Top of the Top Festival'' from 2012–13 and ''Polsat Sopot Festival'' in 2014) is an annual international song contest held in S ...

in 1974. In the former USSR her career was marked by her stage success and numerous controversies. She has been acknowledged by the Kyiv Patriarchate. Rotaru has been performing for more than 40 years, and topped the Moscow airplay with "Ya nazovu planetu imenem tvoim" in 2008. She reported the highest income of all celebrities in Ukraine in 2008 and 2010. Her repertoire consists of more than 40 albums and 400 songs recorded in many languages. She has received awards, deemed a Meritorious Artist of the Ukrainian SSR, People's Artist of Ukraine, People's Artist of Moldavian SSR, Laureate of the Young Communist League Prize, Hero of Moldova, and Cavalier of the Republican Order of Moldova. In August 2002 former

president of Ukraine The president of Ukraine (, ) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, conducts negotiations and concludes international treaties. ...

Leonid Kuchma Leonid Danylovych Kuchma (, ; born 9 August 1938) is a Ukrainian politician who was the second president of Ukraine, serving from 19 July 1994 to 23 January 2005. The only president of Ukraine to serve two terms, his presidency was marked by demo ...

and

President of Russia The president of Russia, officially the president of the Russian Federation (), is the executive head of state of Russia. The president is the chair of the State Council (Russia), Federal State Council and the President of Russia#Commander-in-ch ...

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 ...

gave awards to Sofia Rotaru for her 55th birthday, bestowing upon her the high rank of the

Hero of Ukraine A Hero of Ukraine (HOU; ) is the highest national decoration that can be conferred upon an individual citizen by the president of Ukraine. The decoration was created in 1998 by President Leonid Kuchma. As of 6 June 2025, the total number of re ...

for her "outstanding personal merits in the sphere of art", and the Russian

order Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * A socio-political or established or existing order, e.g. World order, Ancien Regime, Pax Britannica * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood ...

"For merits before the Nation", respectively. Rotaru's official surname is ''Yevdokymenko-Rotaru'' (). Yevdokymenko was the surname of her late husband.

Yalta Yalta (: ) is a resort town, resort city on the south coast of the Crimean Peninsula surrounded by the Black Sea. It serves as the administrative center of Yalta Municipality, one of the regions within Crimea. Yalta, along with the rest of Crime ...

is her main residence, although she also has homes in Moscow,

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, ...

, and

Baden-Baden Baden-Baden () is a spa town in the states of Germany, state of Baden-Württemberg, south-western Germany, at the north-western border of the Black Forest mountain range on the small river Oos (river), Oos, ten kilometres (six miles) east of the ...

Early life

Sofia Rotaru, who comes from the Romanian minority in Ukraine, was born in Marshyntsi (''Marșenița''),

Chernivtsi Oblast Chernivtsi Oblast (), also referred to as Chernivechchyna (), is an oblast (province) in western Ukraine, consisting of the northern parts of the historical regions of Bukovina and Bessarabia. It has an international border with Romania and Moldo ...

to a family of brigadiers and wine-growers. Marshyntsi is a village of Novoselytskyi Raion (''Noua Suliță''), close to the border with

Moldova Moldova, officially the Republic of Moldova, is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe, with an area of and population of 2.42 million. Moldova is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. ...

, and the majority of its population is Romanophone ( Romanian-speaking). The area was part of

Kingdom of Romania The Kingdom of Romania () was a constitutional monarchy that existed from with the crowning of prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen as King of Romania, King Carol I of Romania, Carol I (thus beginning the Romanian royal family), until 1947 wit ...

before 1940, when Soviet Union occupied and annexed it after an ultimatum. She was the second child in a family of six children. Her siblings are Zina, Lidia, Aurica, Eugen and Anatol. A passport office employee misreported her birthdate on her passport as 9 August; as a result, Rotaru reportedly celebrates her birthday twice. Her father, Mykhail Fedorovich Rotaru, spent

