Oleg Frish
Encyclopedia
Oleg Frish is a Russia
n entertainer, singer, actor, television and radio personality, journalist, music historian, and is the Owner of New Age Media. Oleg was born in Zaporozhye, USSR into a family of musicians. His mother, Svetlana Frish, is a pianist and his father, Eugeny Frish, was longtime head of the children’s choir and an important member of the artistic community.
.
Oleg Frish sings in 24 different languages including Russian
, English
, Ukrainian
, Japanese
, Spanish
, Polish
, Hebrew
, Yiddish
and Yugoslavian.
In 1978, he moved to Moscow
, where from 1978 to 1992 he was the writer for Soviet Variety and Circus magazine , a prominent performing arts magazine that covered the fields of music, variety and circus. He wrote such compositions including: The world in three minutes, A wonderful gift, "Psychological Experiments" - what is it? Art or trash?, Somewhere in this world, I can see how the planet spins, In a country which calls upon the distance, and We recorded time period.
In 1984, he earned induction into the Soviet branch of the International Brotherhood of Magicians
.
In 1989, he earned a degree in the History of Variety and Cultural Arts from The National Research Institute of Arts Studies and developed an interest in promoting Russian “stars of the past”. He then toured domestically and internationally, lecturing on show biz history to students and the general public, and gained a reputation as an expert in this area of study.
In 2000 and in 2004, he was officially recognized in the All-Russian Encyclopedia of Variety, which dedicated an article to his accomplishments for his work as historian and lecturer throughout Russia.
barriers were eased, Oleg Frish decided to move to the New York
area, because at that time New York City
was by far the biggest metropolitan entry point for Russian-speaking émigrés, especially Brighton Beach
, Staten Island
and Brooklyn
.
In 1997, he became writer and host of the radio series “Walking The Streets of Moscow” for WMNB in Fort Lee, NJ, interviewing a wide variety of Russian-born entertainers including such Russian notables as Tatiana Samoilova, Elena Kamburova, Alla Pugacheva
, Iosif Kobzon, Irina Ponarovskaya
, Tamara Miansarova, Natalya Varley
, Natalia Kustinskaya and many others who are celebrities among the Russian-American community. He also interviewed American singers, musicians and actors on The People’s Wave Radio 930AM in New York.
In 2002, NTV America , the leading Russian-language television channel, which combines the programming content of its sister network NTV Russia
and original local programs from America, began broadcasting in Fort Lee, NJ.
In 2005, Oleg Frish became the Executive Producer of “Time Out”, a Russian-language weekly television news and entertainment program that broadcast their first episode on May 15th 2005, on NTV America. In 2006, Oleg Frish also became the show’s host.
TIME OUT - Oleg Frish was the Executive Producer and the Host of 121 episodes broadcast from 2005 to 2010 on NTV – a leading Russian TV Channel with headquarters in the US, broadcasting to 19 countries and reaching millions of people including the five million Russians living in the US. The program reviewed a variety of different topics including music business, pop-culture facts, interesting activities and unique locations, celebrity news and interviews and offered reviews of new releases of CDs, DVDs, upcoming movies and concert tours. Such celebrities as B.B. King, James Brown
, Whoopi Goldberg
, Claudia Schiffer
, Paul Anka
, Connie Francis
, Neil Sedaka
, composers John Kander
, Jerry Herman
and Johnny Mandel
, Vikki Carr
, Petula Clark
, Yma Sumac
, Shirley Jones
, Keely Smith
, Anita O'Day
, Gloria Gaynor
, Engelbert Humperdinck
, Donna Summer
and many others appeared on the show's 360+ segments.
Oleg Frish had the honor of interviewing the legendary James Brown
on Time Out episode#34 that aired on August 27th 2006, just 4 months prior to James Brown's death on December 25th 2006.
In 2010, Oleg recorded his first English-language album “Bring Me Sunshine”, as his tribute to “The Great American Songbook”. The album has Oleg’s vocals and arrangements by a big band
leader Patrick Williams (a late period Frank Sinatra
recording associate) and sound engineering by Al Schmitt
, whose 60-year career yielded 150 gold and platinum albums, 20 Grammy awards and who also recorded Ol' Blue Eyes. “Bring Me Sunshine” was produced at the legendary Capitol Records studios
in Hollywood, CA.
Oleg Frish still performs on stage, touring with the Bring Me Sunshine cabaret act with performances in New York at the Metropolitan Room among other venues.
