On November 15, 1945, the future star of the first magnitude of the Soviet pop song was born - Mondrus Larisa Izrailevna.
She shone on the horizon of the lyrical song of our country from the beginning of the sixties until the seventies of the 20th century. The singer’s creative biography is a vivid example of an endless love of music and song.
Riga Sunrises
Often Larisa Mondrus says that her life was divided into three parts. Indeed, if we compare life with the river, then the singer has three sources, or rather, is divided into three "sleeves".
The river began in Kazakhstan, and then rushed to Riga ...
Larisa Mondrus was born in evacuation in Dzhambul, then the family moved permanently to Riga. There Larisa graduated from high school, first Latvian general education, then music. In her youth, in addition to school, she received an excellent home education and, in addition to the main languages, was fluent in Polish, French, Italian, and English.
After graduating from a music school in 1962, a graduate Larisa Mondrus became the soloist of the Riga pop orchestra, popular at that time in the USSR. It is here that she meets her future husband - the conductor, arranger, composer Egil Schwartz, the creative union with which becomes the union forever.
In the biography of Larisa Mondrus, personal life is a vivid example of love and a community of talents.
Jazz Interpretations or New Origins
In the early sixties, the Riga stage was influenced by new styles and currents of Western music: symphonic jazz of the orchestras of Miller, James. Larisa Mondrus possessed a unique talent of the singer and received two invitations at once: to the collective of Oleg Lundstrem and to Eddie Rosner
The singer, having consulted with her husband, chose the Rosner Orchestra, which at that time experimented a lot in music and was known in the country as the leader of one of the country's most popular groups - REO. Rosner himself was called the "white Armstrong" for his incredible jazz compositions.
They move to Moscow - Egil Schwartz and Larisa Mondrus. Personal life in Moscow began very difficult for the family, the couple lived in rented apartments, and it was impossible to get a residence permit. Rosner could not help in this regard.
Then Larisa Mondrus had to go to work at the Moscow Music Hall. The head of the theater arranged a residence permit and a room for the family, turning to the Minister of Culture Furtseva. With "Music Hall", the singer began to travel abroad: to Poland, Czechoslovakia. Everywhere was an extraordinary success, an invitation with concerts on tours in the GDR and other European countries.
Unlike everyday life, the creative biography of Larisa Mondrus evolved brilliantly and starry.
Hits, but not hits
In the capital, she was noticed immediately, and for Larisa a dizzying career in television began.
A beautiful and European-style fashionable singer with a surprisingly beautiful timbre was in demand in many programs. This is “Zucchini 13 chairs”, and “Prospect of youth”, but most importantly - an extraordinary in popularity transfer of the time - New Year's “Blue Light”.
The first hits appeared in the song biography of Larisa Mondrus: “Is it really for me alone” (G. Portnov - Y. Printsev), “Moonlight” by E. Rosner and, of course, Larisa’s super hit song “Blue Flax” sounds everywhere to the music of Raymond Pauls.
The singer’s voice is on the air of such popular radio stations as Mayak and Yunost, she is shot in the movie Give the Complaint Book.
The stars chose her
Since 1964, fate smiles at Larisa Mondrus, the singer’s biography is inextricably linked with USSR television. But, according to the actress herself, the most memorable and exciting moment in her life was Blue Light on January 1, 1966.
She was lucky in this light not only to perform new songs, but also to be at the same table with the astronauts: Yuri Gagarin, Pavel Belyaev, Alexei Leonov. Moreover, the script was so twisted that the pop star, in the role assigned to her, played the assistant of the leading light of Tatyana Shmyga, who said: "Comrade cameramen, in the frame is our assistant Larisa Mondrus. Show her something better."
And Larisa Mondrus sang "Stars are Waiting for Us", while Gagarin himself shot it on his home movie camera. At the same time, the singer sang brilliantly and the enchanting twist-foxtrot of E. Schwartz, “My Dear Dreamer,” which she danced with the hero-cosmonaut Leonov.
And in the Rosconcert they advised ...
Change the repertoire. Despite the fact that the songs of Larisa Mondrus were extremely popular, some officials from the Rosconcert, where the singer worked after 1964, advised her to change her repertoire.
But she always remained true to herself and music. For the program of the next festive "Blue Light" in a duet with Muslim Magomayev, the first game video clip "Bird Talk" in the history of our television was recorded, where Larisa and Muslim played the plot of lovers. It turned out to be an unusually romantic and lyrical song with beautiful "non-Soviet" singers who were adored by the audience.
She was increasingly urged to sing patriotic songs of a civic orientation, and she also wore dresses longer. You never know who they have in their wardrobe, they don’t wear it. Modestly, you look, and the title deserves to be burned out.
Of course, Larisa Mondrus had to sing patriotic songs, because she did not live in isolation, sometimes the fate of the singer’s close friends depended on her performances.
But she managed to charge even the most ideological songs with optimism and lyricism, and the “cosmic” voice was perceived as an amazing musical instrument, the sound of which made her forget about the lyrics and the ideological background.
The emigration of Larisa Mondrus, the biography and personal life of the singer again changes direction
Probably, looking at the modern Russian pop art, it is difficult to imagine what efforts and courage were sometimes required from the actors in order to remain themselves on stage, to preserve their unique style, to sing their own repertoire.
And in the early seventies, Soviet television gave a sharp roll on ideology. Serious male baritones were in demand on the stage, there were no time for "little singers", because the ideological struggle flared up with renewed vigor.
Larisa Mondrus completely deleted from participation in television programs. Forgotten in life.
The last straw for the singer was a ban on the performance of the song "Leaf Fall", to someone it seemed pessimistic:
"Wind leaves with birches
Breaks off tirelessly.
I'll tell you everything
Like then in the spring.
How love are you leaving
Narrow path,
Like a path back
Come back to me. "
Unclaimed, unnecessary former stars were forced to emigrate abroad. Larisa Mondrus and her husband Egil Schwartz received permission to leave the USSR in 1973. They chose for the future life of Germany.
But the songs in her performance "Good morning", "A deer ran through the city" from the movie-tales continue to sound now.
The stars cannot be stopped
On foreign shores, they had to start from scratch. In addition to the ten giant discs released by Larisa Mondrus, and tours around the world, the long-awaited child was born in the family.
In 1977, the guide “Star of the Scene 1977” (“Star szene 1977”) was published in the West, in which the name of Larisa Mondrus is written along with Demis Roussos, Ella Fitzgerald.
In 1982, after the birth of her son Loren, the singer left the stage and career. Together with her husband, she opened a shoe store in Munich and went into business.
Their son also showed great promise as a musician, but chose science. Now he is a doctor of technical sciences and teaches at the Technical University of Munich. Lauren is married, has two twin children in a family: Laura and Emil.
In the photo: today's Larisa Mondrus, the biography and personal life of the actress are reflected in her achievements.
Despite the fact that songs performed by Larisa Mondrus disappeared from television and magnetic media, her listeners and spectators did not forget her.
And how can you forget those happy moments that the singer gave to admirers and fans of talent.
In 2001, Larisa Mondrus visited Moscow and took part in television shows, spoke on the radio. And in 2005 - at the New Wave festival in Jurmala.
On the singer’s birthday, November 15, all fans wished Larisa Mondrus health, songs, family well-being and happiness.
To top it off, the song "Ancient Words" from the movie "Smile to a Neighbor."