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 ...

as a heavy machine gunner and traveled to

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. Injured, he returned home only in 1946, and was the first person to join the Communist Party in the village. Her older sister, Zinaida ("Zina"), was born on 11 October 1942. Zina endured severe childhood illness and went blind, but possessed perfect pitch and easily memorized new songs, so she taught Sofia folk songs. Sofia said of her elder sister: "We all learned from her – what a musical memory, what a soul!". Zina spent hours listening to the radio and learned numerous songs, as well as the Russian language, which she later taught to her brothers and sisters. At home, the Rotaru family spoke only Romanian. As a child, Sofia participated in regional competitions of

pentathlon A pentathlon is a contest featuring five events. The name is derived from Greek language, Greek: combining the words ''pente'' (five) and -''athlon'' (competition) (). The first pentathlon was documented in Ancient Greece and was part of the Anci ...

and running. She started singing from the first grade in the school choir, as well as in the church choir. However, the latter was not acceptable to the school officials. Hence, she was threatened with an exclusion from the Young Pioneer organization. Rotaru was attracted by the theatre. She practiced in drama classes and sang popular folk songs in vocal classes. In the evenings, she used to take the only bayan at school and hide in the barn trying to find the proper melodies for her most loved Moldavian songs. Rotaru said:

Career

1962–1964: Career start and Ukrainian pop-folk

Rotaru's victory at a vocal competition of amateur performers opened the door to a regional review in 1962. In 1963 in Chernivtsi, she earned a first degree diploma at the regional amateur art review. In 1964, she won the all-republic festival of popular talents in Kyiv. On this occasion her picture made it on the cover of No. 27 of the magazine ''Ukraine'' in 1965. After graduation from high school, Rotaru decided to become a singer and entered the vocal and conductor department of the Chernivtsi Musical College. In addition, she took lessons at Chernivtsi Philharmonic from the famed singer and actress Sidi Tal. In 1964, Rotaru performed at the

State Kremlin Palace The State Kremlin Palace (), previously and unofficially known as the Kremlin Palace of Congresses (Кремлёвский дворец съездов), is a large modern building inside the Moscow Kremlin. History The building was built at th ...

. The first pop song she performed was "Mama" by Alexander Bronevitskiy.

1968–1973: International recognition

In 1968, after graduation from college, Rotaru performed as a delegate of the IX World Festival of Youth and Students in the capital of Bulgaria, as a member of an artistic group. She won First Prize in the competition of singers of folk popular songs. Bulgarian newspapers were full of headlines: "21-year old Sofia has conquered Sofia". Her performances of the Ukrainian folk pop song "Na kameni stoyu" (Standing on the Stone), Moldavian folk pop songs and "Valentina" by Gheorghite made headlines. The latter song was dedicated to the first female

cosmonaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a List of human spaceflight programs, human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member of a spa ...

Valentina Tereshkova Valentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova (born 6 March 1937) is a Russian engineer, member of the State Duma, and former Soviet cosmonaut. She was the first Women in space, woman in space, having flown a solo mission on Vostok 6 on 16 June 1963. S ...

, who was present in the concert hall. In 1968, Rotaru married Anatoliy Yevdokymenko, who at that time was a student at Chernivtsi University and a trumpet player in a student pop band. In 1971, producer Roman Alekseev shot a

musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serv ...

'' Chervona Ruta'' for Ukrtelefilm. The plot was about the tender and pure love of a girl from the mountains (played by Rotaru) and her relationship with a man from the industrial city of

Donetsk Donetsk ( , ; ; ), formerly known as Aleksandrovka, Yuzivka (or Hughesovka), Stalin, and Stalino, is an industrial city in eastern Ukraine located on the Kalmius River in Donetsk Oblast, which is currently occupied by Russia as the capita ...

