Maria Kuznetsova

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Maria Nikolayevna Kuznetsova (Russian: Мария Николаевна Кузнецова-Бенуа) (1880-1966)[1], also spelled Kousnetzova or Kouznetzoff, a famous 20th century Russian opera singer (a lyrical soprano), chamber singer and dancer. Her fine voice and talent as an actress were generally overshadowed by her beauty.[2]

Maria was born in Odessa, Ukraine, into a wealthy family. Her father, the portrait painter Nikolai Dmitrievich Kuznetsov (1850-1929)[3] was an heir to the Kuznetsov porcelain fortune. Her initial desire was to become a ballet dancer and she studied ballet in St. Petersburg. Her interest later shifted to music and she began studying with baritone Joachim Tartakov[4] and the Italian teacher Marti.

In 1905, she made her debut as Marguerite at the Marijinsky Theater in St. Petersburg where she continued to sing until 1913.[5] She sang in the premiere of Rimsky-Korsakov's "The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitzeh." She sang the roles of Aida, Norma, Elsa, Juliette, Mimi, and created the role of Cléopâtre in the opera of the same name by French composer Jules Massenet.[6] In 1914 she participated in the "Russian Seasons" of Sergei Diaghilev in London and Paris.[7]

After the Revolution in 1917 she fled Russia. She made a suitably dramatic escape dressed as a cabin boy, hidden inside of a steamer trunk that was smuggled aboard a ship headed for Sweden.[8] She settled in Paris where her father was also living.

She soon returned to the stage. She worked as a soloist at the opera houses in Stockholm and Copenhagen.[9] In 1920 she sang at Covent Garden in London.[10] To make ends meet she gave private concerts and recitals where she would sing Russian folk music in addition to opera and would often dance, too, performing Spanish folk dances for her audience.[11] In the early 1920s she briefly sang in a small private theater founded by Leon Bakst. In 1929, after Diaghilev's death, Maria, her husband Benois, the Ukrainian baritone Mikhail Karakash and Count Alexis Ceretelli founded the Opéra Russe (also known as the Opéra Russe à Paris)[12] to give herself and other exiled Russian artists a chance to perform on stage again. They staged a number of ballets and opera in London, Paris, Barcelona, Madrid, Milan, and Buenos Aires between 1929 and 1933. during the 1920s and 30s.[13] Many great artists soon joined their ranks, among them the world renowned bass Feodor Chaliapin, dramatist and director Nikolai Evreinov, painter Konstantin Korovin, dancer and choreographer Bronislava Nijinska, and the dancers Vera Nemtchinova and Anatole Oboukhoff (both later instructors at the School of America Ballet started by George Balanchine).

Maria married the architect Nikolai Albertovich Benois in 1915. He was a member of the prominent artistic Benois family. After the death of Nikolai Benois she wed a French banker, Alfred Massenet, the nephew of composer Jules Massenet.

She died in Paris in 1966.

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ "Maria Kuznetsova, Russian Soprano." Accessed May 28, 2008. http://www.cantabile-subito.de/Sopranos/Kuznetsova__Maria/hauptteil_kuznetsova__maria.html
  2. ^ "Maria Kuznetsova, Russian Soprano." Accessed May 28, 2008. http://www.cantabile-subito.de/Sopranos/Kuznetsova__Maria/hauptteil_kuznetsova__maria.html
  3. ^ "Maria Kuznetsova, Russian Soprano." Accessed May 28, 2008. http://www.cantabile-subito.de/Sopranos/Kuznetsova__Maria/hauptteil_kuznetsova__maria.html
  4. ^ "Maria Kuznetsova, Russian Soprano." Accessed May 28, 2008. http://www.cantabile-subito.de/Sopranos/Kuznetsova__Maria/hauptteil_kuznetsova__maria.html
  5. ^ "Maria Kuznetsova, Russian Soprano." Accessed May 28, 2008. http://www.cantabile-subito.de/Sopranos/Kuznetsova__Maria/hauptteil_kuznetsova__maria.html
  6. ^ "Maria Kuznetsova, Russian Soprano." Accessed May 28, 2008. http://www.cantabile-subito.de/Sopranos/Kuznetsova__Maria/hauptteil_kuznetsova__maria.html
  7. ^ "Мария Николаевна Кузнецова." Accessed May 28, 2008. http://files.school-collection.edu.ru/dlrstore/8a015b16-c568-4eef-8c3c-defdfb31e77a/Kuznecova_MN.htm
  8. ^ "Maria Kuznetsova, Russian Soprano." Accessed May 28, 2008. http://www.cantabile-subito.de/Sopranos/Kuznetsova__Maria/hauptteil_kuznetsova__maria.html
  9. ^ "Мария Николаевна Кузнецова." Accessed May 28, 2008. http://files.school-collection.edu.ru/dlrstore/8a015b16-c568-4eef-8c3c-defdfb31e77a/Kuznecova_MN.htm
  10. ^ "Мария Николаевна Кузнецова." Accessed May 28, 2008. http://files.school-collection.edu.ru/dlrstore/8a015b16-c568-4eef-8c3c-defdfb31e77a/Kuznecova_MN.htm
  11. ^ "Мария Николаевна Кузнецова." Accessed May 28, 2008. http://files.school-collection.edu.ru/dlrstore/8a015b16-c568-4eef-8c3c-defdfb31e77a/Kuznecova_MN.htm
  12. ^ Mosusova, Nadezhda. "The Importance of the Archives of the Belgrade Musicological Institute in Historical Research into Slavonic Musical Theatre." (2004) http://www.sibmas.org/congresses/sibmas88/mannheim1988_28.html<ref> <ref>"Мария Николаевна Кузнецова." Accessed May 28, 2008. http://files.school-collection.edu.ru/dlrstore/8a015b16-c568-4eef-8c3c-defdfb31e77a/Kuznecova_MN.htm</li> <li id="cite_note-12">'''[[#cite_ref-12|^]]''' "Мария Николаевна Кузнецова." Accessed May 28, 2008. http://files.school-collection.edu.ru/dlrstore/8a015b16-c568-4eef-8c3c-defdfb31e77a/Kuznecova_MN.htm</li></ol></ref>