Leonid Utyosov
Encyclopedia
Leonid Osipovich Utyosov or Utesov ; real name Lazar (Leyzer) Vaysbeyn or Weissbein (Russian: Ла́зарь (Ле́йзер) Ио́сифович Вайсбе́йн) ' onMouseout='HidePop("560")' href="/topics/Odessa">Odessa
– 9 March 1982, Moscow
), was a famous Soviet jazz
singer and comic actor
of jewish origin, who became the first pop
singer to be awarded the prestigious title of People's Artist of the USSR
(1965).
, then performed in Moscow
.
In the 1920s he moved to Leningrad
and set up one of the first Soviet jazz
bands. In Leningrad he began collaboration with the popular composer Isaak Dunayevsky
, which became quintessential for both artists. At that time, Utyosov gathered a band of best musicians available in Leningrad, and created a style of his own - a jazz show with a stand up comedy, which blended several styles, ranging from Russian folk songs to a variety of international cosmopolitan genres. In 1928 Utyosov made a concert tour in Europe and attended performances of American jazz bands in Paris
, which influenced his own style. During the 1930s Utyosov and his band named "Thea-Jazz" (which means Theatrical Jazz) had a regular gig at the Marble Hall of the Kirov Palace of Culture in Leningrad. Utyosov's jazz band also performed at the Leningrad Maly Opera theatre, at the "Svoboda-teatr" and at the Leningrad Music Hall. In his performances Utyosov delivered a variety of musical styles, including such genres as American jazz, Argentine tango, French chanson, upbeat dance, and the Russian folk music.
His popularity was on the rise in the 1930s when he co-starred with Lyubov Orlova
in the comedy Jolly Fellows
. In it, Utyosov performed such hits as "Serdtse
", "Me and My Masha at the Samovar
" and "Tired Sun", also known in English as "Burnt by the Sun" (revived by Nikita Mikhalkov
as a theme for his eponymous Oscar-winning film
). During World War II
, Utyosov performed at the front lines, helping lift the spirits of the Russian soldiers fighting against the Nazis. On the Victory Day
(9 May 1945) he performed on Sverdlov Square in Moscow
.
Utyosov lived in Moscow for the rest of his life, albeit in many of his songs he alluded to his native town of Odessa
, where a monument to him was opened in 2000.
In 2006, Utyosov's song Dark Night was used as main theme in the swedish horror film Frostbite, forshadowing the coming of vampires in a northern Swedish town.
Richard Stites
writes:
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
– 9 March 1982, Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
), was a famous Soviet jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
singer and comic actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
of jewish origin, who became the first pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
singer to be awarded the prestigious title of People's Artist of the USSR
People's Artist of the USSR
People's Artist of the USSR, also sometimes translated as National Artist of the USSR, was an honorary title granted to citizens of the Soviet Union.- Nomenclature and significance :...
(1965).
Biography
Leonid Utyosov was brought up in Odessa (present day Ukraine) and attended the Faig School of Commerce, from which he dropped out and joined the Borodanov Circus troupe as an acrobat. He started his stage career in 1911 in Kremenchug, then returned to Odessa, changed his artistic name to Leonid Utyosov, and performed as a stand up comedian with the Rosanov troupe and with the Rishelyavsky Theatre. In 1917, he won a singing competition in Gomel, BelarusBelarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
, then performed in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
.
Leningrad
Leningrad is the former name of Saint Petersburg, Russia.Leningrad may also refer to:- Places :* Leningrad Oblast, a federal subject of Russia, around Saint Petersburg* Leningrad, Tajikistan, capital of Muminobod district in Khatlon Province...
and set up one of the first Soviet jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
bands. In Leningrad he began collaboration with the popular composer Isaak Dunayevsky
Isaak Dunayevsky
Isaak Osipovich Dunayevsky was the biggest Soviet film composer and conductor of the 1930s and 1940s, who achieved huge success in music for operetta and film comedies, frequently working with the film director Grigori Aleksandrov...
, which became quintessential for both artists. At that time, Utyosov gathered a band of best musicians available in Leningrad, and created a style of his own - a jazz show with a stand up comedy, which blended several styles, ranging from Russian folk songs to a variety of international cosmopolitan genres. In 1928 Utyosov made a concert tour in Europe and attended performances of American jazz bands in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, which influenced his own style. During the 1930s Utyosov and his band named "Thea-Jazz" (which means Theatrical Jazz) had a regular gig at the Marble Hall of the Kirov Palace of Culture in Leningrad. Utyosov's jazz band also performed at the Leningrad Maly Opera theatre, at the "Svoboda-teatr" and at the Leningrad Music Hall. In his performances Utyosov delivered a variety of musical styles, including such genres as American jazz, Argentine tango, French chanson, upbeat dance, and the Russian folk music.
His popularity was on the rise in the 1930s when he co-starred with Lyubov Orlova
Lyubov Orlova
Lyubov Petrovna Orlova, was the first recognized star of Soviet cinema, famous theatre actress and a gifted singer.She was born to a middle class family in Zvenigorod near Moscow and grew up in Yaroslavl...
in the comedy Jolly Fellows
Jolly Fellows (1934 film)
Jolly Fellows , also translated Happy-Go-Lucky Guys and Moscow Laughs, is a 1934 Soviet musical film, directed by Grigori Aleksandrov and starring his wife Lyubov Orlova, a gifted singer and the first recognized star of Soviet cinema....
