Sergei Lemeshev

Sergei was a famous singer. His voice was soft and light.

He sang in big shows called operas. He also sang folk songs on the radio. Many people loved to hear him. He was a star in his land.

Sergei once got very sick. He had a hard time with his lungs. Even so, he kept on singing. He was very brave.

He was so popular that fans followed him. They even waited near his house. They loved his music so much.

Sergei also taught music to others. He even has an asteroid named after him. He was a great artist.

Sergei Lemeshev was a famous opera singer. He was a tenor. This means he had a high voice. His voice was soft and light. People loved to hear him sing.

Sergei grew up in a peasant family. His father wanted him to make shoes. But Sergei went to school to learn singing. He soon moved to Moscow. He joined the Bolshoi Theatre. This is a very famous theater. He sang many roles in operas. One role was Lensky. He sang this part over 500 times.

Sergei was a huge star. Fans followed him in the streets. Some fans even waited by his house. They were called "lemeshistki." He also sang folk songs on the radio. This made him a national singer.

Sergei faced hard times with his health. He got very sick during a war. He had trouble with his lungs. Even so, he kept singing for many years. He was also a director. He helped lead the Bolshoi Theatre. Later, he taught music at a college. An asteroid was even named after him.

Sergei Lemeshev was a famous singer of opera and folk songs. He was a tenor, which means he had a high singing voice. His voice was known for being soft and light. People across the Soviet Union loved to hear him sing on the radio. He was so popular that he became a public idol. Fans would follow him through the streets in large crowds. Some fans even spent days and nights waiting near his house.

Sergei had a very busy life in the world of music. He started by learning how to make shoes in Saint Petersburg. Later, he moved to Tver to receive training for his voice. He studied at the Moscow Conservatory between 1921 and 1925. After that, he sang in many different theaters. He eventually joined the famous Bolshoi Theatre in 1931. He became a soloist there and sang many different roles.

His career faced a very difficult time during a war. Sergei became very sick with a lung illness. Doctors had to use a treatment that made his lung collapse. Even though singing was forbidden, he did not stop. He learned to use new techniques to sing with only one lung. He continued to perform from 1942 until 1948. During this time, he recorded many famous operas like Lakmé and The Snow Maiden.

Sergei had many famous roles that he performed many times. His most famous role was Lensky in the opera Eugene Onegin. He performed this part more than 500 times. He also sang roles like Rodolfo in La Bohème and Almaviva in The Barber of Seville. In 1953, he was given the title People's Artist of the USSR. He also worked as an assistant manager at the Bolshoi Theatre. Later, he became a teacher at the Moscow Conservatory.

Many people remember Sergei for his great skill and charm. His fans were so dedicated that they had special names. Female fans of Sergei were called "lemeshistki." They sometimes had friendly rivalries with fans of his rival, Ivan Kozlovsky. These rival fans were called "kozlovityanki." His fame was so large that an asteroid was named Lemeshev in 1978. He also wrote a book called "The Way to Art" in 1968.

Sergei Yakovlevich Lemeshev was a prominent Soviet and Russian opera singer and director. He was a lyric tenor, a type of singer with a soft and light vocal timbre. His artistry and charm made him a major public idol during the 20th century. He earned the prestigious title of People's Artist of the USSR in 1950. Lemeshev was celebrated for his ability to sing both complex operatic roles and traditional Russian folk songs. His fame was so great that an asteroid, number 4561, was named Lemeshev in 1978.

Lemeshev's journey to the stage began with very different training. Born into a peasant family, his father originally intended for him to become a cobbler. In 1914, he left a parish school to train as a shoemaker in Saint Petersburg. However, his path changed in 1917 when he moved to Tver for vocal training. He later moved to Moscow to study at the Moscow Conservatory from 1921 to 1925. There, he studied under the teacher Nazari Raisky. This formal education prepared him for a professional career in music.

His professional career moved through several stages and locations. He first sang at a local workers' club before performing in various theaters. Between 1926 and 1931, he sang in Sverdlovsk, Harbin, and Tbilisi. In 1931, he reached a major milestone by joining the Bolshoi Theatre. He eventually became a soloist at this famous institution. During his prime years from 1931 to 1942, he became a household name. He also worked as a director, debuting with the production of La traviata in 1951.

Lemeshev faced a severe health crisis during the Great Patriotic War. While being evacuated, he contracted a serious cold. This led to two attacks of pneumonia, which were complicated by pleurisy and tuberculosis in his right lung. To treat this, doctors used a procedure called artificial pneumothorax. This medical method induced a therapeutic collapse of one lung. Although doctors initially forbade him from singing, Lemeshev adapted his technique. He continued to perform using only one lung from 1942 to 1948.

His vocal technique was highly specialized and impressive to experts. He was known for singing "sul soffio," which means leaning on the breath. He also used a method of directing the sound current to the "mask," a specific area of the face. He developed a beautiful mixed voice that allowed him to reach very high notes. Some specialists noted that his high C notes sounded both virile and full. This technical skill allowed him to perform roles that were usually too difficult for other lyric tenors.

Lemeshev had a vast repertoire of operatic roles. His signature role was Lensky in the opera Eugene Onegin by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. He performed this specific role more than 500 times starting in 1927. He also sang roles such as Rodolfo in La Bohème and Almaviva in The Barber of Seville. His performances included many Russian works, as well as French, Italian, and German pieces. In 1938, he achieved a unique feat by singing all 100 romances by Tchaikovsky across five concerts.

His massive popularity created a unique cultural phenomenon known as "Lemeshev-mania." Large crowds of fans often followed him through the streets. His female fans were known by the nickname "lemeshistki." These fans often had friendly rivalries with the "kozlovityanki," who were fans of his rival, Ivan Kozlovsky. This intense devotion was fueled by his radio broadcasts and his starring role in the 1940 film "The Musical Story." This film even earned him the Stalin Prize.

In his later years, Lemeshev focused on teaching and different musical forms. He served as an associate professor at the Moscow Conservatory. He also held the position of assistant manager at the Bolshoi Theatre from 1957 to 1959. His final performances included Russian classic romances and folk songs. He passed away on June 27, 1977. He is buried in the Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow. His legacy lives on through his book, "The Way to Art," and various musical recordings.