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n entertainer, singer, actor, television and radio personality, journalist, music historian, and is the Owner of New Age Media. Oleg was born in Zaporozhye, USSR into a family of musicians. His mother, Svetlana Frish, is a pianist and his father, Eugeny Frish, was longtime head of the children’s choir and an important member of the artistic community.
Back In The USSR
At the age of 16, Oleg entered Tver State University and also went into entertainment. Among his first jobs, was that of a “singing psychic.” As part of his act, he would guess what songs people in the audience were thinking about, and then he would sing them. In 1980, his “musical mind reading” skills lead to national recognition and in 1985 he received accreditation from one of the Soviet Union’s top cultural institutions, the Ministry of Culture of the USSRMinistry of Culture (Soviet Union)
The Ministry of Culture of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , formed in 1936, was one of the most important government offices in the Soviet Union. It was formerly known as the State Committee on the Arts . The Ministry, at the all-Union level, was established in 1953, after existing as a...
.
Oleg Frish sings in 24 different languages including 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...
, English
English language
English 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...
, Ukrainian
Ukrainian language
Ukrainian is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses a variant of the Cyrillic alphabet....
, Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
, Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, Polish
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
, Hebrew
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
, Yiddish
Yiddish language
Yiddish is a High German language of Ashkenazi Jewish origin, spoken throughout the world. It developed as a fusion of German dialects with Hebrew, Aramaic, Slavic languages and traces of Romance languages...
and Yugoslavian.
In 1978, he moved to 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...
, where from 1978 to 1992 he was the writer for Soviet Variety and Circus magazine , a prominent performing arts magazine that covered the fields of music, variety and circus. He wrote such compositions including: The world in three minutes, A wonderful gift, "Psychological Experiments" - what is it? Art or trash?, Somewhere in this world, I can see how the planet spins, In a country which calls upon the distance, and We recorded time period.
In 1984, he earned induction into the Soviet branch of the International Brotherhood of Magicians
International Brotherhood of Magicians
International Brotherhood of Magicians is the world's largest organization for professional and amateur magicians, with approximately 15,000 members worldwide. The headquarters is in St...
.
In 1989, he earned a degree in the History of Variety and Cultural Arts from The National Research Institute of Arts Studies and developed an interest in promoting Russian “stars of the past”. He then toured domestically and internationally, lecturing on show biz history to students and the general public, and gained a reputation as an expert in this area of study.
In 2000 and in 2004, he was officially recognized in the All-Russian Encyclopedia of Variety, which dedicated an article to his accomplishments for his work as historian and lecturer throughout Russia.
Here In The USA - Television and Radio
In 1992, as the Cold WarCold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
barriers were eased, Oleg Frish decided to move to the New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
area, because at that time New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
was by far the biggest metropolitan entry point for Russian-speaking émigrés, especially Brighton Beach
Brighton Beach
Brighton Beach is an oceanside neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. As of 2000, it has a population of 75,692 with a total of 31,228 households.-Location:...
, Staten Island
Staten Island
Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...
and Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
.
In 1997, he became writer and host of the radio series “Walking The Streets of Moscow” for WMNB in Fort Lee, NJ, interviewing a wide variety of Russian-born entertainers including such Russian notables as Tatiana Samoilova, Elena Kamburova, Alla Pugacheva
Alla Pugacheva
Alla Borisovna Pugacheva or Pugachova , born 15 April 1949), is а Soviet and Russian musical performer. Her career started in 1965 and continues to this day...
, Iosif Kobzon, Irina Ponarovskaya
Irina Ponarovskaya
Irina Vitalyevna Ponarovskaya is a Soviet and Russian singer, film actress and sex symbol between the 1980s and the 1990s.-Biography:Irina Ponarovskaya was born on March 12, 1953 in Leningrad in a family of musicians. Father - Vitaliy Borisovich Ponarovsky, mother - German Russian Nina Nikolayevna...
, Tamara Miansarova, Natalya Varley
Natalya Varley
Natalya Varley is a Soviet and Russian film and theater actress, RSFSR Honoured artist .- Filmography :* The Wizard of Emerald City as Bastinda/Gingema* Guest from the Future as Marta Erastovna* Errors of Youth...
, Natalia Kustinskaya and many others who are celebrities among the Russian-American community. He also interviewed American singers, musicians and actors on The People’s Wave Radio 930AM in New York.