. The name of the film means

rue ''Ruta graveolens'', commonly known as rue, common rue or herb-of-grace, is a species of the genus '' Ruta'' grown as an ornamental plant and herb. It is native to the Mediterranean. It is grown throughout the world in gardens, especially for i ...

, a flower derived from an ancient Carpathian

legend A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess certain qualities that give the ...

. Rue blossoms only on Ivan Kupala Night and the girl who succeeds in finding a blooming rue will be happy in love. Songs of the composer

Volodymyr Ivasyuk Volodymyr Mykhailovych Ivasiuk (, 4 March 1949 – 24–27 April 1979) was a Ukraine, Ukrainian songwriter, composer and poet. He is the author and composer of the widely popular song "Chervona Ruta (song), Chervona Ruta" popularized by Sofia ...

and other writers were co-performed by Zinkevich, Yaremchuk and other singers. The film enjoyed significant success. After the film was released, Rotaru received an offer to work in the Chernivtsi Philharmonic Society and with a backing ensemble called Chervona Ruta. Anatoliy Yevdokymenko, Rotaru's husband, became the artistic director of the ensemble. As a result of collaborating with Volodymyr Ivasyuk, a cycle of songs was written based on the

roots revival A roots revival (folk revival) is a trend which includes young performers popularizing the traditional musical styles of their ancestors. Often, roots revivals include an addition of newly composed songs with socially and politically aware lyr ...

material in an orchestration characteristic of the 1960s and the 1970s in

Continental Europe Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous mainland of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by som ...

. Resulting works brought Rotaru great popularity in the Soviet Union, especially in Ukraine. This was largely due to the fact that the Soviet authorities eagerly promoted her art as an example of international Soviet culture, as she was an ethnic Moldavian/Romanian singing in Moldavian/Romanian, Ukrainian and Russian languages. Consequently, Rotaru gained regular airplay on state radio and television and was systematically billed for state-organized concerts. In 1972, Rotaru and Chervona Ruta participated in a tour in Poland with the programme ''Pesni i tantsy Strany Sovetov'' (Songs and Dances of the Country of Soviets). In the same year Sofia Rotaru collaborated with Don Backy, performing the Ukrainian version of his hit from the 60s L'immensità - "Syzokrylyi ptakh". In 1973, she received First Prize at the international contest of Golden Orpheus in

Burgas Burgas (, ), sometimes transliterated as Bourgas, is the second largest city on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast in the region of Northern Thrace and the List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, fourth-largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia, Plovdiv, an ...

, Bulgaria, performing the song "Moy gorod" ("My city") and Second Prize in the category of foreign performance of a song in the Bulgarian language. In 1973, she also was awarded the Meritorious Artist of the Ukrainian SSR. Later, the songs which she performed in the Moldavian/Romanian language, "Codru" and "Moy gorod", became soundtracks for the film ''Vesenniye sozvuchiya – 73''.

1974–1979: New authors and Moldavian lyricism

In 1974, Rotaru graduated from the Chişinău Art Institute of Gavriil Musicescu in the choral conducting class with professor Lydia Axionova and participated in the

in Poland, performing "Vospominaniye" (''Remembrance'') by B. Rychkov, and "Vodohrai" by Ivasjuk. She received second prize in the category of ''Polish song'' for her performance of "Ktoś" ("Someone"). In 1976, she moved from Chernivtsi to

, transferring from the Chernivtsi Philharmonic Society to the Crimean Philharmonic Society. After the death of Volodymyr Ivasyuk in 1979, a number of songs by Moldavian composers appeared in her repertoire penned by the Teodorovici brothers. By that time, Rotaru had ceased collaboration with Moldavian authors, primarily

Eugen Doga Eugen Doga (1 March 1937 – 3 June 2025) was a Moldovan composer. He made significant contributions to various forms of music during his career. He created ballets, ''Luceafărul'', ''Venancia'', and ''Queen Margot'', the opera ''Dialogues of ...

