Georgi Pavlovich Vinogradov
Encyclopedia
Georgi Pavlovich Vinogradov (Russian
: Георгий Павлович Виноградов), Honoured Artist of Russia, (11 November 1980) was a Russian tenor
: a popular World War II
singer on Radio Moscow, recording artist, and soloist with the Alexandrov Ensemble.
in 1908. At first he belonged to the church choir and the railroad workers' drama club in Kazan. Then, while studying engineering, he also studied violin and viola at the Kazan State Conservatory (Kazan School of Music or Eastern Music College), and in the 1930s was a student at the Military Academy of Communications, Moscow
. He took singing lessons and performed in amateur concerts at the same time, besides broadcasting on All-Union Radio. He left the academy in 1936, six months before completing his studies.
, he was taken in by the Kazan Opera Studio in 1937, and in the same year he became a soloist of Gosdzhaza USSR, directed by W. Knushevitsky and G.M. Blanter. This led to three successful recordings: Two to Tango, My Happiness and Love. He completed his musical studies at the Moscow Conservatory
.
In June 1941 he attended the recruitment office to sign up as an ordinary soldier, but was instructed to join those soldiers who entertained the troops at the front.
Vinogradov said:
When he performed on the All-Union Radio channel he was heard by the vocal instructor Mikhail L'vovich Lvov. Lvov is credited with making Vinogradov into a professional singer – with lessons in diction, breathing, flexibility, and finally in producing the sound he became famous for. Later studies were with Valeria Vladimirovna Barsova, a Bolshoi Opera
soprano
with whom he also made two duet recordings. On the radio, Vinogradov sang a wide range of material from jazz to art songs; in World War II he sang with the USSR Committee of Defense Model Orchestra.
's official army chorus and song and dance ensemble conducted by Alexander Vasilyevich Alexandrov
. He became Honoured Artist of Russia in 1949. After that, he became a soloist with Radio Moscow (later known as the Voice of Russia
).
With the Alexandrov Ensemble he recorded Two Maxims (recorded 1943),
Oh the Road,
In a Forest at the Front (recorded 1945), Nightingale (recorded 1950), Dark Night (recorded 1945)
. In the 1940s he also recorded Nightingale as a duet with the baritone Vladimir Bunchikov, and The Bending Branch (or Luchina
)
as a solo with the Alexandrov Ensemble.
Vinogradov never performed on the opera
stage (and he never joined an opera company), but he participated in many radio performances including Don Giovanni
, Manon
, Mignon
, and numerous Russian opera
s.
His tenor
voice has been described as one of effortless and pure poetic beauty, with flawless diction and phrasing.
Another critic described his voice as being infused with an "indescribably poetic beauty".
However it has been suggested that he was primarily a radio singer because his voice lacked the power of a true lyric tenor
to sing above a full choir and orchestra.
He made a large number of recordings. Two notable sets, recorded around 1950, are the Lied
erkreis or song cycle
s, Schumann's
Dichterliebe
and Schubert's
Die schöne Müllerin
; they were sung in Russian. The accompanist on the recordings was Georg Orentlicher (Russian
: Георг Борисович Орентлихер), who later in old age became professor of chamber and vocal accompaniment at the Gnessin State Musical College
in Moscow in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
officers or officials, which embarrassed the Soviet government, and finished his career.
Another version of this story has it that apparently his glory gave him too much importance, and in 1951 with the phrase "For breach of discipline in the tours" Vinogradov was removed from the concerts. He never recorded or performed publicly again, though he was only 43 years old. In later years he taught in the Russian art studio of popular art VTMEI. Among his students was the tenor Gennadij Stone. Vinogradov died in Moscow. His colleague Leonid Mikhailovich Kharitonov
remembers the following, which contradicts the above rumours:
s, song cycles, and popular music – with the bulk, 125 items, released originally on Melodiya
.
Some are listed here. Below is a small selection of his recordings, including some current re-releases.
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
: Георгий Павлович Виноградов), Honoured Artist of Russia, (11 November 1980) was a Russian tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
: a popular World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
singer on Radio Moscow, recording artist, and soloist with the Alexandrov Ensemble.
