Nicolai Ghiaurov (or Nikolai Gjaurov, Bulgarian: Николай Гяуров) (September 13, 1929 – June 2, 2004) was a Bulgarian opera singer and one of the most famous bass singers of the postwar period. He was admired for his powerful, sumptuous voice, and was particularly associated with roles of Verdi. Ghiaurov married the Italian soprano Mirella Freni in 1978. The two singers frequently performed together. They lived in Modena up until Ghiaurov's death in 2004 of a heart attack. is the 256th day of the year (257th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 153rd day of the year (154th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see Opera (disambiguation). ... A basso (or bass) is a male singer who sings in the lowest vocal range of the human voice. ... Verdi redirects here. ... This article is about the voice-type. ... Mirella Freni Mirella Freni (born 27 February 1935) is a famous Italian opera soprano much admired for the youthful quality of her voice and her acting skills. ... Modena (Mòdna in Modenese dialect) is a city and a province on the south side of the Po valley, in Emilia-Romagna, Italy. ...

Biography

Ghiaurov was born in the small mountain town of Velingrad in southern Bulgaria. As a child, he learned to play the violin, piano and clarinet. He began his musical studies at the Bulgarian State Conservatory in 1949 under Prof. Hristo Brambarov. From 1950 until 1955, he studied at the Moscow Conservatory. Velingrad is the most beautiful and most famous among the Bulgarian Balneological resorts. ... The Moscow Conservatory (Московская Государственная Консерватория им. П.И.Чайковского) is a prominent music school in Russia. ...

Ghiaurov's career was launched in 1955, when he won the Grand Prix at the International Vocal Competition in Paris and the First Prize and a gold medal at the Fifth World Youth Festival in Prague. Ghiaurov made his operatic debut in 1955 as Don Basilio in Rossini's The Barber of Seville in Sofia. He made his Italian operatic debut in 1957 in Teatro Comunale Bologna, before starting an international career with his rendition of Varlaam in the opera Boris Godunov at La Scala in 1959. 1962 marked Ghiaurov's Covent Garden debut as Padre Guardiano in Verdi's "Forza del Destino" as well as his first appearance in Salzburg in Verdi's "Requiem," conducted by Herbert von Karajan. Portrait Gioacchino Antonio Rossini (February 29, 1792 – November 13, 1868)[1] was an Italian musical composer who wrote more than 30 operas as well as sacred music and chamber music. ... For the Beaumarchais play, see The Barber of Seville (play). ... This article is about the capital of Bulgaria. ... Teatro Comunale Bologna is an opera company and an opera house in Bologna, Italy. ... I regard the people as a great being, inspired by a single idea. ... The Teatro alla Scala in Milan, by night. ... Covent Garden is a district in London, located on the easternmost parts of the City of Westminster and the southwest corner of the London Borough of Camden. ... Herbert von Karajan (April 5, 1908 – July 16, 1989) was an Austrian orchestra and opera conductor, one of the most renowned 20th century conductors. ...

Ghiaurov first shared a stage with Mirella Freni in 1961 in Genoa. She was Marguerite, he was the devil in "Faust." Married in 1978, they lived in her hometown, Modena. He made his US debut in Gounod's Faust in 1963 at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and he went on to sing twelve roles with the company, including the title roles in Boris Godunov, Don Quichotte, and Mefistofele. Categories: Stub | 1818 births | 1893 deaths | Opera composers | Romantic composers | French musicians ... Faust is an opera in five acts by Charles Gounod to a French libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré from Carrés play Faust et Marguerite, in turn loosely based on Goethes Faust, Part I. It debuted at the Théatre-Lyrique in Paris on March 19, 1859. ... Exterior of the Civic Opera House Lyric Opera of Chicago is one of the leading opera companies in the United States. ... Mefistofele is the only completed opera by the Italian composer Arrigo Boito. ...

Ghiaurov made his Metropolitan Opera debut on 8 November 1965 as Mephistopheles. He sang a total of eighty-one performances in ten roles there, last appearing there on October 26, 1996, as Sparafucile in Rigoletto. During the course of his career, he also performed at Moscow's Bolshoi Theatre, the Vienna State Opera, Covent Garden, Vienna State Opera and Paris Opera. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, the lead section of this article may need to be expanded. ... For other uses, see Mephistopheles (disambiguation). ... Rigoletto is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi. ... For other uses, see Moscow (disambiguation). ... The Bolshoi Theatre of Moscow, Russia The Bolshoi Theatre (Russian: , Bolshoy Teatr, Large Theater) is a theatre and opera company in Moscow, Russia, which gives performances of ballet and opera. ... Vienna State Opera (German: Wiener Staatsoper), located in Vienna, Austria, is one of the most important opera companies in Europe. ... The Floral Hall of the Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House is a performing arts venue in London. ... Vienna State Opera (German: Wiener Staatsoper), located in Vienna, Austria, is one of the most important opera companies in Europe. ... Exterior of the Palais Garnier. ...

In the late 1970's Ghiaurov sang the title role in the first complete stereo recording of Jules Massenet's opera Don Quichotte (Don Quixote). This article is about the spacecraft and the mission. ... Jules Massenet Jules (Émile Frédéric) Massenet (May 12, 1842 – August 13, 1912) was a French composer. ... Don Quichotte is an opera in five acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Henri Cain. ...

"He commanded a remarkable vocal instrument, strikingly generous in size, warm in timbre, dark in color. He rolled out the resonant tone at his command with generosity, and with special ease at the burnished top." remarks Martin Bernheimer in Ghiaurov's obituary in "Opera News."

References

• Bernheimer, Martin. "Obituaries: Nicolai Ghiaurov" Opera News 69:2 (August 2004) p.74.

External links

• Russian Opera from Bulgaria: Nicolai Ghiaurov
• Profile
• Interview with Ghiaurov from 1995 (in Bulgarian)