. Rotaru's songs of the period were created in collaboration with the following composers and lyricists:

Arno Babajanian Arno Harutyuni Babajanian (January 22, 1921November 11, 1983) was a Soviet and Armenian composer and pianist. He was made a People's Artist of the USSR in 1971. Biography Babajanian was born in Yerevan on January 22, 1921. By age 5, his musical ...

wrote "Verni mne muzyku" (''Bring Me the Music Back''); Aleksey Mazhukov – "A muzyka zvuchit" (''But the Music Plays'') and "Krasnaya strela" (''Red Arrow''); Pavel Aedonitskiy – "Dlya tekh, kto zhdyot" (''For Those Who Wait''); Oscar Feltsman - "Only For You"; David Tukhmanov – "Aist na kryshe" (''Stork on the Roof''), "V dome moyom" (''At My Home''), and "Val's" (''Waltz''); Yury Saulsky – "A Usual Story" and "Osennyaya melodiya" (''Autumn Melody'');

Aleksandra Pakhmutova Aleksandra Nikolayevna Pakhmutova ( ; born 9 November 1929) is a Soviet and Russian composer. She has remained one of the best-known figures in Soviet and later Russian popular music since she first achieved fame in her homeland in the 1960s. ...

– "Temp" (''Tempo''); Raimonds Pauls – "Tanets na barabane" (''Dance on the Drum'');

Aleksandr Zatsepin Aleksandr Sergeyevich Zatsepin (; born 10 March 1926) is a Soviet and Russian composer, known for his soundtracks to movies, notably comedies directed by Leonid Gaidai. People's Artist of Russia (2003) and Hero of Labour of the Russian Federat ...

– "Sovsem kak na Zemle" (''Just like on Earth''); Vladimir Migulya – "Zhyzn'" (''Life''), and others. She was the first performer of Eugene Martyunov's songs, including "Lebedinaya vernost" ("Swan Fidelity"), "Yabloni v tsvetu" ("Blossoming Apples"), and "Ballada o materi" ("Ballad About Mother"). A patriotic song, "Shchastye tebe, Zemlya moya" ("Be Happy, My Earth"), caused some political controversy.

1980–1983: Acting career and new connections

In 1980, at the international song festival held in Tokyo, Rotaru won first prize for her performance of the

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

n song "Obeshchaniye" (''Promise'') and received the Order of the Badge of Honor. She continued to experiment and was the first Soviet female singer to appear wearing trousers on stage. While doing this, she performed a

hip-hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...

style song "Temp" (''Tempo'') with music composed by

and lyrics written by Nikolay Dobronravov. The songs "Temp" and "Ozhidaniye" (''Waiting'') were specially written for the cultural programme of 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 ...

in Moscow. The song was used as the soundtrack theme for the drama film ''Ballada o sporte'' (''Ode to sports''), produced by Yuri Ozerov. In the same year, for her performance of "Ozhidaniye", Rotaru won the All-Union Song of the Year award. In 1980, Rotaru starred in the leading role in a film released by Moldova-Film and called '' Gde ty, lyubov'?'' (Where are you, love?). Among other songs in the film, Rotaru performed "Pervy dozhd'" (''First Rain''). The movie featured her riding a motorcycle on a narrow sea embankment without a stunt double. According to the autobiographic plot, a village teacher is invited to join an ensemble and wins the Grand Prix at an international festival with the song "Gde ty, lyubov'?". The music for the song was composed by Raimonds Pauls and lyrics by Ilya Reznik. A double album of the soundtrack was released. More than 25 million movie goers viewed the film in 1980. The title song of the film was banned from state radio by Gennadiy Cherkassov, director of the music department. In 1981, at the XIVth All-Union Cinema Festival in

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

, the film received the jury's prize for popularisation of the singing art of Soviet composers, in the section of drama films. This movie was the first public exposure for Rotaru in a dramatic role. Critics lambasted the film but it garnered support from audiences and some of its themes became popular. Rotaru's next artistic period began with a new style – rock music. The film ''

Dusha ''Dusha'' (, English translation: ''Soul'') is a 1981 Soviet musical drama film written by Alexander Borodyansky and directed by Alexander Stefanovich, starring Sofia Rotaru and Mikhail Boyarsky. The movie features songs performed by Sofia Rot ...