Musical training
Georgi Vinogradov was born in KazanKazan
Kazan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia. With a population of 1,143,546 , it is the eighth most populous city in Russia. Kazan lies at the confluence of the Volga and Kazanka Rivers in European Russia. In April 2009, the Russian Patent Office granted Kazan the...
in 1908. At first he belonged to the church choir and the railroad workers' drama club in Kazan. Then, while studying engineering, he also studied violin and viola at the Kazan State Conservatory (Kazan School of Music or Eastern Music College), and in the 1930s was a student at the Military Academy of Communications, Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
. He took singing lessons and performed in amateur concerts at the same time, besides broadcasting on All-Union Radio. He left the academy in 1936, six months before completing his studies.
Musical development
As a native of KazanKazan
Kazan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia. With a population of 1,143,546 , it is the eighth most populous city in Russia. Kazan lies at the confluence of the Volga and Kazanka Rivers in European Russia. In April 2009, the Russian Patent Office granted Kazan the...
, he was taken in by the Kazan Opera Studio in 1937, and in the same year he became a soloist of Gosdzhaza USSR, directed by W. Knushevitsky and G.M. Blanter. This led to three successful recordings: Two to Tango, My Happiness and Love. He completed his musical studies at the Moscow Conservatory
Moscow Conservatory
The Moscow Conservatory is a higher musical education institution in Moscow, and the second oldest conservatory in Russia after St. Petersburg Conservatory. Along with the St...
.
In June 1941 he attended the recruitment office to sign up as an ordinary soldier, but was instructed to join those soldiers who entertained the troops at the front.
Vinogradov said:
"I just wore uniform in the first days of war. Then I was put into an ad hoc entertainment team, which included the orchestra, under the management of B. Knushevitsky and several soloists. We served at the Front, entertaining the fighters who had just left the battle. On one occasion we were under fire, the floor collapsed, and we were left with a team of only 11 people, but the group re-established. In blockaded Leningrad, in a group with Ruslanova, Garkavi and other famous artists, we performed about a thousand concerts. In 1943 I was transferred to serve in the Red Song and Dance Ensemble of the Soviet Army. I was with them until the end of the war ..." Georgy Vinogradov.
When he performed on the All-Union Radio channel he was heard by the vocal instructor Mikhail L'vovich Lvov. Lvov is credited with making Vinogradov into a professional singer – with lessons in diction, breathing, flexibility, and finally in producing the sound he became famous for. Later studies were with Valeria Vladimirovna Barsova, a Bolshoi Opera
Bolshoi Theatre
The Bolshoi Theatre is a historic theatre in Moscow, Russia, designed by architect Joseph Bové, which holds performances of ballet and opera. The Bolshoi Ballet and Bolshoi Opera are amongst the oldest and most renowned ballet and opera companies in the world...
soprano
Soprano
A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
with whom he also made two duet recordings. On the radio, Vinogradov sang a wide range of material from jazz to art songs; in World War II he sang with the USSR Committee of Defense Model Orchestra.
Singing career 1937-1951
Georgi Vinogradov was engaged as a Soviet national radio soloist, and between 1943 and 1951 was a soloist with the Alexandrov Ensemble, the Soviet ArmyRed Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
's official army chorus and song and dance ensemble conducted by Alexander Vasilyevich Alexandrov
Alexander Vasilyevich Alexandrov
Alexander Vasilyevich Alexandrov was a Russian Soviet composer, the founder of the Alexandrov Ensemble, who wrote the music for the national anthem of the Soviet Union, which, in 2001, became the anthem of Russia . During his career, he also worked as a professor of the Moscow State Conservatory,...
. He became Honoured Artist of Russia in 1949. After that, he became a soloist with Radio Moscow (later known as the Voice of Russia
Voice of Russia
Voice of Russia is the Russian government's international radio broadcasting service owned by the All-Russia State Television and Radio Company. Its predecessor Radio Moscow was the official international broadcasting station of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.-Early years:Radio Moscow...
).
With the Alexandrov Ensemble he recorded Two Maxims (recorded 1943),
Oh the Road,
In a Forest at the Front (recorded 1945), Nightingale (recorded 1950), Dark Night (recorded 1945)
. In the 1940s he also recorded Nightingale as a duet with the baritone Vladimir Bunchikov, and The Bending Branch (or Luchina
)
as a solo with the Alexandrov Ensemble.
Vinogradov never performed on the opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
stage (and he never joined an opera company), but he participated in many radio performances including Don Giovanni
Don Giovanni
Don Giovanni is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and with an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It was premiered by the Prague Italian opera at the Teatro di Praga on October 29, 1787...
, Manon
Manon
Manon is an opéra comique in five acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Philippe Gille, based on the 1731 novel L’histoire du chevalier des Grieux et de Manon Lescaut by the Abbé Prévost...
