Vadim Kozin is a cult Soviet performer. Until now, he remains one of the brightest and most memorable lyric tenors of the former USSR. The name of Kozin is on a par with Sergei Lemeshev and Isabella Yuryeva.
The singer lived a difficult life - the First and Second World Wars, the economic crisis, revolutions, repressions and absolute devastation. It would seem how, in such a situation, one can preserve the love for music and pass it on to Soviet music lovers? Thanks to a strong spirit and purposefulness, the compositions performed by Kozin have not lost their relevance to this day.
Childhood and youth of Vadim Kozin
Vadim Kozin was born in the cultural capital of Russia - St. Petersburg, in 1903. The head of the family comes from wealthy merchants. Vadim's father studied in Paris. After graduation, he worked in the city branch of Lion Credit Bank.
The head of the family was far from music. But this did not prevent him from putting on records with his favorite records every day. Mom belonged to the famous gypsy family of the Ilyinskys. It is interesting that representatives of her family performed in choirs, as well as led ensembles and conducted orchestras. In addition to Vadim, the parents raised four daughters (in some sources - six).
Until 1917, the Kozin family lived more than prosperously. The children had everything they needed for a happy childhood. But after the onset of the revolution, everything turned upside down. The goats lost their property. They did not even have the most necessary things, because the servants stole them.
Vadim's dad had to go to work in an artel, mom got a job as a cleaner at the Mint. The father's heart failed. From constant stress and hard work, he began to have health problems. In 1924 he died. From now on, all the worries of life fell on the shoulders of Vadim. The guy worked two shifts.
Kozin Jr. got a job as a pianist in a cinema in the People's House. At night he had to unload the wagons. Vadim began to sing quite by accident. Once a singer did not come to the theater to fill the void, Kozin entered the stage. The guy impressed the most demanding audience with his vocal abilities.
Soon the question of choosing a repertoire for the young tenor was raised. A talented mother came to the rescue, who selected lyrical compositions for Vadim. In 1931, Kozin was hired by the concert bureau of the House of Political Education in the Central District of Leningrad. A few years later he was enrolled in the staff of Lengorestrada.
The creative path of Vadim Kozin
Kozin's concerts were a real joy for the Soviet audience. Music lovers crowds attended Vadim's concerts. During this period of time, modern musical genres were actively developing. Despite this, the public did not consider the romance outdated, unfashionable, and listened with pleasure to lyrical compositions performed by Kozin.
After some time, the singer tried on a new creative pseudonym. He began performing under the name Kholodny in memory of the actress Vera Kholodnaya. In the 1930s, when the mention of the name "Cold" became dangerous, the artist appeared on stage as the grandson of Varvara Panina, although in fact Vadim was never her relative.
In 1929, Kozin presented his own composition "Turquoise Rings". The success of the song was overwhelming. After some time, the singer moved to Moscow. The famous David Ashkenazy became Kozin's permanent accompanist.
Soon he, together with Elizabeth Belogorskaya, presented the romance "Autumn" to fans. The composition is still considered Kozin's calling card. The romance is covered by modern performers. No less popular were the compositions: "Masha", "Farewell, my camp", "Friendship".
During the Great Patriotic War, Vadim Kozin actively participated in all front-line propaganda teams. He even spoke to the participants of the Tehran conference, on the same platform with Maurice Chevalier and Marlene Dietrich.
Repertoire of Vadim Kozin
Compositions performed by Vadim sounded on the radio stations of the USSR. Kozin sang romances and Russian folk songs. His repertoire consisted of thousands of brilliant works. The voice of the timbre conveyed the whole range of emotions - melancholy, passion and tenderness.
But Vadim Kozin said that he considers the composition “Beggar” to be the pearl of his repertoire. The presented song is directly related to memories of life in Petrograd. Performing this song, Vadim each time represented a former noblewoman who sold matches at the Kazan Cathedral. When Kozin wanted to help her just like that, the proud woman refused to help.
Over a long creative career, Kozin wrote over 300 musical compositions. The artist paid special attention to the trinity of music, text and performance. Vadim could have been inspired by an interesting article or a piece of classical literature.
“It happens that one image fixes attention on itself, and you can’t think about anything else. A kind of music appears in the soul ... It happens that a composition is born immediately, and sometimes you scroll through several options, and even postpone it ... ”.
Interestingly, Vadim Kozin categorically did not like the popular performers of the 1980s and 1990s. The singer believed that they did not have a voice and talent. The musician said that the celebrities of his generation, if they did not have enough vocal skills, conquered the audience with artistry. Vadim admired the work of Alexander Vertinsky.
Personal life of Vadim Kozin
The Soviet tenor was twice convicted. After the victory in 1945, he ended up in Kolyma. After he served his term, he was permanently settled on the territory of Magadan. Journalists deliberately spread rumors that Vadim was imprisoned for sodomy. However, this is an erroneous opinion.
Kozin served time under a counter-revolutionary article. As it turned out, the artist was very fond of sharp jokes, especially anti-Soviet ones. You can’t fit all the humorous stories in your head, so he wrote them down in a notebook. Once at the Moskva Hotel, the notebook fell into the hands of a cleaning lady, and she reported.
One of the alleged reasons for Kozin's imprisonment was his refusal to sing to the glory of Stalin. As well as the conflict with Beria, who promised to take Vadim's relatives out of besieged Leningrad, but did not keep his word. Vadim was even credited with a connection with Goebbels. Investigators threatened Kozin with brutal reprisals. He had no choice but to sign all the papers.
In Magadan, the artist lived in a modest one-room apartment. But once, along with Isaac Dunayevsky, he was considered the first rich man in the USSR. Vadim did not have a wife and children. The company to the artist until the end of his days were pets.
If you believe the rumors, then in 1983 Vadim Alekseevich made an offer to his beloved woman, whose name was Dina Klimova. They didn't legitimize the relationship. It is known that Dina helped Kozin with the housework and was with him until his death.
Death of Vadim Kozin
Vadim Kozin passed away in 1994. The famous artist is buried in Magadan, at the Marchekansky cemetery.