'' (Soul) with Rotaru's new rock band

Mashina Vremeni Mashina Vremeni () is a Russian rock band founded in 1969. Mashina Vremeni was a pioneer of Soviet rock music and remains one of the oldest still-active rock bands in Russia. The band's music incorporates elements of classic rock, blues, and b ...

was released in 1981, including songs by

and

Andrey Makarevich Andrey Vadimovich Makarevich (; born 11 December 1953) is an Israeli and Soviet-Russian rock musician and the founder of Russia's oldest still active rock band Mashina Vremeni (Time Machine). Personal life Makarevich was born in Moscow to m ...

. As she was ill, her doctors recommended she not participate in the movie production and that she cancel all concert performances. This incident caused Alexander Borodyansky and Alexander Stefanovich to write an autobiographical scenario for the film using the dramatic situation in the singer's life, characterising her loss of voice with an opening of her soul. This was shown in dialogue on a pier with an older man and included a reevaluation of her values. After having seen the new rewritten scenario and new songs, written in a completely new style, Rotaru agreed to star in the movie and decided to temporarily forego all concert performances. In 1983, Rotaru performed a national concert tour of Canada, organised by the National Concert Agency Inc. The concerts were supported by the issue of an LP, titled '' Canadian Tour 1983'' and released by Cansov Exchange Inc.

1985–1989: Change of style – Europop and hard rock

The mid-1980s evolved into a turning point in the creation of the singer's image. Contrary to the previous ''Vas priglashaet Sofia Rotaru'' (Sofia Rotaru Invites You) (1985), the new film '' Monologue of Love'' (1986) explored the aesthetics of the new art.. Retrieved 4 January 2016. Only one song, "Techët voda" (''Water Flows'') by Ihor Poklad, carried on the folk music theme, presenting an image of a farm girl who became a star. A new collaboration began in 1985 with the song "Lavanda" (''Lavender''), written by Vladimir Matetskiy for a duet with

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

n Jaak Joala. In 1986, she reversed artistic direction with the relatively unknown Moscow songwriter. He managed the transition of Rotaru to a

Europop Europop (also spelled Euro pop) is a style of pop music that originated in Europe during the mid-to-late 1960s and developed to today's form throughout the late 1970s. Europop topped the charts throughout the 1980s and 1990s, with revivals and ...

style ("Bylo no proshlo" (''Once It Was But Now It's Over''), "Luna" (''Moon'')), including elements of

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...

"Moya vremya" (''My Time''), "Tol'ko etogo malo" (''That's Not Enough''). During the next 15 years, Matetskiy and his co-author, Mikhail Shabrov, collaborated heavily with Rotaru. They produced songs, most of which became part of her concert programmes in 1990–2000.

1990–1991: Among different cultures

The transition to a repertoire in the Russian language caused a certain amount of animosity in Ukraine. Accusations in betrayal of national culture were supported by the state producer unions, philharmonic societies, and concert companies who were losing control over the financial side of the concert and tour activity of Rotaru as a result of economic reforms. To avoid large scale provocations, she refused to participate in the Chervona Ruta festival which took place in Chernivtsi in 1989. The diminution of proportion of Ukrainian songs was caused by the absence of high-quality lyrics in Ukrainian. Rare exceptions included the songs of Mykola Mozghovyi, " Krai, myi ridnyi krai" (''Homeland''), "Minaie den'" (''Day Passes''); Blizniuk, "Vidlunnia virnosti" (''Echo of Fidelity);'' Rybchinskyi, "Bal razluchennykh serdets" (''Ball of Separate Hearts''); and Kvinta, "Chekai" (''Wait''), "Odna kalyna" (''Lone Guelder-Rose''), "Tuman" (''Fog''). In 1991, during a concert in

