Galina Vishnevskaya facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Galina Vishnevskaya
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| Галина Вишневская | |
Galina Vishnevskaya in 2008
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| Born |
Galina Pavlovna Ivanova
25 October 1926 |
| Died | 11 December 2012 (aged 86) |
| Occupation | Opera singer (soprano) |
| Years active | 1944–1982 |
| Spouse(s) |
Georgy Vishnevsky
(divorced)Mark Rubin
(divorced) |
| Children | 3, including Elena Rostropovich |
Galina Pavlovna Vishnevskaya (Russian: Галина Павловна Вишневская, born Ivanova; 25 October 1926 – 11 December 2012) was a famous Russian soprano opera singer. A soprano is a female singer with the highest voice range. She was named a People's Artist of the USSR in 1966, which is a very high honor for artists in the Soviet Union. She was married to the famous cellist Mstislav Rostropovich.
Contents
Life and Career
Early Life and First Performances
Galina Vishnevskaya was born in Leningrad, which is now called Saint Petersburg. She began her singing career on stage in 1944. She sang in operettas, which are like light operas with spoken parts.
After studying singing for a year, she entered a competition at the famous Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow in 1952. She won the competition and became a member of the Bolshoi Theatre the next year.
International Stage Debuts
Galina Vishnevskaya soon became known around the world. In 1957, she performed in Finland as Tatyana in the opera Eugene Onegin. She also performed in Sarajevo in 1960.
In 1961, she made her first appearance at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City. The next year, she sang at the Royal Opera House in London. For her first performance at La Scala in Italy in 1964, she sang the role of Liù in the opera Turandot.
Famous Opera Roles
Galina Vishnevskaya sang many different roles in operas. She was especially known for her roles in Russian operas. She also performed in famous operas like Violetta, Tosca, and Cio-cio-san.
Working with Benjamin Britten
The famous composer Benjamin Britten wrote a special part for her in his War Requiem. This important musical work was finished in 1962. However, the Soviet government did not allow her to travel to England for the first performance. Later, they did let her leave to make the first recording of the War Requiem.
Life with Mstislav Rostropovich
Galina Vishnevskaya married the cellist Mstislav Rostropovich in 1955. They often performed together. He would play the piano for her or lead the orchestra as a conductor.
They were also good friends with the famous composer Dmitri Shostakovich. They made a very powerful recording of his opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk.
Another friend of theirs was the writer Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. He lived at their country home for about three years starting in 1968. At that time, the government was watching him closely. The home of Galina and Mstislav offered him a safe place to stay.
Leaving the Soviet Union
In 1974, Galina and Mstislav asked the Soviet government for permission to leave the country for a long time. They eventually settled in the United States and Paris, France.
In 1982, Galina Vishnevskaya performed in an opera for the last time in Paris. She sang the role of Tatyana in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin. In 1987, she directed an opera called The Tsar's Bride in Washington, D.C.
In 1984, she wrote a book about her life called Galina: A Russian Story. In 2002, she opened her own opera center in Moscow, which is called the "Galina Vishnevskaya Opera Centre".
Later Years and Legacy
In 2006, she was in a documentary film about her life and her husband's. In 2007, she acted in a movie called Alexandra. She played a grandmother visiting her grandson.
Galina Vishnevskaya passed away on 11 December 2012, in Moscow, at the age of 86. She had been married three times. Her daughters survived her. Just before she died, the Russian President Vladimir Putin gave her a high award for her contributions to her country.
Recordings
Galina Vishnevskaya made many recordings during her career. Some of her famous recordings include:
- Eugene Onegin (recorded in 1956 and 1970)
- Mussorgsky's Songs and Dances of Death (1961 and 1976)
- Britten's War Requiem (1963)
- Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov (1970 and 1987)
- Puccini's Tosca (1976)
- Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk (1978)
Honors and Awards
Galina Vishnevskaya received many awards and honors for her amazing talent and contributions to music. Some of these include:
- Order of Merit for the Fatherland (various classes)
- Order of Lenin (1973)
- Medal "For the Defence of Leningrad" (1943)
- People's Artist of the USSR (1966)
- Diamond Medal of the City of Paris (1977)
- Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters (France, 1982)
- Commander of the Legion of Honour (France, 1983)
- Honorary degrees from several universities
- Honorary Citizen of Kronstadt (1996)
- Honorary Professor of Moscow State University (2007)
Legacy
Galina Vishnevskaya's legacy lives on in many ways:
- A street in the Moscow district of Novokosino is named Galina Vishnevskaya Street.
- Another street in Vidnoye, Moscow region is also named after her.
- An Airbus A321 airplane of the Aeroflot airline is named "Vishnevskaya".
- The Children's Music School No. 8 in Kronstadt is named after G. Vishnevskaya.
- A small planet in our Solar System, No. 4919, is named after G. Vishnevskaya.
- A memorial plaque for her and her husband, Mstislav Rostropovich, was put up in Moscow in 2018.
- On her birthday in 2022, a monument to Galina Vishnevskaya was placed next to the Opera Singing Center in Moscow, which also carries her name.