, Mignon
Mignon
Mignon is an opéra comique in three acts by Ambroise Thomas. The original French libretto was by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré, based on Goethe's novel Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre. The Italian version was translated by Giuseppe Zaffira. The opera is mentioned in James Joyce's The Dead,...
, and numerous Russian opera
Russian opera
Russian opera is the art of opera in Russia. Operas by composers of Russian origin, written or staged outside of Russia, also belong to this category, as well as the operas of foreign composers written or intended for the Russian scene. These are not only Russian-language operas...
s.
His tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
voice has been described as one of effortless and pure poetic beauty, with flawless diction and phrasing.
Another critic described his voice as being infused with an "indescribably poetic beauty".
However it has been suggested that he was primarily a radio singer because his voice lacked the power of a true lyric tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
to sing above a full choir and orchestra.
He made a large number of recordings. Two notable sets, recorded around 1950, are the Lied
Lied
is a German word literally meaning "song", usually used to describe romantic songs setting German poems of reasonably high literary aspirations, especially during the nineteenth century, beginning with Carl Loewe, Heinrich Marschner, and Franz Schubert and culminating with Hugo Wolf...
erkreis or song cycle
Song cycle
A song cycle is a group of songs designed to be performed in a sequence as a single entity. As a rule, all of the songs are by the same composer and often use words from the same poet or lyricist. Unification can be achieved by a narrative or a persona common to the songs, or even, as in Schumann's...
s, Schumann's
Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann, sometimes known as Robert Alexander Schumann, was a German composer, aesthete and influential music critic. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most representative composers of the Romantic era....
Dichterliebe
Dichterliebe
Dichterliebe, 'The Poet's Love' , is the best-known song cycle of Robert Schumann . The texts for the 16 songs come from the Lyrisches Intermezzo of Heinrich Heine, composed 1822–1823, published as part of the poet's Das Buch der Lieder. Following the song-cycles of Franz Schubert , those of...
and Schubert's
Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
Die schöne Müllerin
Die schöne Müllerin
Die schöne Müllerin , is a song cycle by Franz Schubert on poems by Wilhelm Müller. It is the earliest extended song cycle to be widely performed. The work is considered one of Schubert's most important, and it is widely performed and recorded....
; they were sung in Russian. The accompanist on the recordings was Georg Orentlicher (Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
: Георг Борисович Орентлихер), who later in old age became professor of chamber and vocal accompaniment at the Gnessin State Musical College
Gnessin State Musical College
The Gnessin State Musical College and Gnessin Russian Academy of Music is a prominent music school in Moscow, Russia...
in Moscow in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
The end of his singing career
In 1951 there was apparently a bar-room brawl, possibly with PolishPoles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
officers or officials, which embarrassed the Soviet government, and finished his career.
"Officially he kept singing until 1963, but there is no record of his activities and official records from the 1950s and 1960s virtually ignore him." Review by Robert Hugill.
Another version of this story has it that apparently his glory gave him too much importance, and in 1951 with the phrase "For breach of discipline in the tours" Vinogradov was removed from the concerts. He never recorded or performed publicly again, though he was only 43 years old. In later years he taught in the Russian art studio of popular art VTMEI. Among his students was the tenor Gennadij Stone. Vinogradov died in Moscow. His colleague Leonid Mikhailovich Kharitonov
Leonid Mikhailovich Kharitonov
Leonid Mikhailovich Kharitonov is a Russian bass-baritone singer, born 18 September 1933 in the village of Golumet, Irkutsk Oblast. He has been honoured with: People's Artist of Russia and Honoured Artist of Russia. In the West he is noted for his 1965 video of the Song of the Volga Boatmen.-...
remembers the following, which contradicts the above rumours:
"Vinogradov left the Ensemble in 1951 and started his own career as a soloist with RosKoncert's philharmonic department. This organization was responsible for distributing its artists on tours throughout Russia, and salary payment was donated by the government. There was no private business in Russia until 1987."
Private life
Vinogradov had a relationship with the ballerina Virskaya from the Ensemble in the 1940s, and had a daughter Ksenia.Discography
Vinogradov left a considerable discography of ariaAria
An aria in music was originally any expressive melody, usually, but not always, performed by a singer. The term is now used almost exclusively to describe a self-contained piece for one voice usually with orchestral accompaniment...
s, song cycles, and popular music – with the bulk, 125 items, released originally on Melodiya
Melodiya
Melodiya is a Russian record label. It was the state-owned major record company/label of the Soviet Union.-History:It was established in 1964 as the "All-Union Gramophone Record Firm of the USSR Ministry of Culture Melodiya"...
