Soviet Ukrainian singer, People's Artist of the USSR (1940), Hero of Socialist Labor, People's Artist of Ukraine (1993), laureate of two Stalin Prizes (1941, 1949), and the State Prize of the Ukrainian SSR named after T. G. Shevchenko (1990).
Biography
early years
He was born in the village of Maryanivka near the town of Vasylkiv.
From the age of 7, he sang in the Mykhailivskyi Zolotoverkhi Monastery, where he lived for about ten years. In the same choir, Ivan Semenovych's brother, later a famous singer, Fyodor Kozlovsky, also sang. In 1919, he went on tour to Europe with the Košice choir, and when the news came that Red Russia was occupying Ukraine, he refused (like the entire choir) to return to the Motherland. This fact remained Ivan Kozlovsky's secret for a long time, however, it probably became the reason why Ivan Kozlovsky was not released abroad in the future.
Maryanivka I. S. Kozlovsky's parental house
Ivan Kozlovskyi's first school teacher in the village of Maryanivka was Sisoi Hryhorovych Sayenko, one of those teachers who instilled an extraordinary love for his native land in his young students and recognized the extraordinary gift of little Ivasyk.
In 1917, Ivan entered the Kyiv Music and Drama Institute, and at the end of 1918 he began singing in the Poltava Music and Drama Theater. Service in the Red Army temporarily interrupted his artistic activity. Only once, at the invitation of the administration of the opera house, I. Kozlovsky replaced a sick artist and performed in Charles Gounod's opera "Faust". Participant of this performance, the famous singer Platon Tsesevich, prophesied a bright future for the young singer. After completing his service in the Red Army, Ivan Kozlovsky sang in performances of the Kharkiv and Sverdlovsk opera theaters, and in 1926 he was accepted into the troupe of the Bolshoi Theater of the USSR.
The first season at the Sverdlovsk Opera was surprisingly full for Ivan Semenovich Kozlovsky. The young singer had to perform in the entire leading tenor repertoire: lyrical, mezzo-characteristic and even lyrical-dramatic. Soon Kozlovsky captured the hearts of listeners. All performances with his participation were sold out. The local newspaper "Uralsky Rabochy" constantly included enthusiastic reviews of his performances... "Kozlovsky - Jose correctly, with great taste and feeling, develops his role from beginning to end. He has a beautiful, clear voice and a wonderful stage appearance..." About his performance in "The Golden Rooster", it was said: "As for the performers, it should be said that the most complete image was created by... Kozlovsky."
Short-term work in Poltava, Kharkiv and Sverdlovsk gave Kozlovsky, according to his own testimony, an extraordinary amount both creatively and in life. It was there, feeling the full burden of personal responsibility, that he became a professional actor-singer, who was no longer afraid to face any surprises in his future work on the capital stage of the then Soviet Union. "Peripheral theaters," said the artist, "awaken creativity, give more space, even encourage daring, which is also very useful in the creative sense, and is purchased in the future in the most positive sense... However, there is a danger of being overwhelmed by mediocrity... This fate passed me by because there were people on my path who did not lower, but raised tastes, nurtured the desire to develop professionalism, promote greater and greater demands on themselves and others. I always remember Poltava, Kharkiv, Sverdlovsk with gratitude."
In Moscow
Kozlovsky's first role on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater was a small part of the Fool in the opera "Boris Godunov" by Modest Mussorgsky, which, however, brought the singer all-Union recognition. As P. Pichugin noted:
"...Lensky of Tchaikovsky and Yurodivy of Mussorgsky. It is difficult to find images in Russian opera classics that are more dissimilar, contrasting, even to a certain extent alien in terms of their purely musical aesthetics, and meanwhile both Lensky and Yurodivy are almost equally Kozlovsky's highest achievements. A lot has been written and said about these parts of the artist, but still one cannot fail to say once again about Yurodivy, an image created by Kozlovsky with incomparable power, who became in his performance, in Pushkin's style, a great expression of the "people's fate", the voice of the people, the cry of their suffering, the judgment of their conscience. Everything in this scene, performed by Kozlovsky with inimitable skill, from the first to the last word uttered by him, from the Fool's crazy song "The moon is moving, the kitten is crying" to the famous sentence "You cannot pray for King Herod", is full of such an abysmal depth, meaning and meaning, such truth of life (and truth of art) that elevate this episodic role to the brink of the highest tragedy ... There is in the world theater roles (there are few of them!), which have long merged in our imagination with one or another outstanding actor. Such a Fool. He will forever remain in our memory as the Fool - Kozlovsky"
In 1954, as a laureate of the highest state awards, Kozlovsky left the Bolshoi Theater. According to the recollections of Kozlovsky's daughter, Anna, he was offended by the management, which did not stand up for him, when an article appeared in the central press about the unthinkableKozlovsky's fees. However, Kozlovsky continued to perform as a concert performer.