In 2002, NTV America , the leading Russian-language television channel, which combines the programming content of its sister network NTV Russia
NTV Russia
NTV is a Russian television channel. As a subsidiary of Vladimir Gusinsky's company Media-Most, it was a pioneer in the post-Soviet independent television media, but was later taken over by state-owned Gazprom.- History :...
and original local programs from America, began broadcasting in Fort Lee, NJ.
In 2005, Oleg Frish became the Executive Producer of “Time Out”, a Russian-language weekly television news and entertainment program that broadcast their first episode on May 15th 2005, on NTV America. In 2006, Oleg Frish also became the show’s host.
TIME OUT - Oleg Frish was the Executive Producer and the Host of 121 episodes broadcast from 2005 to 2010 on NTV – a leading Russian TV Channel with headquarters in the US, broadcasting to 19 countries and reaching millions of people including the five million Russians living in the US. The program reviewed a variety of different topics including music business, pop-culture facts, interesting activities and unique locations, celebrity news and interviews and offered reviews of new releases of CDs, DVDs, upcoming movies and concert tours. Such celebrities as B.B. King, James Brown
James Brown
James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...
, Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg is an American comedian, actress, singer-songwriter, political activist, author and talk show host.Goldberg made her film debut in The Color Purple playing Celie, a mistreated black woman in the Deep South. She received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress and won...
, Claudia Schiffer
Claudia Schiffer
Claudia Schiffer is a German model and occasional actress, who reached the peak of her popularity during the 1990s, initially due to her resemblance to Brigitte Bardot. Schiffer is one of the world's most successful models, having appeared on over 500 magazine covers...
, Paul Anka
Paul Anka
Paul Albert Anka, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, and actor.Anka first became famous as a teen idol in the late 1950s and 1960s with hit songs like "Diana'", "Lonely Boy", and "Put Your Head on My Shoulder"...
, Connie Francis
Connie Francis
Connie Francis is an American pop singer of Italian heritage and the top-charting female vocalist of the 1950s and 1960s. Although her chart success waned in the second half of the 1960s, Francis remained a top concert draw...
, Neil Sedaka
Neil Sedaka
Neil Sedaka is an American pop/rock singer, pianist, and composer. His career has spanned nearly 55 years, during which time he has sold millions of records as an artist and has written or co-written over 500 songs for himself and other artists, collaborating mostly with lyricists Howard...
, composers John Kander
John Kander
John Harold Kander is the American composer of a number of musicals as part of the songwriting team of Kander and Ebb.-Life and career:Kander was born in Kansas City, Missouri, the son of Bernice and Harold S. Kander...
, Jerry Herman
Jerry Herman
Jerry Herman is an American composer and lyricist, known for his work in Broadway musical theater. He composed the scores for the hit Broadway musicals Hello, Dolly!, Mame, and La Cage aux Folles. He has been nominated for the Tony Award five times, and won twice, for Hello, Dolly! and La Cage...
and Johnny Mandel
Johnny Mandel
Johnny Mandel is an American composer and arranger of popular songs, film music and jazz. Among the musicians he has worked with are Count Basie, Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee, Anita O'Day, Barbra Streisand, and Shirley Horn.-Life:...
, Vikki Carr
Vikki Carr
Vikki Carr is an American singer and humanitarian from El Paso, Texas. She has performed in a variety of music genres, including jazz, pop and country, but has enjoyed her greatest success singing in Spanish.-Career:After taking the stage name 'Vikki Carr', she signed with Liberty Records in 1962...
, Petula Clark
Petula Clark
Petula Clark, CBE is an English singer, actress, and composer whose career has spanned seven decades.Clark's professional career began as an entertainer on BBC Radio during World War II...
, Yma Sumac
Yma Súmac
Yma Sumac was a noted Peruvian soprano. In the 1950s, she was one of the most famous proponents of exotica music. She became an international success based on her extreme vocal range, which was said to be "well over four octaves" and was sometimes claimed to span even five octaves at her peak.Yma...
, Shirley Jones
Shirley Jones
Shirley Mae Jones is an American singer and actress of stage, film and television. In her six decades of television, she starred as wholesome characters in a number of well-known musical films, such as Oklahoma! , Carousel , and The Music Man...
