Dmitry Gnatiuk is a famous Ukrainian performer, director, teacher, People's Artist and Hero of Ukraine. The artist whom the people called the national singer. He became a legend of Ukrainian and Soviet opera art from the first performances.
The singer came to the stage of the Academic Opera and Ballet Theater of Ukraine from the conservatory not as a novice trainee, but as a master with a beautiful, powerful and unique voice. This was a manifestation not only of the school of Ivan Patorzhinsky, but also of God-given talent.
Dmitry Mikhailovich Gnatyuk had many awards and distinctions. He received them thanks to labor and talent, creative achievements, service to his native people and culture. In 1960, the singer became a People's Artist of the USSR. The title of People's Artist of Ukraine was awarded in 1999.
In 1973 he was awarded the State Prize of Ukraine. T. Shevchenko. And in 1977 - the State Prize of the USSR. For the embodiment of the image of Murman in the work "Abesalom and Eteri" (Z. Paliashvili) - the State Prize of Georgia. He was recognized as a Hero of Socialist Labor (1985) and a Hero of Ukraine (2005), and became the founding academician of the National Academy of Arts.
Childhood and youth of Dmitry Gnatyuk
Dmitry Gnatiuk was born on March 28, 1925 in the village of Mamaevtsy (Bukovina) into a peasant family.
He dreamed of singing since childhood. The first singing lessons, as Dmitry Mikhailovich admitted, he received under the dome of the local church from the regent. “He pulled long sounds on the violin with a bow, and I followed him with my melodious voice,” the maestro recalled. He graduated from a Romanian school, so he spoke Romanian fluently.
After the war, he returned to his homeland and became a member of the Chernivtsi Music and Drama Theater. His unusual vocals were heard by guests from Kyiv. Later he became a student at the State Conservatory. Tchaikovsky (1946-1951) majoring in Opera and Chamber Singing. In 1951 he was enlisted as a soloist of the Kyiv Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre.
Rapid creative career of Dmitry Gnatyuk
As a third-year student at the Kyiv Conservatory, he first appeared on stage in the part of Nikolai (Natalka Poltavka by N. Lysenko). He sang with the teacher Ivan Patorzhinsky (Vyborny), Maria Litvinenko-Wolgemut (Terpelikha), Zoya Gaidai (Natalya), and Pyotr Bilinnik (Peter). From the point of view of the singer's further creative life, the debut can be considered symbolic.
The luminaries of the Ukrainian opera scene seemed to be blessing him into great art. Working on the opera as a director and preparing for the stage performance of the part of young performers, Dmitry Mikhailovich wanted each of them to feel and understand the soul of the performed characters as much as possible.
He began active creative activity when Zoya Gaidai and Mikhail Grishko sang on stage. And also Maria Litvinenko-Wolgemut, Elizaveta Chavdar, Boris Gmyria and Larisa Rudenko, Andrey Ivanov and Yuri Kiporenko-Domansky. Thanks to the antilence and beauty of Gnatyuk's voice, artistry, the opera performer rapidly began to develop his talent. His baritone is considered both lyrical and dramatic, based on the part he performs. Directors M. Stefanovich and V. Sklyarenko, conductors V. Tolba and V. Piradov attracted the artist to participate in the works: La Traviata (Germont), Un ballo in maschera (Renato), Rigoletto.
Despite his young age, he managed to convey the range of feelings of the court jester. These are Othello (Iago), Aida (Amonasro), Trovatore (di Luna). In addition to the Verdi repertoire, he created unique images. These are the bird-catcher Papageno (“The Magic Flute”), the heartthrob Count Almaviva (“The Marriage of Figaro” by Mozart). And also Figaro (“The Barber of Seville” by G. Rossini), Telramund (“Lohengrin” by R. Wagner).
Dmitry Gnatyuk: Diversity of the repertoire
The list of parties is only a formal and visible part of a singer's life. Dmitry Gnatiuk had to reveal dozens of different destinies and lives on stage. They were different, from distant eras and modern. He merged with them to give listeners a unique encounter with beautiful art. And also to reveal with your voice the subtlest nuances of human life. He devoted about 70 years to the stage as a singer and director of opera productions.
A bright page in the work of Dmitry Gnatyuk was the classical and modern opera repertoire in the performing and directing manifestations. The maestro created vocal images in Nikolai Lysenko's operas Ostap (Taras Bulba) and Aeneas (opera of the same name). They were different, but they had in common - a deep nationality and patriotism, love for their native land. The part of Ostap has become exemplary in terms of vocal and dramatic interpretation for future generations of performers.
The singer performed it with a genuine feeling for his native land, revealing the tragedy of the soul. The hero was torn between love for his brother and understanding of his unforgivable crime against his native people. The aria over Andrei's body is one of the most tragic manifestations of human feelings in the Soviet classical opera repertoire. She struck with power and genuine bitterness, pain for the lost. When you listen to a recording of this aria performed by Dmitry Gnatyuk, you are filled with a special feeling. The singer passed the image through the soul, the fate of the people, who often found themselves on both sides of the barricades.
Dmitry Gnatiuk created not as many parts in the Ukrainian repertoire as he wanted. However, each part is a bright creative manifestation of the singer. This is his deep understanding of the national mentality, the inner spirit of the Ukrainian stylistics of the national composer school. He created the vocal and dramatic structure of the part of the sultan in the opera Zaporozhets beyond the Danube (S. Gulak-Artemovsky). It combined color and subtle humor. An interesting image was created by Dmitry Gnatyuk in the opera "Katerina" by N. Arkas (Ivan).
Dmitry Gnatyuk: Creative heritage
40 parts prepared and performed on the stage of the opera by Dmitry Gnatyuk testified to his creative activity and energy. In the 1960s, Dmitry Gnatyuk suddenly showed himself in yet another artistic direction. He was a unique performer of songs and romances. The maestro "raised" them to unprecedented heights, returning the Ukrainian singing melos, depth and spiritual beauty to the people.
His heartfelt interpretations of the works of Ukrainian composers (“A song about a towel”, “We are gone, de grass are sick”, “Two colors”, “Cheremshina”, “Nibi seagulls fly”, “Marichka”, “Autumn quiet skies bloom”, “Ash trees ”, “Oh, girl, from a mountain grain”) personified the song soul of the native people. Thanks to the Ukrainian song, he gained international recognition. The singer's first foreign trip took place in 1960 to Australia and New Zealand. She became the discovery of a bright talent and Ukrainian song (folk and author's). His solo concert programs have become important events in the musical life in Kyiv,
Moscow, Leningrad, Sverdlovsk, Vilnius. And also in New York, Toronto, Ottawa, Warsaw, London. The Canadian newspaper “Hamilton Spectator” writes: “In each song, the singer recreates its content so convincingly and vividly, even those who do not know the Ukrainian language understand it. Obviously, the singer has not only a unique voice, but also a wonderful soul. There is no doubt that Dmitry Gnatyuk is one of the most famous contemporary baritones in the world.”
Dmitry Gnatiuk was awarded the titles: "Hero of Ukraine", "People's Artist of the USSR", "People's Artist of Ukraine". And also he was a laureate of the Taras Shevchenko National Prize, received various awards. The artist was an honorary citizen of Kyiv and Chernivtsi. He devoted more than 60 years to the art of opera. From 1979 to 2011 was the artistic director and chief director of the National Opera and Ballet Theatre.
Shevchenko. He staged over 20 operas. His repertoire included over 85 works of national and world art. He has toured Hungary, USA, Canada, Russia, Portugal, Germany, Italy, China, Denmark, India, Australia, New Zealand. He also recorded 15 albums and 6 discs.