Lviv Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

, some people from the audience put up a poster in Ukrainian, translating into: "Sofia, a heavy penalty is waiting for you". Due to the incident, Rotaru did not perform in Ukraine until the end of the 1990s, after a personal request by the

. At the same time, Rotaru prepared a new concert program, presented to the public in 1991.

1991–2004: New times

After the collapse of the USSR and commercialisation of post-Soviet music, Rotaru has kept her top position in the market and has a stable public, including the Russian speaking diaspora in Europe, USA, Australia and Israel. In 2000 Rotaru was named the Best Ukrainian Pop Singer of the Twentieth Century. In 2001 Rotaru performed in a new solo concert program ''Zhyzn' moya – moya lyubov (My Life Is My Love). The programme blended new songs with the hits of the previous years in a new manner. In 2002 Sofia Rotaru was awarded the title "Hero of Ukraine". After the death of her husband in 2002, and the loss of her parents, Rotaru stopped touring for a period and joined a

nunnery A convent is an enclosed community of monks, nuns, friars or religious sisters. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The term is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican Comm ...

. Following several months of mourning, Rotaru resumed her concert and recording activities and topped the Russian, Ukrainian and Moldavian charts again. A new period started in 2003 with performances in the ''Koncertny Zal "Rossiya"'' of Moscow, dedicated to the opening of her statue in front of the hall. Composers working with Rotaru included Ruslan Kvinta ("Odna kalyna"), Oleg Makarevič ("Bely tanets") and Konstantin Meladze ("Ya zhe yego lyubila" and "Odin na svete"), as well as lyricist Vitalij Kurovskij. She released the following albums: '' Yedynomu'' (''For the Only One'', 2003; with new songs and arrangements in Ukrainian and Moldavian/Romanian languages), dedicated to the memory of her late husband ("Nebo – eto ya" ("Heaven – It's Me", 2004), and " Ya zhe yego lyubila" ("Didn't I Love Him", 2005).

2007–2016: 60th birthday

In 2007, she celebrated her 60th birthday. Hundreds of fans, as well as artists and politicians, came to Yalta to congratulate the singer. The President of Ukraine awarded Sofia Rotaru with the II Degree Order for Merits. Her official reception and birthday party took place at the Livadia Palace in Yalta, in the presence of the

president of Russia The president of Russia, officially the president of the Russian Federation (), is the executive head of state of Russia. The president is the chair of the State Council (Russia), Federal State Council and the President of Russia#Commander-in-ch ...

, the

and the

president of Moldova The president of the Republic of Moldova () is the head of state of Moldova. The current president is Maia Sandu, who assumed office on 24 December 2020. Duties and functions The president "represents the State" and is "…the guarantor of n ...

. The event was covered live by Ukrainian and Russian state TV channels. Celebrations for her birthday continued into September in

Sochi Sochi ( rus, Сочи, p=ˈsotɕɪ, a=Ru-Сочи.ogg, from – ''seaside'') is the largest Resort town, resort city in Russia. The city is situated on the Sochi (river), Sochi River, along the Black Sea in the North Caucasus of Souther ...

, where one of the young performers' music festival days, called "Five Stars", was dedicated to Rotaru. In October 2007, more birthday concerts took place in Moscow, at the State Grand Kremlin Palace, featuring Russian singers performing her songs. 2006 and 2007 were busy for Rotaru. Three albums were released: '' Tuman'' (''Fog'') in Eastern Europe, and two albums exclusively for the German market, '' Serdtse ty moë'' (You Are My Heart) and ''Kakaya na serdtse pogoda'' (What's the Weather Like in the Heart). The year included participation in numerous TV shows and concert programmes and a documentary made for Ukrainian TV. A Russian Anniversary Tour lasted from March until June 2007. Another TV musical show, ''Krasota Trebuet'' (''Beauty Requires''), with Rotaru singing the song "Lavanda" ("Lavender"), premiered on 8 March 2008.

