Dmitri Alexeievich Smirnov

Dmitri Alexeievich Smirnov (born November 7 or November 19, 1882, in Moscow, Russia; died April 27, 1944, in Riga, Latvia) was a leading Russian operatic tenor.

Smirnov was a student of Ėmiliya Pavlovskaya and Alexander Dodonov. He made his début in St Petersburg in 1903 as Gigi in Michele Esposito’s "La Camorra". The venue was the Hermitage Theatre. In 1904, Smirnov became a member of the Bolshoi company in Moscow, singing there until 1910. He then sang at the Mariinsky Theatre, St Petersburg, from 1911 to 1917. (He had first appeared at the Mariinsky in 1907.)

Smirnov made his French début at the Paris Opéra in 1907. His successful Parisian performances led to an invitation for him to appear at the Metropolitan Opera, where he sang in 1911-12. Competition from the celebrated international tenors Enrico Caruso and John McCormack, who were also singing at the Met at that time, resulted in Smirnov achieving limited success with New York audiences. In 1914, he performed in the "Russian Seasons" at London's Theatre Royal, Drury Lane.

Smirnov left his native land after the Russian Revolution of 1917, preferring to continue his career in the West. Among the cities which he visited were New York, Berlin, Monte Carlo, Milan, Rome, Madrid and Buenos Airies. In 1929, he returned to the Soviet Union for a concert tour. Smirnov gave his last recitals during the 1930s. He taught singing in London and Athens and later retired to Riga, where he died during the Second World War, aged 61.

Smirnov was equally comfortable performing lyric roles in Russian, French or Italian opera. His voice was plaintive in tone with easy high notes, great breath control and a distinctive vibrato.

Smirnov's main tenor rivals in Moscow and St Petersburg prior to the 1917 Revolution had been Leonid Sobinov (1871-1934) and Ivan Yershov (1867-1943). Yershov, however, undertook heroic parts such as Siegfried and Otello which Smirnov did not attempt, while Sobinov's repertoire was similar to that of Smirnov.

Recordings

Smirnov left an estimated 90 recordings, the first made in circa 1909 and the last around 20 years later. A number of these recordings are available on CD reissues. They confirm his stature as one of the best Russian tenors of the past 110 years, although his singing style can sometimes strike modern ears as being self-indulgent.

ources

*Warrack, John and West, Ewan (1992), "The Oxford Dictionary of Opera", 782 pages, ISBN 0-19-869164-5
*Holdridge, Lawrence F., (1996), Liner notes to "Dmitri Smirnov", Pearl compact disc, Gemm CD 9241

External links

* [http://www.answers.com/topic/dmitri-alexeievich-smirnov-tenor?cat=entertainment Answers.com biography]
* [http://www.historicopera.com/jsingers_page2.htm Historic opera website short biography]