Irina BOGACHEVA
(Russia)
Irina Bogacheva is a world opera star, People’s Artist of USSR, leading soloist of the Mariinsky theatre, Professor and chief of the Department of Academical Singing of the Saint-Petersburg conservatory. She is a graduate of Professor I. Levando at the Leningrad State Conservatory. From 1968 to 1970 she was a probationer member at the Teatro alla Scala by Professor Barra (Milan, Italy).
During her study at the Conservatory she became a Winner of the International vocal competition named after Glinka, and after this she has been invited to work at the Mariinsky Theatre where she has remained as a soloist until today.
At the Mariinsky Theater she has performed a lot of leading roles for mezzo-soprano in the operas of Bizet, Verdi, Mussorgsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev and others. Her most outstanding roles are Carmen in Bizet’s “Carmen”, Amneris in Verdi’s “Aida” and Liubasha in Rimsky-Korsakov’s “The Tsar’s bride”.
A fantastic combination of the most beautiful voice, an impeccable vocal technique and high acting mastery makes all her public appearances unforgettable. Her opera repertory is immense. She has performed all major parts for mezzo-soprano on most important stages of the world, such as the Metropolitan Opera, Opéra Bastille, La Scala, Teatro Colón, San-Francisco Opera and many others. The singer tours extensively with solo recitals in Norway, France, China, Spain, Japan, Korea, United Kingdom, Germany, Italy etc.
She has recorded a set of CDs with Russian and Western classical music, mostly of them – the Golden Collection of the classical music. In recent years, Recording Company "Melodiya" issued discs with recordings of Russian classical romances (1998), Spanish and Neapolitan songs (1999), works by Mussorgsky and Shostakovich (1998). Irina Bogacheva was the first performer of the song cycle "Six Poems by Marina Tsvetaeva" by D. Shostakovich. Composer entrusted to the young singer to perform the premiere of his new composition and dedicated to her that cycle. The last CD she has recorded with the Concert Choir of the Mikhaylovsky Theatre in St. Petersburg. There is an anthology of Russian Spiritual (orthodox) music. Over the long creative life, Irina Bogacheva appeared in numerous music films and television programs: "Voice and organ," "My life – opera," "Carmen. Pages of the score", "A Woman's Love and Life" and many others. Last her work on television: "The Italian dream" and "All about you" directed by I. Taimanova.
Her remarkable pedagogical output is worth mentioning; she is many years a professor of the Saint-Petersburg State Conservatory. A lot of great singers exploring the world’s stages today had studied under her guidance; the now widely recognized Olga Borodina can alone prove of significant contribution of her teacher to the world’s opera culture.
Today her former and actual students such as Olga Savova, Elena Vitman, Natalia Evstafieva, Yuri Ivshin, Natalia Biriukova, Yulia Simonova, Maria Litke and Olesia Petrova, Margarita Gritskova, Boris Pinkhasovich are performing on the stages of major opera theatres of Saint-Petersburg – Mariinsky and Mikhailovsky.
Irina Bogacheva is a Laureate of Government awards, a Honorary Citizen of Saint-Petersburg, she has been granted the highest Order of the Russian Federation – Order of Merit for the Motherland (3rd and 4th Class) and the Order of “The Star of Vernadsky ”.