Anniversary tour (2012–2013)

2017–present

In 2022, she condemned the Russian Invasion of Ukraine.

Politics

Rotaru does not support any particular political ideology. Nevertheless, her multicultural identity has both helped and harmed her. Soviet authorities, persecuting her family for celebrating Christmas, simultaneously lauded her as the top singer of the USSR. The German press wrote about her as "The

Nana Mouskouri Ioanna "Nana" Mouskouri ( ; born 13 October 1934) is a Greek singer and politician. Over the span of her career, she has released an estimated 450 albums in at least thirteen languages, including Greek language, Greek, French language, French, ...

of the Soviet Union". Some of her albums were recorded in Germany. After recording " L'immensità" (''Immensity'') in Italian, and " Wer Liebe sucht" (''Who's Looking for Love'') ("Deine Zärtlichkeit" (''Your Tenderness''), "Es muss nicht sein" (''It Mustn't Be''), and "Nachts, wenn die Nebel ziehen" (''At Night When the Fog Spreads'') in German,

Ariola Ariola (also known as Ariola Records, Ariola Express, Ariola-Eurodisc and BMG Ariola) is a German record label. In the late 1980s, it was a subsidiary label of the Bertelsmann Music Group, which in turn has become a part of the international ...

proposed releasing a larger studio album with these and other songs in French and English, and launching a concert tour in Western Europe. However, a directive came from the Soviet government (Goskontsert)Profile
newlookmedia.ru; accessed 27 June 2015. to sing only Soviet songs. Thus, only the initial single was released " Deine Zärtlichkeit". The concert administration of the USSR prohibited her from leaving the USSR between 1983 and 1988. This interdiction was put in effect after the 1983 tour in Canada and the release of her Canadian Tour 1983 album. During the

Orange Revolution The Orange Revolution () was a series of protests that led to political upheaval in Ukraine from late November 2004 to January 2005. It gained momentum primarily due to the initiative of the general population, sparked by the aftermath of the ...

in Ukraine, Rotaru, together with her family, sent food packages to people who came to the ''

Maidan Nezalezhnosti Maidan Nezalezhnosti (, ) or Independence Square is the central town square of Kyiv, the capital city of Ukraine. One of the city's main squares, it is located on Khreshchatyk Street in the Shevchenko Raion. The square contains the iconic Ind ...

'', regardless of their

political affiliation Political identity is a form of social Identity (social science), identity marking membership of certain groups that share a common struggle for a certain form of power. This can include identification with a political party, but also positions o ...

. In 2006 Rotaru took active part in parliamentary elections in Ukraine, balloting for the deputy chair as a second number in the list of

Volodymyr Lytvyn Volodymyr Mykhailovych Lytvyn (, ; born April 28, 1956) is a Ukraine, Ukrainian politician best known for being Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada, the Verkhovna Rada, Ukrainian parliament. Having previously served in that position from 2002 until ...

's political formation Lytvyn Bloc; however, the bloc could not gather enough votes to enter Parliament, one of the major surprises of the elections. She held an all-Ukrainian charitable campaign tour the same year. Rotaru cited her personal trust of Lytvyn and his steadiness, as well as her own interest in lobbying for arts issues in Ukraine. As a Crimean resident, she refused Russian citizenship following Russia's annexation of the peninsula.Rotaru refuses Russian citizenship
rosbalt.ru; accessed 21 June 2015.

