Ukraine has always been famous for its magical melodic songs and singing talents. The life path of the people's artist Anatoly Solovyanenko was filled with hard work on improving his voice. He gave up the pleasures of life in order to reach the pinnacle of performing arts in the moments of "takeoff".
The artist sang in the best theaters in the world. The maestro bathed in applause at the theaters "La Scala" and "Metropolitan Opera". He was one of the few tenors, thanks to whom the world learned about the culture of Ukraine, the beauty of the Ukrainian song, talented people.
Childhood and youth of the artist
Anatoly Solovyanenko was born in the small town of Stalino. The boy's parents in their youth were also fond of singing and participated in amateur competitions. Since childhood, Anatoly really liked the folk song. He performed at all school concerts, sang delightfully in treble.
After graduating from school, Anatoly entered the Mining and Mechanical Faculty at the Donetsk Polytechnic Institute. But even here he performed with solo numbers, accompanied by an instrumental ensemble.
In 1952, Solovyanenko actively and persistently tried to enter the Leningrad Conservatory, but the attempt was unsuccessful. The guy did not lose hope and began to take lessons from the famous singer, Honored Artist of the Ukrainian SSR A. Korobeichenko. He graduated from the institute in 1954. Anatoly, without much desire, began to work as an assistant at the Department of Graphics and Sketchy Geometry, while continuing to study vocals.
Anatoly Solovyanenko: The beginning of creative activity
In 1962, he first took part in an amateur art competition in Kyiv. There he performed his favorite romances, in particular, Y. Stepovoy to the words of I. Franko “Fly with the wind”. Solovyanenko participated in the concert program during the Congress of Trade Unions in July 1962.
He was chosen for an internship in Italy. He studied at the La Scala theater for six months and took lessons from the Italian tenor Gennardo Barra. In 1962 Anatoly was invited to work at the Kiev Opera and Ballet Theatre. On November 22, 1963, the premiere of the opera Rigoletto took place, in which Solovyanenko played the role of the Duke of Mantua. The singer married in 1963.
His wife Svetlana was an adviser and reliable friend for Anatoly throughout his life. In January 1964, the singer again left for an internship in Italy. And at the same time, he took part in the performance of the Bolshoi Theater troupe at La Scala. The following year, the artist became the winner of the pop song contest "Naples opposes" in Italy. Solovyanenko then returned to Moscow. And he worked at the Bolshoi Theater, participated in tours in the Soviet Union and abroad.
Since 1965, the maestro has become a soloist (tenor) at the Kiev Opera and Ballet Theatre. He brilliantly performed more than 20 parts in works authored by Ukrainian, Russian and foreign authors.
World fame and fame
Thanks to concert activities in many countries, the artist gained international fame. The listeners especially liked the performance of melodic and soulful romances. In 1975 he was awarded the honorary title "People's Artist of the USSR". And in 1977-1978. the artist performed at the famous theater "Metropolitan Opera".
In 1980 he was awarded the V. Lenin Prize. The film "Prelude of Fate" (1985), which is dedicated to the work of a famous compatriot, was released on Soviet screens. And in 1987, the artist performed in a series of concerts in Chernobyl. In the 1990s, he left the Kiev Opera House for disagreeing with the management. He developed song activity in the countries of the post-Soviet space and far beyond its borders.
Unrivaled Talent
Solovyanenko mastered the "Italian style", virtuoso playing tenor roles in operas by Verdi, Puccini, Donizetti, Mascagni. He learned Italian. His tenor sounded so penetrating and lyrical that the Italian listeners recognized him as the winner in the Naples Against All contest.
The Ukrainian singer brilliantly mastered the French manner of singing. He also sang brilliantly in operas by French composers, in particular Aubert, Bizet, Massenet. Especially skillfully he performed Nadir's aria in Bizet's opera The Pearl Seekers. In it, the magnificent natural data of the voice of a man coincided in timbre and character with the performing canons of this party. Strikingly inspired and lyrical, Solovyanenko performed the famous romance "In the moonlight I saw her ...". The singer's soft and gentle voice simply flew in the space filled with moonlight.
Among the most difficult parts of his tenor repertoire is the part of Mario Cavaradossi in Puccini's Tosca. It was sung by Enrico Caruso, Beniamino Gigli, Mario Lanza, Leonid Sobinov, Mario Del Monaco. For many performers in the world, the image of Cavaradossi was a stumbling block in their singing career. But in the performance of Solovyanenko, this complex part sounded easy, enlightened and sincere. Andrey's part from the opera Zaporozhets beyond the Danube was very dear to the artist.
“It has a lot of space for the voice,” Solovyanenko said, “everything is very vocal, everything is easy to sing. Lyricism and drama are organically combined here. And how much humanity, truly folk beauty.
Solovyanenko in the party extracts bright, unique colors from his voice, a national cantilena. This goes well with the romantic mood of the hero. Everything that the performer persistently searched for in the Ukrainian folk song and Ukrainian romance (soulfulness, lyrical simplicity, naturalness, sincerity of feelings) he transferred to the part of Andrey. And she shone with new unknown facets thanks to the talent of the singer.
Unchanging love for the Ukrainian romance
An important place in Solovyanenko's repertoire was occupied by songs and romances based on texts by T. G. Shevchenko. The singer really liked the passionate and deep poetry of the Kobzar, filled with folk melos. Therefore, Solovyanenko's interpretation of "Lights are burning, music is playing" or "Why is it hard for me, why am I bored?" sounded impressive, dramatic and at the same time sublime and lyrical. The singer convincingly revealed the dramatic idea of the romances. Everything obeyed the melody and gradually developed it, pumped it up. And affirmed in the culminating conclusion a feeling of boundless longing and pain.
The artist’s repertoire included many works of Ukrainian bel canto: “Black eyebrows, brown eyes”, “Nothing like a month”, “I marvel at the sky”, “Hope, wind, to Ukraine”, “Stand a high mountain”, etc. Solovyanenko performed them sincerely, simply and with inspiration, which connected his singing with the work of world performers. The artist had a calm, even cantilena, filled with great feeling, emotional awe, consonant with the folk art of kobzars.
People's memory of the artist Anatoly Solovyanenko
People remember their heroes. Anatoly Solovyanenko is one of them. It was he who actively promoted the Ukrainian song in the world of music.
In 1999, the famous artist died suddenly. He had heart problems, the treatment did not give positive results. The heart attack occurred when Solovyanenko was resting at his dacha outside the city. And, alas, the doctors did not have time to take him to the hospital. Thousands of fans said goodbye to the world famous artist in the hall of the National Philharmonic. He is buried in the village of Kozin (near Kiev).
In honor of the famous Ukrainian, the minor planet "6755 Solovyanenko" was named. The name of A. B. Solovyanenko was given to the Donetsk State Academic Theater in December 1999. On May 31, 2002, a monument was erected to him near this theater. In Kyiv, on the facade of the house (Institutskaya Street No. 16), where he lived, a memorial plaque was installed. And near the house - a beautiful monument.