Last years
After leaving the Great Theater, Kozlovsky continued his active concert activity. In addition, for several years, I. S. Kozlovskyi remained the artistic director of the State Opera Ensemble organized on his initiative in 1938, where he performed a number of productions. In his native village of Maryanivtsi, the singer managed to create a children's symphony orchestra despite numerous bureaucratic obstacles. Ivan Semenovych ordered all instruments and sheet music for the symphony orchestra from Moscow, organized music lessons for children. Ivan Semenovych's last performance took place at the House of Composers at the commemoration evening of Heinrich Neuhaus in 1990.
Ivan Semenovych was not happy in his personal life. After divorcing his first wife, Oleksandra Hertsyk, he married actress G. Sergeeva (1914-2000), who bore him two daughters and left him in old age.
Art
Ivan Kozlovsky had a beautiful voice with a light silver timbre, a wide range with a free upper register.
Natalya Spiller noted:
The timbre of the voice, the manner of singing, acting skills — everything in the then young artist revealed a pronounced, rare individuality. Kozlovsky's voice was never particularly powerful. But the free extraction of sound, the ability to concentrate it allowed the singer to "cut through" large spaces. Kozlovsky can sing with any composition of the orchestra and with any ensemble. His voice always sounds clear, sonorous, without a shadow of tension. The elasticity of breathing, flexibility and speed, unparalleled lightness in the upper register, refined diction - a truly impeccable vocalist who over the years has brought his voice to the highest degree of virtuosity...
On the opera stage, I. S. Kozlovsky performed more than 50 different parts: from the wise old man Berendei in the opera "The Snow White" by M. Rimsky-Korsakov to the young Romeo in the opera "Romeo and Juliet" by Charles Gounod. I. S. Kozlovsky's concert activity is diverse. His repertoire includes classical masterpieces by Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Lysenko, Gulak-Artemovsky, Glinka, Dargomyzhsky, Borodin, Tchaikovsky, Liszt, Rachmaninov; vocal works of Soviet composers; Ukrainian and Russian folk songs and romances.
Kozlovsky and Ukraine
Postage stamp with a portrait of Ivan Kozlovsky, 1995
Kozlovsky was a great Ukrainian patriot. Ukraine always occupied the most important place in his heart. Ivan Semenovych maintained the closest ties with Kyiv artists and compatriots from Maryaniv. The Ukrainian language was always heard in his Moscow apartment. Among the singer's repertoire were "politically dangerous" Ukrainian works: "It's the same to me" to the words of Taras Shevchenko, songs of the Ukrainian Sich riflemen (with slightly changed text), etc. Ivan Semenovych bequeathed to bury himself in his native Maryanivka, he himself chose the place for the grave - but the last will of the artist was not fulfilled: the great Ukrainian found his last refuge at the official Novodevichy cemetery in Moscow.
Some of his best recordings in Ukrainian (see discography) were not reissued for 50-60 years. Only thanks to the efforts of the daughter of Anna Ivanivna and the President of the Kozlovsky Foundation, Bela Rudenko, on March 24, 2004, the presentation of a double CD with Ukrainian works performed by Ivan Semenovych, which the Moscow company MOROZ Records made very carelessly, took place.
Most of the biographies of Kozlovsky published in Moscow are very eloquent. In one of the long lists of composers, you can even find out that Kozlovsky performed the works of Shaporin and Vlasov, but the Ukrainian classics of Gulak-Artemovsky and Lysenko are not on the list. The author of the other writes that "I.S. Kozlovsky performs old Russian romances with great skill" - and he is "unknown" that the singer recorded only one Ukrainian romance "When Two Separate" and other Ukrainian works of this genre three times.
Ukrainian repertoire of Ivan Kozlovsky
Andrei's part from S. Gulak-Artemovsky's opera "Zaporozhets per Danube".
