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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Shara Talyan (1893)




Born on 16th of July in Tbilisi. Tenor, baritone. People's artist of the Armenian Soviet Socialistic Republic (1939).
His father was a folk singer.
Studied vocal with G.Syuni and S.Melikyan in the Narsesyan Religious School. In 1916-1918 - studied in Saint-Petersburg conservatory (class of S.Gabel)
In 1924 together with A.Melik-Pashaev, A.Danielyan and L.Iseckiy organized and guided the Leninakan Opera troupe.
In 1927-1932 - organizer and soloist of the ensemble "Armenian ashugs".
In 1933-1953 - one of the founders and soloists of Spendiarov Armenian Theater of Opera and Ballet.
In 1938 founded and guided till 1941 the ensemble of the Armenian gusan singing.
In 1942 together with his wife founded the Armenian Musical Comedy Theater.
Had a beautiful, strong voice of wide diapason, which enabled him to sing both tenor and baritone roles. His singing was distinguished with lyrical depth, true sense of style.
Among his roles: Faust, Jose, Sinodal, Saro, Nani (“Anush”, Tigranyan), Grikor (“Lusabacin”, Stepanyan), Arshak II (“Arshak II”, Chuhadjyan), Stepanos Shaumyan (“David-Bek”, Stepanyan), Sos (“Sos i Varditer”, Kazaryan), Tatul, Ashug, Sheikh (“Almast”, Spendiarov), Ker-ogly (“Ker-ogly”, Gadzhibekov), Kizao (“Daisi”, Paliashvili).
Gave concerts.
In the chamber repertoire he had songs and romances of Russian, European and Soviet composers.
Was a member of the first and second convocation on the High Soviet of the Armenian Soviet Socialistic Republic.
Received the Stalin Award (1946) and the Sign of Lenin.
Died on 7th of November 1965.


 

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