Galina Vishnevskaya | |
|---|---|
| Галина Вишневская | |
 Vishnevskaya in 2008 | |
| Born | Galina Pavlovna Ivanova (1926-10-25)25 October 1926 |
| Died | 11 December 2012(2012-12-11) (aged 86) |
| Occupation | Opera singer (soprano) |
| Years active | 1944–1982 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 3, includingElena Rostropovich |
Galina Pavlovna Vishnevskaya (Russian:Галина Павловна Вишневская,néeIvanova, Иванова; 25 October 1926 – 11 December 2012) was a Russiansoprano opera singer and recitalist who was named aPeople's Artist of the USSR in 1966. She was the wife of cellistMstislav Rostropovich, and mother to their two daughters, Olga andElena Rostropovich.
Vishnevskaya was born in Leningrad (nowSaint Petersburg). She made her professional stage debut in 1944 singingoperetta. After a year studying with Vera Nikolayevna Garina, she won a competition held by theBolshoi Theatre in Moscow (withRachmaninoff's song "O, Do Not Grieve" andVerdi's aria "O patria mia" fromAida) in 1952. The next year, she became a member of the Bolshoi Theatre.[1]
On 24 March 1957, she made her debut inFinnish National Opera as Tatyana inEugene Onegin. On 9 May 1960, she made her first appearance inSarajevo at the National Theatre, as Aida. In 1961, she made herMetropolitan Opera debut as Aida; the following year she made her debut at theRoyal Opera House with the same role.[1] For herLa Scala debut in 1964, she sang Liù inTurandot, oppositeBirgit Nilsson andFranco Corelli.
In addition to the roles in the Russian operatic repertoire, Vishnevskaya also sang roles such asVioletta,Tosca,Cio-cio-san,Leonore, andCherubino.
Benjamin Britten wrote the soprano role in hisWar Requiem (completed 1962) specially for her, though the USSR prevented her from traveling to Coventry Cathedral for the premiere performance. The USSR eventually allowed her to leave in order to make the first recording of the Requiem.
Vishnevskaya was married to the cellistMstislav Rostropovich from 1955 until his death in 2007; they performed together regularly (he onpiano or on thepodium). Both she and Rostropovich were friends ofDmitri Shostakovich, and they made an electrifying recording of his operaLady Macbeth of Mtsensk forEMI.Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, a friend and an ally in various causes, lived at their dacha for about three years from 1968,[2][3] at a time when he was closely watched by the KGB and had become an official non-person; the home of the two acclaimed musicians offered safety and freedom from the risk of being spied on at home.
In 1974, the couple asked the Soviet government for an extended leave and left theSoviet Union. Eventually they settled in the United States and Paris. In 1982, the soprano bade farewell to the opera stage, in Paris, as Tatyana inTchaikovsky'sEugene Onegin. In 1987, she stage directedRimsky-Korsakov'sThe Tsar's Bride in Washington, D.C. In 1984, Vishnevskaya published a memoir,Galina: A Russian Story (ISBN 0-15-134250-4). With her husband,Mstislav Rostropovich, she founded theRostropovich-Vishnevskaya Foundation, a publicly supported nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization based in Washington, D.C., in 1991 to improve the health and future of children in the former Soviet Union. In 2002, she opened her own opera theatre in Moscow, the "Galina Vishnevskaya Opera Centre".[1]
In 2006, she was featured inAlexander Sokurov's documentaryElegy of a life: Rostropovich, Vishnevskaya. In 2007, she starred in his filmAlexandra, playing the role of a grandmother coming to see her grandson in theSecond Chechen War. The film premiered at the2007 Cannes Film Festival.[4] In the last week of her life, Russian PresidentVladimir Putin honoured her with the First Class Order of Merit for the Fatherland.[citation needed]
On 11 December 2012, Vishnevskaya died at the age of 86 in Moscow. She was married three times. Her first marriage was to Georgy Vishnevsky, a sailor. She retained his family name after their divorce. Her second marriage was to the violinist and director of the Leningrad Light Opera company, Mark Rubin,[5] who also served as her manager. This second marriage produced a son, who died at age 2 months, and lasted 10 years before ending in divorce. Her daughters survive her.[6]
Vishnevskaya made many recordings, includingEugene Onegin (1956 and 1970),Mussorgsky'sSongs and Dances of Death (1961 and 1976),Britten'sWar Requiem (with SirPeter Pears andDietrich Fischer-Dieskau, conducted by the composer; 1963),The Poet's Echo (1968), Mussorgsky'sBoris Godunov (1970 and 1987),Puccini'sTosca (1976), Tchaikovsky'sThe Queen of Spades (withRegina Resnik, 1976),Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk (1978), Tchaikovsky'sIolanta (withNicolai Gedda, 1984), andProkofiev'sWar and Peace (1986).