.
Some are listed here. Below is a small selection of his recordings, including some current re-releases.
78 rpm: Le Chant du Monde: Choeurs de L'Armee Rouge: Bandoura, 614. Out of print
- (Release date unknown. The song Bandura: half on each side. Conducted by A. Alexandrov. The soloist is Georgi Vinogradov.)
LP, 33rpm: Melodiya: The Alexandrov Song and Dance Ensemble C-01235-6, Out of print
- (Conductor B. Aleksandrov. Soloists include G.P. Vinogradov who sings one or more of the following: Stenka RazinStenka RazinStepan Timofeyevich Razin Тимофеевич Разин, ; 1630 – ) was a Cossack leader who led a major uprising against the nobility and Tsar's bureaucracy in South Russia.-Early life:...
, Kalinka, Bandura, The Birch, Moonlight, The Elm and the Oak)
CD: Melodiya: Sacred War (in Russian), MELCD60-00938/1
- (Compiled and released 2005, for the 60th anniversary of 1945. Military songs. ASIN: B000P3TD5U.)
- Two Maxims (RussianRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
:Два Максима) (soloist G. Vinogradov) - Oh the Road (RussianRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
:Эх, дороги) (soloist G. Vinogradov)
- Two Maxims (Russian
CD: The Eastern Front: Letters From the Front, Front 003
- (Compilation of original recordings alternating with modern atmospheric artworks, released May 9, 2006 "to celebrate the 61st Anniversary of Great Victory in WWII". Dedicated to Soviet fighters and their allies in World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Sold in a thick A3 paper, folded into a triangle to imitate the triangular-folded World War II servicemen's letters from the Soviet front. A facsimile World War II photo of Soviet servicemen is included. The CD contains a bonus video of the Moscow Victory Parade of 1945Moscow Victory Parade of 1945The Moscow Victory Parade of 1945 was a victory parade held by the Soviet army after the defeat of Nazi Germany in the Great Patriotic War. It took place in the Soviet capital of Moscow, mostly centering around a military parade through Red Square...
. CD in RussianRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
; paper cover in EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
.)- In a Front Zone Forest (G. Vinogradov, 1945).
- Wait for Me (G. Vinogradov, 1942).
- Two Maxims (G. Vinogradov, 1942).
CD: Melodiya: Eh Dorogi, MELCD6000615
- (Compilation released 2006. Vinogradov recorded 1948-51. In RussianRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
75 mins. Included are: Track 3. Front Line in the Forest (soloist G. Vinogradov), 19. KatyushaKatyusha (song)Katyusha, Katusha or Katjusha is a Soviet wartime song about a girl longing for her beloved, who is away on military service. The music was composed in 1938 by Matvei Blanter and the lyrics were written by Mikhail Isakovsky. It was first performed by Valentina Batishcheva in the Column Hall of...
(soloist G. Vinogradov), 20. Oh Roads or Eh Dorogi (soloist G. Vinogradov).)
Reviews
See also
- Alexandrov Ensemble
- Alexandrov Ensemble soloistsAlexandrov Ensemble soloistsThis is an alphabetical list of the basso profondo, bass, bass-baritone and tenor soloists who have performed with the Alexandrov Ensemble since its establishment in 1928. It is difficult to differentiate between regular and guest soloists, since many have alternated between the one category and...
- Alexandrov Ensemble discographyAlexandrov Ensemble discographyThis is a list of recordings made by the Alexandrov Ensemble since 1928. Within each section they are in alphabetical order of record labels.- Facets: Leningrad Cowboys - Total Balalaika Show :...
- Evgeny BelyaevEvgeny BelyaevEvgeny Mikhailovich Belyaev, also written as Yevgeny Belyayev , was a Russian tenor soloist of the Alexandrov Ensemble under Boris Alexandrov...
External links
- Friedman, Larry "Georgi Vinogradov" in the Tenor Library (biography).
- Retro-samnet.ru MP3 links to some of his songs. (in Russian)
- Retro-samnet.ru: image of Vinogradov in uniform, 1940s. (in Russian)
- History of the Tenor - Sound Clips and Narration
- Retro.samnet detailed biography of Vinogradov in Russian
- Biography of Vinogradov by Gleb Skorokhodov in Russian
- Gazeta biography of Vinogradov, including comment on end of career
- Wordpress: Alexandrov Ensemble blog