The popular Soviet singer Valery Leontyev is the most famous representative of the domestic show business. One of the first on our stage he began to successfully combine vocal, dance and dramatic skills.
Childhood, family
Leontiev Valery was born in the Komi Republic, in the small village of Ust-Usa. His dad, Yakov Stepanovich, is a veterinarian and specialist in the maintenance of deer. Because of this, the childhood of the future singer was on the road. In 1961, due to the state of health of Yakov Stepanovich, whom doctors advised to change the climate, the family moved to the Volga town of Yuryevets. Here Valery spent his youth.
It was there that the boy went to sixth grade. Valery Leontiev, about seven years old, became interested in drawing and dancing. In addition, he enjoyed attending the drama club and actively sang in the school choir. As Valery Yakovlevich himself recalls, he became a soloist because he sang the loudest.
Failed exam
After graduating from the eighth grade, the young man decided to enter the Murom Radio College. The attempt was unsuccessful, he failed the exam and returned to Yuryevets, where he continued his studies in high school.
Dream
The biography of Valery Leontiev could have developed completely differently. After all, from his youth he dreamed of becoming an oceanologist. He thought that he would pass exams at Far Eastern University, where he would master this profession. But this dream was not destined to come true for the most prosaic reason. Parents did not have money to send their son to study in Vladivostok. During this period, it was not one plan that was not realized in the life of Valery.
He decided to try his hand at the theater. To do this, he went to Moscow, wishing
enter GITIS. The young man believed that it would not be difficult for him, because he already played a lot on the stage of the local Palace of Culture. But the unforeseen happened - in Moscow, a young man suddenly distinctly heard his own terrible āoceansā. Trying to pronounce as few words as possible, the failed actor took the documents. Thus, Valery Leontiev, whose photo you see in this article, was not able to fulfill his next dream. For a short period of time, he twice became disappointed in his choice. He had no choice but to return to Yuryevets again.
Work in a brick factory
The creative biography of Valery Leontyev did not start very well, so when he returned to his city, the young man began working at a brick factory. He became an auxiliary worker - rolling trolleys with raw brick from the press to the dryers. Then he was āfortunateā to work as a farmer in a weaving mill in his city. He changed many more professions that do not require special education. Soon, the older sister Valeria decided that her brother needed to get a higher education.
Vorkuta
At the family council, it was decided that Valery would go to Vorkuta to enter the Leningrad Mining Institute, or rather, his branch. This time, nothing prevented Leontiev from becoming a student in the evening department of this university. In parallel, he worked as a laboratory assistant at a research institute, then as a draftsman at a design institute.
Amateur activities
The creative nature of Valeria was looking for a way out. He actively participated in amateur art research institutes, performed on the stage of the local Palace of Culture. He devoted all his free time to this work. Perhaps the people who were living in Vorkuta at that time still remember him in the performances āThe Circus Turns on the Lightsā, āThe Shuttled Apostleā, āDon Renaldo Goes to Battleā, āThe Black Dragonā. In the regional vocal competition āSong-71ā in Vorkut, Leontiev won an honorable second place. On April 9, nineteen seventy-two, the first concert in the life of the future leader of the Soviet stage took place. This event was held at the Vorkuta City Palace of Culture. The novice singerās repertoire consisted of songs from the feature film āLet They Speakā, popular at that time.
One more chance
In the same year, the biography of Valery Leontiev could change. The young man had a chance to go to study at the creative workshop of Soviet pop art. To do this, it was necessary to win the competition "We are looking for talents" in Syktyvkar. I must say that, acting in the "Zatyukany Apostle", Valery broke his leg. This did not stop him from going to Syktyvkar, taking part in the competition and getting a first degree diploma. Happiness of the beginning singer knew no bounds! He left the institute and once again went to Moscow to learn the secrets of creativity in the workshop of Georgy Vinogradov.
Valery was not destined to study in the capital for long. A year later, the director of the Philharmonic of Syktyvkar A. Strelchenko came to Moscow, to the workshop, and was not satisfied with the result. For this reason, he took a group of under-performing artists and took them to Syktyvkar to work. Thus, Leontiev, not completing his education, became a professional artist. He teamed up with the same young enthusiasts in the Dreamers group. In this composition, their first professional concert was held in the village of Poima near Syktyvkar. Then the endless tour began. It was about such a life that a young aspiring singer dreamed of. A few years later he received his first award - "Excellence in rural work." A year later he became a full-time employee of the Philharmonic, a soloist of the Echo ensemble. By the way, Valery Yakovlevich still collaborates with this team.
"October"
In 1977, Leontyev discovered one of the best domestic concert halls. This is the "October" in Leningrad. His first acquaintance with the Hall occurred as a spectator at a Karel Gott concert . It is hard to believe, but exactly one year later Leontiev entered the stage of this legendary hall, though not with a recital. But, you see, it was a huge success. There is a huge difference between the scene of the village club and the concert hall of the northern capital.
