Born 1873 in Kazan, Russian opera singer Feodor Chaliapin began his career at Tbilisi and the Imperial Opera, St. Petersburg in 1894. He was then invited to sing at the Mamontov Private Opera (1896–1899); his first role there was as Mephistopheles in Gounod’s Faust, in which he was a considerable success.
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| Portrait of Feodor Chaliapin in the early 20th century |
During the first phase of his career, Chaliapin endured direct competition from three other great basses: the powerful Lev Sibiriakov, the more lyrical Vladimir Kastorsky, and Dmitri Buchtoyarov, whose voice was intermediate between those of Sibiriakov and Kastorsky.
The fact that Chaliapin is far and away the best remembered of this magnificent quartet of rival basses is a testament to the power of his personality, the acuteness of his musical interpretations, and the vividness of his performances.
Possessing a deep and expressive bass voice, he enjoyed an important international career at major opera houses and is often credited with establishing the tradition of naturalistic acting in his chosen art form.
Chaliapin’s last stage performance took place at the Monte Carlo Opera in 1937, as Boris. He died the following year of leukemia, aged 65, in Paris.
Here below is a collection of amazing photos that shows portraits of Feodor Chaliapin during his career.
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| Feodor Chaliapin, circa 1890s |
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| Feodor Chaliapin as Holofernes, Nebuchadnezzar’s general, in Nikolaevich’s opera Judith, 1898 |
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| Feodor Chaliapin as Holofernes, Nebuchadnezzar’s general, in Nikolaevich’s opera Judith, 1898 |
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| Feodor Chaliapin as Prince Vyazminsky in The Oprichnik (The Guardsman) by Tchaikovsky, 1901 |
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| Feodor Chaliapin in the title role of Modest Mussorgsky’s opera Boris Godenov, 1904 |
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