Personal life

Aurica, Sofia's younger sister, has also performed professionally, combining a solo career with performances as a back-up vocalist, as well as dueting with sisters Lidia and Eugenia. In 1992, Aurica ended her singing career. Sofia's husband, Anatoliy Kyrylovich Yevdokymenko (1941–2002), was a People's Artist of Ukraine. He was the son of a conductor from

Chernivtsi Chernivtsi (, ; , ;, , see also #Names, other names) is a city in southwestern Ukraine on the upper course of the Prut River. Formerly the capital of the historic region of Bukovina, which is now divided between Romania and Ukraine, Chernivt ...

. He first saw Rotaru on the cover of the magazine ''Ukraine'' No. 27 in 1965 and immediately fell in love with her. At the time, Yevdokymenko was a serving his military duty in

Nizhny Tagil Nizhny Tagil ( rus, Нижний Тагил, p=ˈnʲiʐnʲɪj tɐˈgʲil) is a classification of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia, located east of the Boundaries between the continents#Asia and Europe, boundary ...

, Ural region. After military service, he looked Rotaru up. Yevdokymenko had graduated from a musical high school, played the trumpet, and planned to create his own band. As a student at the University of Chernivtsi and a trumpeter in the student pop orchestra, he helped Rotaru discover the pop orchestra. Singing in different languages caused fierce arguments about which culture Rotaru identifies with: Moldavian/Romanian, Ukrainian, or Russian.

Discography

* 1972 ''Chervona Ruta'' * 1973 ''Poet Sofia Rotaru'' * 1974 '' Sofia Rotaru'' (aka ''Ballada o skripkakh'') * 1976 ''Sofia Rotaru'' (aka ''Lebedinaya vernost'') * 1977 '' Sofia Rotaru poet pesni Vladimira Ivasyuka'' * 1978 ''Sofia Rotaru'' (aka ''Rodina moya'') * 1979 '' Tolko tebe'' * 1981 '' Where Has Love Gone? * 1981 '' Sofia Rotaru and Chervona Ruta'' * 1985 '' Tender Melody'' * 1987 '' Monologue of Love'' * 1987 ''Lavanda'' * 1988 '' Heart of Gold'' * 1991 ''Caravan of Love'' * 1995 ''Khutoryanka'' * 1998 ''Lyubi menya'' * 2002 ''Ya tebya po-prezhnemu lyublyu'' * 2004 ''Nebo – eto ya'' * 2005 '' Ya zhe yego lyubila'' * 2008 '' Ya – tvoya lybov'!'' * 2010 ''Ya ne oglyanus''

Awards

Rotaru is a Meritorious Citizen 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 ...

and

. She has received numerous awards, including Meritorious Artist of the Ukrainian SSR, People's Artist of Ukraine, People's Artist of Moldavian SSR, People's Artist of USSR, Laureate of the YCL Prize, Hero of Moldova, and Cavalier of the Republican Order of Moldova. In August 2002,

President of Ukraine The president of Ukraine (, ) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, conducts negotiations and concludes international treaties. ...

and

honoured Rotaru on her 55th birthday, bestowing upon her the high rank of

for her "outstanding personal merits in the sphere of art",Presidential decree bestowing "Hero of Ukraine" on Rotaru
zakon.rada.gov.ua; accessed 4 January 2016. and the Russian

, ''"For merits before the Nation"''. She is an Honorary Citizen of

Chișinău Chișinău ( , , ; formerly known as Kishinev) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Moldova, largest city of Moldova. The city is Moldova's main industrial and commercial centre, and is located in the middle of the coun ...

, MoldovaDorin Chirtoacă i-a înmânat Sofiei Rotaru însemnele de cetățean de onoare al Chișinăului
unimedia.info; accessed 27 June 2015 (in Moldovan) , - ! colspan="3" style="background: #DAA520;" , Slavianski Bazaar , - , - ! colspan="3" style="background: pink;" , Golden Orpheus , - , - ! colspan="3" style="background: cyan;" , Muz-TV Music Awards , - , -

References

External links