Gorky Philharmonic
There is another important stage in the life of a popular artist. The biography of Valery Leontiev, a singer of diverse and, undoubtedly, very talented, is associated with work in the Philharmonic of the city of Gorky, where he moved with the Echo band a year later. In this city he first received his own housing. And in August 1979 he took part in a contest in Yalta. He brought with him quite extensive material, including a ten-minute song by D. Tukhmanov to the poems of R. Rozhdestvensky āIn Memory of the Guitaristā. Leontiev is the first performance of this composition. He realized that he had made the right choice when he received the First Prize for solo singing. Unfortunately, the singerās joy was overshadowed by the sudden death of his father ...
In the same year, another event happened in the singerās life - acquaintance with David Tukhmanov. After great success in Yalta, this meeting simply could not fail to take place. The famous composer recalled that in the first hours of their acquaintance, he could not objectively assess the abilities of the young artist, did not feel a strong and energetic personality in him. However, he noted excellent singing data, musicality, and technicality. From that moment on, their close, and I must say, fruitful cooperation began. The work continued for many years, and as a result, a whole block of great songs was presented to its audience.
Sopot 1980
Leontyev also met Tukhmanovās hopes at the Golden Orpheus International Festival in Sopot, where he was awarded the First Prize for performing the song āDance Hour in the Sunā, as well as a special prize from the Bulgarian fashion magazine āLadaā for the most original stage costumes. Probably, not everyone knows that their young performer designed and sewed himself. It would seem that here he is - the long-awaited springboard for a powerful jump into the national pop elite. Leontyev already gave concerts in the capital's Palace of Culture, in the eightieth year he performed on the stage of Luzhnikov, took part in national concerts.
Insidious dissimilarity
At the end of the seventies, to numerous critics, and indeed to ordinary viewers, it was clear that the new performer was very different from those pop stars that were familiar to him. Valeryās desire to have his own opinion did little to establish contacts with the ārightā people.
Already in 1981, all roads to the capitalās scenes were closed to Leontyev; there was no question of television. For the New Year's Blue Flame, a "Disc Jockey Song" was recorded. With her, the singer was supposed to appear on the screen for the first time, but two hours before the broadcast she was cut out.
At the composers' evening, Leontiev was supposed to represent Tukhmanov, until the last minute he was actively preparing for the performance, but he was not allowed to the concert. Thus, for the first time, the already quite popular singer, viewers saw on a blue screen only during the broadcast of Golden Orpheus.
Raymond Pauls
During this difficult time for the singer, a fateful meeting took place for him with the famous maestro Raymond Pauls and composer Laura Quint. These people had a special influence on all his further work.
In 1981, Valery Leontiev took part in the creative evening of the maestro. In 1982, the biography of Valery Leontiev is the life story of a successful person. He is a favorite of the public, and for the authorities - an odious figure. The whole difficult period when Moscow did not accept the singer, he became a welcome guest on the stage of the Oktyabrsky concert hall. Here were the premieres of many of his shows.
Confession
In the eighty-seventh year, Valery ceased to be a āforbiddenā person on the Russian stage. He was awarded the title of Honored Artist of Ukraine. Leont'ev celebrated the new 1988 in India at the USSR festival. The singer immediately fell in love with this fabulous country. After the authorities recognized the merits of the artist, he was admitted to the large concert venues in Moscow. Since then, he usually presents his new shows at the Rossiya Exhibition Center. This happened in 1990, when the audience saw the premiere of the show "It seems to me that I have not lived." He spent all of November this year on tour in the United States. Then the singer gave concerts in Canada, India.
In 1997, Leontyevās collaboration with composer I. Krutym began. Previously, the singer was familiar with him, but did not work. Now Valery Yakovlevich is preparing a new album, which will include all the songs of Krutoy.
Disease
The same year 1997 was marked not only by creative successes, but also by an unexpected health problem. Doctors discovered the throat swelling in the singer. She was removed by the famous surgeon Ralph Raikin, brother of Arkady Isaakovich. However, for a long time, the further career of the singer was in question. No one could say whether Leontiev would sing. It was during this period that the artist again thought about getting a higher education. At 33, he entered the Institute of Culture. Krupskaya. Fortunately, a year later Valery Yakovlevich gave 18 sold-out concerts in Leningrad in the new program āI am just a singerā. By the way, he did not quit his studies.
Leontiev Valery: biography, wife
We want to say right away that Valery Leontiev, whose personal life is often inaccessible to prying eyes, carefully protects his personal space. Perhaps for this reason his image is always shrouded in mystery. Often rumors circulated about his non-traditional sexual orientation. In addition, the age of Valery Leontiev is also a topic of heated debate between admirers and opponents of his work. Still, some details about the singerās great love and family life are leaking to the press.
