Dear Gentlemen,

In this blog I have tried to assemble a list of prominent Soviet tenors – tenors behind the Iron Curtain – singers the careers of which went largely obscure from the Western public because of the political realities of the era they were part of – realities which dictated the detachment of the Soviet opera from its Western counterpart.
It just so happened that these times were the Golden Era of the Russian Opera, and the voices that were hidden behind the Iron Curtain were of a remarkable quality.
In addition to that, the revival of these voices in the West is also of much interest because of the unique character and the idiosyncratic nature of the Soviet school of operatic singing, which was different from the Western in many aspects.
By “voices behind the Iron Curtain” I mean those artists whose entire career or a significant part of it developed during the most ideologically radical years of the Soviet rule and the Soviet Union’s disconnection from the West, and not those who had already established a name for themselves in an earlier period, or those who have only started their way in Soviet Union’s very last days or are singing well into the present – both are more familiar to the Western public.
In cases of some of the singers the information and the recordings presented here is all that is left of them, and in some cases appears for the first time in the internet, or in English and for the Western public.

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Zinoviy Babiy (1935)





Born on January 27th in the village of Pidsadki, Lvov region of Ukraine. Dramatic tenor. People's Artist of the Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (1964).
In 1952 entered Lvov Musical College.
In 1954-57 - a soloist of the military ensemble of the Prikarpatskiy Military District. From his very first appearances with the ensemble he started to draw attention. The ensemble toured a lot through western Ukraine and the word about the young talented singer with the unique voice reached the commander of the Military District – Ivan Konev. In 1957 he was let go from the army ahead of time so he could study vocal.
In 1957 he became a student in the Kiev State Conservatory and at the same time was invited to work in the troupe of the Kiev Opera Theater, where he would perform alongside such great singers as Boris Gmyrya, Mihail Grishko, Mihail Romenskiy, Larisa Rudenko, Lidiya Rzeckaya.
The same year he makes his debut in “Carmen”, “Cavalleria rusticana”, “Zaporozec za Dunaem”. From 1957 to 1959 he worked on the roles of Rhadames, Manrico, Duke, Rudolf, Cavaradossi.
In 1958 Babiy has for the first time met with the legendary Soviet tenor Ivan Kozlovskiy, which gave high appraise to the talent of the young singer. In later years Kozlovskiy would many times say that the voice of Babiy is Soviet Union’s national treasure.
In 1959 Babiy went back to Lvov, and became a soloist in Lvov Opera Theater.
In 1961 Babiy makes his debut as a chamber singer with a concert on the stage of Lvov Opera Theater. That concert was an unimaginable success. The audience wildly cheered him, unwilling to let him end the concert, and unwilling to leave the venue. After he had finished the concert and started to leave, people followed him, congratulating and applauding. Nothing of this sort has happened in Lvov Opera Theater since the concert of the legendary Polish tenor Jan Kiepura.
The same year he tours Austria, Bulgaria, Hungary.
In 1962 Babiy performs in “Aida” on the stage of Saint-Petersburg Kirov Theater and the Bolshoi Theater. His appearances were co convincing, that he had received an invitation to perform in those two theaters.
The same year, during his tour to Minsk, he received an invitation to work in Minsk Opera Theater. He agreed with the condition that he would be allowed to stage Verdi’s “Othello”. His wish was granted and in 1963 he and his young wife relocated to Minsk. Before his departure from Lvov, he gave one final farewell concert. The main hall of Lvov Opera Theater was unable to accommodate all those who wanted to come to the concert, and the administration had to transmit it to the square before the Opera House and all the streets near it, which were swarming with people.
The same year a first solo concert of Babiy is held in Tchaikovsky Hall in Moscow. The 2500 available tickets were sold in a matter of hours. Critics noted the beautiful timbre and the great power of his voice, and also his impressive appearance.
Babiy appears on TV and Radio. Many records of his singing are issued.
In 1964 the famous Italian La-Scala Opera Theater was visiting Moscow, and many of the singers and the directors of the theater attended Babiy’s concerts. They were immensely impressed and asked him to come and visit La-Scala.
Babiy also tours Austria, England, Bulgaria, Hungary, Germany, Canada, Spain, Poland, Sweden, Finland, France, USA, Romania, Yugoslavia, Japan.
Among his roles were: Jose, Canio, Duke, Cavaradossi, Radames, Othello,  Pinkerton, Turiddu, Rudolf, Manrico, Orest ("Oresteya" by Taneev), Sergey ("Alesya" by Tickotsky) and others.
Among the many great singers he performed with were: Irina Arkhipova, Tijt Kuusik, Georg Ots, Ivan Petrov, Konstantin Laptev, Nicolae Herlea, Zinaida Palli, Boris Christoff.  
His concert repertoire included 18 different solo programs.
In 1971 Babiy is diagnosed with a serious heart problem, which was the consequence of an acute form of pneumonia he had suffered from as a child. He is forced to reduce the number of his appearances, and in 1975 leaves Minsk Opera Theater. He starts to work in Belorussian State Philarmony and gives concerts of chamber singing from time to time.
In 1979 Babiy’s health problems worsened sharply and he underwent a very complicated open-heart operation. After a full year of recovery he started gradually returning to work.
In 1981 he starts teaching in Belorussian Institute of Arts.
In 1981 he also gives his last farewell appearance as Turridu in Mascagni’s “Cavalleria rusticana” on the scene of Minsk Opera Theater.
Received many State awards.
Died on 28th of July 1984.
 

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