Peter's part from M. Lysenko's opera Natalka Poltavka.
Levka's part from M. Lysenko's opera "Drowned".
Andrei's part from the opera "Katherina" by M. Arkas.
Yontek's part from the opera "Galka" by S. Monyushka in Ukrainian. (Kharkiv, 1924).
Duet of Oksana and Andriy from the 2nd act of the opera "Zaporozhets za Danube" (with Z. Gaidai).
Andria's aria with the chorus from the 3rd act of the opera "Zaporozhets za Danube"
The sun is low. (Peter's song from M. Lysenko's opera "Natalka Poltavka")
Oh, I'm miserable. (Peter's song from M. Lysenko's opera "Natalka Poltavka")
Peter's monologue and song ("Oh don't make noise, puddle") from M. Lysenko's opera "Natalka Poltavka"
Peter's final song with the choir ("Where is the agreement in the family") from M. Lysenko's opera "Natalka Poltavka"
Roars and groans wide Dnepr. (Words by T. Shevchenko, music by D. Kryzhanivskyi)
I don't care. (Words by T. Shevchenko, music by M. Lysenko)
And a wide valley. (Words by T. Shevchenko, music by M. Lysenko)
Tell me the truth. (Ukrainian folk song)
The lights are on, the music is playing. (Words by T. Shevchenko, music by M. Lysenko)
I go to the kindergarten. (Ukrainian folk song)I look at the sky. (Words by M. Petrenko, music by L. Alexandrova)
Black eyebrows, brown eyes. (Words by K. Dumytrashka, music by D. Bonkovskyi)
Oh, get off, get off, moon ash. (Ukrainian folk song)
A Cossack was riding on a troop
Cossack girls whistled. (Ukrainian folk song; attributed to the semi-legendary singer and poet * Marusa, or Maria Gordiivna Churai, who lived in Poltava in the middle of the 17th century)
The cuckoo was forging.
Chumak was walking to the market. (Ukrainian folk song)
Oh, there is a lake in the field. (Ukrainian folk song)
When two separate. (Words by H. Heine, Ukrainian translation by M. Slavinsky, music by M. Lysenko)
Where are you wandering, my destiny? (Music by Mark Kropyvnytskyi, arrangement for voice and background by V. Zaremba.)
I didn't love the second one, and I won't. (Duet with L. Firstova)
Oh, there's a well in the field. (Ukrainian folk song)
The mountain is high. (Words by L. Hlibov, folk music)
Hey, on the high ground.
Neighbor (Ukrainian folk song)
Christmas carols (A strange star is coming, King Herod, Good evening to you, There has been a new joy (joy), There has been news all over the world)
I go on the road alone (words by M. Lermontov, music by E. Shashina)
Awards
Hero of Socialist Labor (1980).
The Stalin Prize of the first degree (1941) — for outstanding achievements in the field of vocal and dramatic art.
The Stalin Prize of the first degree (1949) — for the performance of the role of Yurodivo in the opera "Boris Godunov" by M. P. Mussorgsky.
People's Artist of the USSR (1940).
People's Artist of Ukraine (1993).
State prize of the Ukrainian SSR named after T. G. Shevchenko (1990).
Five Orders of Lenin (1939; 1951; 1970; 1976; 1980).
Order "Badge of Honor" (1937).
Memory
Memorial plaque in the Zolotoverkhi Mykhailiv Monastery
In the village In 1994, the Ivan Kozlovskyi Memorial Manor Museum was created in Maryanivka, Vasylkiv district, Kyiv region, on the territory of which a monument in his honor was opened in 2000 (sculptor V. I. Znob).
In Kyiv, Ivan Kozlovsky's alley (Pechersky district) was named after the singer, where a monument to Ivan Kozlovsky (sculptor V.I. Znob) was opened on October 8, 2008.
A music school in Moscow is named after Ivan Kozlovsky.
A postage stamp and a commemorative coin were issued in his honor in Ukraine.
Bust of Ivan Kozlovsky in Kyiv
Asteroid 4944 Kozlovsky is named after him.
The Ivan Kozlovsky Art and Concert Center was opened in Kyiv — on the street Khreshchatyk, 50-B.
On March 28, 2017, on one of the buildings of the Mykhailo Golden-Top Monastery, a memorial plaque was unveiled in connection with the 117th anniversary of the singer's birthday.