Perhaps the most striking novel in Valery Yakovlevich was with the composer Laura Quint. Their acquaintance took place in 1980. Laura was immediately fascinated by the charm and encyclopedic mind of the singer. Two creative people experienced a storm of emotions. Laura was madly jealous of Valeria, giving him her best songs. Leont'ev, however, constantly abandoned her and returned only when another man appeared in her life.
Married Valery Leontiev to Lyudmila Isakovich. The singer met her back in 1972. Valery and Lyudmila never hid that their marriage is more of a partnership than a love union.
Rumors
Valery Leontiev, whose personal life holds many secrets, has always been the subject of increased attention of journalists. Quite often, the theme of publications is the numerous plastic operations of the singer. According to reporters, back in the eighties he was the first Russian singer to decide on a rejuvenation operation. Since then, even the strict prohibitions by doctors to stop experiments with appearance cannot stop him.
Often you can hear the question from the fans of the artist: "How old is Valery Leontiev?" And this is not surprising - he really looks much younger than his age. He did a circular facelift several times, inserted ceramic teeth, underwent hip lifting, and with the help of collagen he enlarged his lips.
I must say that the intervention of plastic surgeons was not always successful. Many remember how Leontiev first appeared in public after blepharoplasty. The surgeon damaged his muscles in the eyelids, and one eye stopped closing. After a while, the singer had to go to the hospital, as his mucous membrane of the eye was very dry. Doctors strongly recommended stopping risky experiments with their faces, because everyone already knows how old Valery Leontiev is. The singer needs to stop any intervention by a plastic surgeon, since all of them have age restrictions.
Passport age
March 19, 2014 Valery Yakovlevich turned 65 years old. The artist does not hide his age, and the question of how old Valery Leontyev is, the singer is not difficult to give an answer. Looking at him on stage, you see in front of you a young, athletic, stylish artist, at the sight of which young fans screech with delight. According to a long-established tradition, Valery celebrated his anniversary on stage. For three days in a row he gave solo concerts in St. Petersburg, and on March 29 he gave a big festive concert in the Kremlin Palace.
Singer albums
For forty years of stage activity, Leontiev began to respectfully be called the legend of the Russian stage. The singer himself is not very happy with such a title, because in his heart he is still young, full of strength and creative plans. During his stage career, Valery Yakovlevich recorded more than 30 albums. They are well known. All albums of Valery Leontiev were published in huge print runs.
I would like to talk about one of them. Its experts consider one of the best. In 2011, 40 years have passed since the beginning of the singerās creative career. In honor of this date, the album āArtistā was released, which contains the best songs of Leontyev of different years, as well as new compositions.
Valery Yakovlevich worked on the creation of this collection for two years. We can assume that this is a chronicle of the work of the famous artist. The album opens with the song "I am looking for you." This is one of the very first compositions with which Leontyev appeared in public. There is in the album the famous hit of Valery Leontiev āThere, in Septemberā, which glorified the singer throughout the country.
Valery Leontiev: biography, wife, children
The famous singer has been married to Lyudmila Isakovich for over forty years. The first twenty years they lived in a civil union, and in 1998 decided to legalize their relationship. From time to time there are rumors that the family has children, but the singer himself refutes this information. His wife was always against the birth of a child, although Valery Yakovlevich dreamed about it. According to people close to the family, Lyudmila is a stern and tough woman. In the early nineties, she came to the United States with the Echo ensemble and stayed there. She always reacted negatively to the presence of children in the family, and only grinned when she heard the latest rumors that her husband had become a father. For happiness, she needs a luxurious house in Miami and a super popular husband.
The illegitimate children of the famous singer is one of the most favorite topics of journalists. There was information about the illegitimate daughter of Valery, who lives in Yuryevets. They said that she was the fruit of the singerās romance with a primary school teacher in the distant years when the young man worked at a weaving factory. Leontiev never commented on these rumors.
True, they say that, having crossed the 64-year age limit, Valery began to think about children. There is information that, following the example of his stellar colleagues, he is going to resort to the services of a surrogate mother. In one of his last interviews, Valery Yakovlevich admitted that he was very sorry that he had devoted his whole life to his career and that he did not have a small family man. When a journalist asked Lyudmila how she would relate to the baby, if this suddenly happened, she replied that the child could become as dear to her as to her husband. Perhaps she answered this because she sees her husband several times a year - she constantly lives in Miami, and the singer mainly lives in Russia.
In March 1998, the Leontyev star was laid in front of the Russia Concert Hall. On this occasion, the singer gave a big concert. At the same time, the album "Santa Barbara" was released. Today we tried to tell you about the life and work of the most popular domestic pop artist. The age of Leontiev Valery is not an obstacle to his work. Being one of the oldest representatives of Russian show business, he is still young, full of strength and creative plans. We hope that the singer will delight his fans with new incendiary shows and vivid, memorable hits for many years to come.