Georg Ots | |
|---|---|
 Georg Ots in 1962 | |
| Born | Georg Ots (1920-03-21)21 March 1920 |
| Died | 5 September 1975(1975-09-05) (aged 55) |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, actor |
| Years active | 1942–1975 |
| Spouse(s) | Margot Laane (1941) Asta Saar (1944–1964) Ilona Noor (1964–1975) |
Georg Ots (21 March 1920 – 5 September 1975) was an Estonianbaritone. He sang at theEstonian National Opera from 1951 until his death in 1975. Ots gained wider recognition with his roles at theBolshoi Theatre, particularly with his lead role inTchaikovsky'sEugene Onegin withGalina Vishnevskaya as Tatyana. He was also celebrated for his performance inMister Iks, based onImre Kálmán's operettaDie Zirkusprinzessin.
Before studying singing with Aleksander Rahnel inYaroslavl, where a cultural centre forevacuated Estonians had been established, Ots was an officer of theSoviet Navy. In 1941, he managed to escape a ship bombarded by theKriegsmarine, after which he was taken to Kurgan. Six months later, he auditioned for a place at the conservatory inTallinn, and also became a member of the chorus at theEstonian National Opera in Tallinn. His solo opera debut was a small part inEugene Onegin in 1944. He soon became one of the most revered singers in Estonia and was equally admired all over the Soviet Union.
Ots often performed at theBolshoi Theatre in Moscow. His repertoire included the roles ofEugene Onegin,Escamillo,Renato,Don Giovanni,Papageno,Rigoletto,Iago,Porgy,Figaro, andKabalevsky'sColas Breugnon. Ots sang in Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Italian, and Russian. One of Ots's most famous roles with which he is often identified was the titular character inAnton Rubinstein's operaThe Demon; its libretto is based onMikhail Lermontov's famous epic poem, once banned due to its plotline involving amisalliance between a dark angel and a Georgian princess.
Ots also played a leading role inBetween Three Plagues, a film based on a historical novel byJaan Kross which illuminates the life ofBalthasar Russow.
Ots performed in various European countries. After his death, the Music College of Tallinn was renamed to theGeorg Ots Tallinn Music College in his honour. In 1997, Russian scientists named a newly discovered minor planet after him,3738 Ots (1977 QA1).
His first wife, Margot Laane, fled theNazi-occupied Estonia in 1942, and ultimately settled inCanada. Ots then wed his second wife, Asta Saar, in 1944, and they were married for 20 years until 1964. Shortly after the marriage's conclusion, in the same year, Ots married his third and final wife, Ilona Noor, with whom he would stay until his death. Ots had a son, Ülo, who was also a musician, and a daughter, Ülle, with his second wife Asta, and a daughter, Mariann, with his third wife Ilona.
Ots died on 5 September 1975 at the age of 55 due to complications resulting from multiple surgeries done to resolve his brain cancer, with which he was diagnosed with in 1972. He received a state funeral.
Ots's biography, written by Kulle Raig, was first published in Finnish in 2002 ("Saarenmaan valssi: Georg Otsin elämänkerta") and in Estonian in 2003. The book was published in Latvian in 2009, and in Russian in 2015.