, Keely Smith
Keely Smith
Keely Smith is an American jazz and popular music singer who enjoyed popularity in the 1950s and 1960s. She collaborated with, among others, Louis Prima and Frank Sinatra.-Career:...
, Anita O'Day
Anita O'Day
Anita O'Day was an American jazz singer.Born Anita Belle Colton, O'Day was admired for her sense of rhythm and dynamics, and her early big band appearances shattered the traditional image of the "girl singer"...
, Gloria Gaynor
Gloria Gaynor
Gloria Gaynor is an American singer, best known for the disco era hits; "I Will Survive" , "Never Can Say Goodbye" , "Let Me Know " and "I Am What I Am" .-Early career:Gaynor was a singer with the Soul...
, Engelbert Humperdinck
Engelbert Humperdinck
Engelbert Humperdinck was a German composer, best known for his opera, Hänsel und Gretel. Humperdinck was born at Siegburg in the Rhine Province; at the age of 67 he died in Neustrelitz, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.-Life:After receiving piano lessons, Humperdinck produced his first composition...
, Donna Summer
Donna Summer
LaDonna Adrian Gaines , known by her stage name, Donna Summer, is an American singer/songwriter who gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s. She has a mezzo-soprano vocal range. Summer is a five-time Grammy winner and was the first artist to have three consecutive double albums reach...
and many others appeared on the show's 360+ segments.
Oleg Frish had the honor of interviewing the legendary James Brown
James Brown
James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...
on Time Out episode#34 that aired on August 27th 2006, just 4 months prior to James Brown's death on December 25th 2006.
James Brown quoted: “Oleg remembers the songs I did, but I’ve forgotten a long time ago”.
Recording
Oleg Frish's first album “Hello from Brighton” was recorded in 1991 and released in Moscow. In 1998, “Strange Love”, the second album, was released in New York.In 2010, Oleg recorded his first English-language album “Bring Me Sunshine”, as his tribute to “The Great American Songbook”. The album has Oleg’s vocals and arrangements by a big band
Big band
A big band is a type of musical ensemble associated with jazz and the Swing Era typically consisting of rhythm, brass, and woodwind instruments totaling approximately twelve to twenty-five musicians...
leader Patrick Williams (a late period Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
recording associate) and sound engineering by Al Schmitt
Al Schmitt
Al Schmitt is a recording engineer and record producer.-Early career:Schmitt grew up in New York City. After serving in the U.S. Navy he began working at Apex Recording Studios at the age of 19. In the late 1950's Schmitt moved to Los Angeles and became a staff engineer at Radio Recorders on Santa...
, whose 60-year career yielded 150 gold and platinum albums, 20 Grammy awards and who also recorded Ol' Blue Eyes. “Bring Me Sunshine” was produced at the legendary Capitol Records studios
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
in Hollywood, CA.
Songwriter, Charles StrouseCharles StrouseCharles Strouse is an American composer and lyricist.-Life and career:Strouse was born and raised in New York City, the son of Ira and Ethel Strouse...
quoted: “The Great American Songbook, to which I am proud to be a contributor, is one of our greatest cultural exports, Oleg is a living example of what an impact this export has had. Far, far away, in the old Soviet Union where he grew up, he heard these songs and fell in love. It took him a while to record them but I know it's been one of his lifelong dreams.”
Singer, Keely SmithKeely SmithKeely Smith is an American jazz and popular music singer who enjoyed popularity in the 1950s and 1960s. She collaborated with, among others, Louis Prima and Frank Sinatra.-Career:...
quoted: “Oleg knows and loves American music.”
Oleg Frish still performs on stage, touring with the Bring Me Sunshine cabaret act with performances in New York at the Metropolitan Room among other venues.
External links
- ReverbNation - Oleg Frish Stats & Brooklyn, NY Jazz Chart Position
- IMDb - Oleg Frish
- The Peoples.RU – “Oleg Frish: THE MAN SHOW-BIZ” (translated)
- Sounds of Timeless Jazz Interview – Paula Edelstein interviews Oleg Frish
- The Buffalo News 1/21/2011 – Review of Oleg Frish: Bring Me Sunshine
- Oleg Frish - our man at NBC (translated) 10/08/2001
- RUNYweb.com Who does not know Frish? (translated) 01/09/2004
- TIME OUT Celebrity Interview Archives (James Brown, Gloria Gaynor, B.B. King, Connie Francis, Shirley Jones, Yma Sumac, Neil Sedaka, etc)