Singer Vera Davydova lived a very long life. Unfortunately, the story almost did not retain her voice, but the impressions of the audience that were once fascinated by him remained. Her name today is most often remembered next to at the mention of Stalin, although this is completely unfair. Vera Aleksandrovna Davydova was a magnificent singer, worthy of remaining in the history of art.
Childhood
The future opera star Vera Davydova was born on September 17, 1906 in Nizhny Novgorod in a noble family. Her family on the maternal side went back to Pozharsky, there were also merchants in the family, but no one had ever had any relation to art. The family had five children. Father often disappeared at the Nizhny Novgorod Fair, and all the cares for the children lay on the shoulders of the mother. In the end, Vera’s mother could not stand it, gathered her children and left for the Far East, where she got married a second time. It was the stepfather who noticed the girl’s unusual musicality and insisted that she start making music.
In 1912, Vera entered school and at the same time took piano and vocal lessons. In school, she first appeared on the scene. When the Civil War swept the Far East, Vera's family moved to Blagoveshchensk. There, the future opera diva continued to study music with pianist L. Kuksinskaya. She also arranged Vera as a soloist in the choir of the cathedral of the city.
Years of study
The girl’s successes in music were great, once she was heard by the famous opera singer A. Labinsky who was in the city on tour and urged her to continue her studies. And in 1924, Vera Davydova went to Leningrad to get an education. A. Glazunov, who conducted an audition at the Leningrad Conservatory, was struck by the strength and beauty of Vera's voice, and subsequently he repeatedly supported her. And already in the autumn of 1924, Davydova saw her name in the lists of students of the Conservatory named after ON THE. Rimsky-Korsakov. She studied in the class of E.V. Devos-Soboleva, attended classes at the opera studio with I. Ershov. From the first year she was immediately transferred to the third because of special successes in mastering the curriculum.
The beginning of the way
Back in her student days, Vera Davydova made her debut on the stage of the famous Kirov Theater. She sang Urban's page in the opera Huguenots. After graduating from the conservatory in 1930, Vera worked episodically for two years at the Kirov Theater, where she performed the roles of Martha in Khovanshchina and Amneris in Aida, and also sang many classical opera parts in various national teams.
Opera career
In 1932, Vera Davydova, an opera singer with a unique mezzo-soprano, was invited to the Bolshoi Theater. The debut part of the singer on the main stage of the country was Amneris in the opera Aida. Then, one after another, all the best parts of the world opera repertoire followed: Lyubava in "Sadko", Lyubasha in "The Tsar's Bride", Martha in "Khovanshchina", Aksinya in "The Quiet Don", Marina Mnishek in "Boris Godunov". But her main and unsurpassed party was Carmen. Critics and connoisseurs of the opera admitted that Davydova was the best Carmen on the Soviet stage.
During the war, the singer was evacuated to Tbilisi, where she sang at the opera house, and also toured in these years in Azerbaijan, in hospitals on the Black Sea, in Armenia. Her career in the theater was very successful, she had no competitors. Davydova worked at the Bolshoi until 1956.
She repeatedly toured foreign countries, her name was well known in Finland, Norway, Hungary, Sweden.
For the performance of Davydova was characterized by an amazing combination of singing and acting expressiveness. Critics wrote that Vera Alexandrovna was distinguished not only by excellent technique, but also by outstanding acting data. Her heroines were struck by the depth of emotions and incredible content.
Chamber art
In addition to the opera, Davydova devoted much time to performing chamber works. In 1944, she performed the cycle “Russian Romance from the Origins to the Present Day,” which included 200 works, ranging from 17th-century chants to the little-known to the general public works by Glier, Myaskovsky, and Shaporin. The program also included compositions by N. Rimsky-Korsakov and S. Rachmaninov.
Critics noted that the performance of Vera Alexandrovna was distinguished by the subtlest capture of the character and spirit of this complex music. Each romance performed by Davydova represented a carefully honed mini-story in which the singer’s magnificent voice emphasized the meaning of the work. The program of Vera Alexandrovna, which included works by Grieg, Sinding, Sibelius and other composers from Scandinavia, was very successful among the audience.
Life in Georgia
After leaving the Bolshoi Theater in 1956, Vera Alexandrovna moved with her husband to Tbilisi. Here she has been working at the Tbilisi State Conservatory since 1959. Over the years of teaching, Davydova has released a galaxy of wonderful performers, including Maklava Kasrashvili, a soloist of the Bolshoi Theater, People's Artist of the USSR. In 1964, Davydova was awarded the title of professor at the conservatory. She worked a lot with Chinese students who specially came to the USSR to master the skill in the Soviet opera school. Vera Alexandrovna lived in Tbilisi until the end of her days.
Legacy and memory
Unfortunately, very few recordings of Vera Davydova’s magical voice have survived to this day. Today you can listen to the 1937 recording of Bizet’s opera Carmen, P. Tchaikovsky’s opera Mazepa (recording in 1948), Verdi Aida (1952), N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov's "Sadko" (1952).
The singer was not forgotten in her small homeland. In honor of her 105th birthday, an evening in memory of Vera Davydova was held in Nizhny Novgorod, in 2012 a concert was held in her honor at which she performed her favorite opera parts and romances.
Awards and titles
Vera Davydova was repeatedly awarded for her outstanding talent. She was awarded Stalin Prizes three times . In 1937, she received the title of Honored Artist of the RSFSR, in 1951 she was awarded the title of People's Artist of the RSFSR. During her time in Tbilisi, she became the owner of the title "People's Artist of the Georgian SSR". Vera Alexandrovna was awarded several medals, orders of the Red Banner of Labor and the Badge of Honor.
Personal life
Vera Alexandrovna married when she studied at the Leningrad Conservatory, for the talented singer from Georgia Dmitry Mchelidze. Together, the couple lived for almost 60 years. Dmitry Semenovich was an outstanding bass, he sang at the Mariinsky Theater, then the couple came together to the Bolshoi Theater. In 1950, he became the head of the troupe of this theater. In 1951, Dmitry was transferred to work in Tbilisi, and Vera Alexandrovna also went after him. The couple taught together at the Tbilisi Conservatory. When her husband died in 1983, relatives invited Vera Alexandrovna to return to Moscow, but she still did not dare to leave her husband’s grave.
Vera Davydova and Stalin: truth and speculation
Today, the name of Vera Davydova is most often remembered not only because of her work, but in connection with the person of Stalin. Even during the singer’s work at the Bolshoi, ill-wishers whispered behind her that all her successes were associated with high patronage.
In 1993, a book by L. Gendlin, "Confession of Stalin's mistress," written on behalf of the singer, was published in London. When Vera Alexandrovna found out about this publication, she categorically denied all the facts that were presented there. Her granddaughter Olga Mchelidze says that it was this book that caused the death of her grandmother, who could not stand such an insult. Olga, according to the singer, claims that there was no connection between Stalin and Davydova. That once she was brought to his country house, where a short conversation took place, and that was the end of the relationship. People living in those days say that it is unlikely that the singer would have managed to survive if she refused the leader. But there is no documentary evidence or evidence of a real connection between the singer and Stalin.
Interesting Facts
Vera Davydova was a deputy of the Supreme Council of the RSFSR of the second and third convocation. During the Second World War, the singer gave several concerts, the collections of which were sent to the Defense Fund. Davydova never received the title of "People's Artist of the USSR", they say that Stalin himself deleted her name from the award lists.