. In it, Utyosov performed such hits as "Serdtse
Serdtse
"Serdtse" is in its version sung by Pyotr Leshchenko one of the most frequently performed Argentine Tango songs not sung in the Spanish language.-Title:...
", "Me and My Masha at the Samovar
Samovar
A samovar is a heated metal container traditionally used to heat and boil water in and around Russia, as well as in other Central, South-Eastern, Eastern European countries,Kashmir and in the Middle-East...
" and "Tired Sun", also known in English as "Burnt by the Sun" (revived by Nikita Mikhalkov
Nikita Mikhalkov
Nikita Sergeyevich Mikhalkov is a Soviet and Russian filmmaker, actor, and head of the Russian Cinematographers' Union.Mikhalkov was born in Moscow into the distinguished, artistic Mikhalkov family. His great grandfather was the imperial governor of Yaroslavl, whose mother was a Galitzine princess...
as a theme for his eponymous Oscar-winning film
Burnt by the Sun
Burnt by the Sun is a 1994 film by Russian director and actor Nikita Mikhalkov. The film depicts the story of a senior Red Army officer and his family during the Great Purge of the late 1930s in the Stalinist Soviet Union...
). During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Utyosov performed at the front lines, helping lift the spirits of the Russian soldiers fighting against the Nazis. On the Victory Day
Victory Day (Eastern Europe)
Victory Day or 9 May marks the capitulation of Nazi Germany to the Soviet Union in the Second World War...
(9 May 1945) he performed on Sverdlov Square in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
.
Utyosov lived in Moscow for the rest of his life, albeit in many of his songs he alluded to his native town of Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
, where a monument to him was opened in 2000.
In 2006, Utyosov's song Dark Night was used as main theme in the swedish horror film Frostbite, forshadowing the coming of vampires in a northern Swedish town.
Richard Stites
Richard Stites
Richard Thomas Stites was a historian of Russian culture.In 1978 he published The Women's Liberation Movement in Russia: Feminism, Nihilism and Bolshevism, 1860-1930, a book that opened up a new discipline of Russian studies.In 1984, he wrote the introductory essay for an English translations of...
writes:
In the years of the "red jazz age" (1932–1936) European and Soviet bands were heard in dozens of cities. The kings were Alexander Tsfasman and Leonid Utesov. ... Utesov - musically far less gifted - was actually more popular than Tsfasman, partly because of the spectacular success of his comedy film Happy-Go-Lucky Guys, but mostly because his Odessa background and his circus and carnival road experience on the southern borscht belt gave him a clowning manner. He resembled his idol, the personable Ted ("Is everybody happy?") LewisTed Lewis (musician)Theodore Leopold Friedman, better known as Ted Lewis , was an American entertainer, bandleader, singer, and musician. He led a band presenting a combination of jazz, hokey comedy, and schmaltzy sentimentality that was a hit with the American public. He was known by the moniker "Mr...
more than he did any of the great jazz figures of the time. In fact Utesov was the typical estrada entertainer - quick witted, versatile, and funny. He was not only one of the stars of the 1930s but also a personal favorite of Stalin.
Filmography
- 1919 - Lieutenant Schmidt - Freedom Fighter (Russian: Лейтенант Шмидт — борец за свободу)
- 1923 - Trade-House "Entente and Co." (Russian: Tорговый дом «Антанта и К»)
- 1926 - Career of Spirka Shpandyr
- 1934 - Jolly Fellows (Russian: Весёлые ребята).... Kostya Potekhin
- 1940 - Concert on the screen (Russian: Концерт на экране)
- 1942 - Concert for the frontlines (Russian: Концерт фронту)
- 1954 - Merry stars (Russian: Весёлые звёзды)
- 1963 - Melodies of DunayevskyIsaak DunayevskyIsaak Osipovich Dunayevsky was the biggest Soviet film composer and conductor of the 1930s and 1940s, who achieved huge success in music for operetta and film comedies, frequently working with the film director Grigori Aleksandrov...
(Russian: Мелодии Дунаевского)
See also
- Pyotr LeshchenkoPyotr LeshchenkoPyotr Konstantinovich Leshchenko , a singer in the Russian Empire and later the Soviet Union, is universally considered "the King of Russian Tango" and specifically known for his rendition of "Serdtse"—a tango song not in the Spanish language...
- Mark BernesMark BernesMark Naumovich Bernes was a Soviet actor and singer of Jewish ancestry , who performed some of the most poignant songs to come out of the World War II, including Tyomnaya noch and Zhuravli...
- Klavdiya ShulzhenkoKlavdiya ShulzhenkoKlavdiya Ivanovna Shulzhenko was a popular female singer of the Soviet Union.- Professional biography :Shulzhenko started singing with jazz and pop bands in the late 1920s. She rose to fame in the late 1930s with her version of Sebastian Yradier's La Paloma...
- List of Jewish musicians
- Mishka YaponchikMishka YaponchikMishka Yaponchik was a Odessa gangster, Jewish revolutionary, and Soviet military leader.-Early years:Born as Moisei Wolfovich Vinnitskiy to family of a Jewish wagon-builder Meer-Wolf Mordkoich Vinnitskiy by some records in stanitsa Golta , Mishka was around 4 years of age, Vinnitsky's family...