| Mădălina Manole | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Magdalena-Anca Manole[1] |
| Born | July 14, 1967 Vălenii de Munte, Romania |
| Died | July 14, 2010 (aged 43) Otopeni, Romania |
| Genres | Folk, easy listening, folklore, disco, pop |
| Occupations | Singer, actress[2] |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1982–2010 |
| Labels | Electrecord, Roton Music, Zone Records Polygram, Nova Music Entertainment BMG, MediaPro Music |
| Associated acts | Alfa şi Beta[3][4] |
| Website | http://madalinamanole.ro/ |
Magdalena-Anca Mircea[5] (born Manole) better known by her stage name Mădălina Manole (14 July 1967, Vălenii de Munte, Prahova County – 14 July 2010,[6] Otopeni, Ilfov County), was a Romanian pop recording artist.
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Magdalena-Anca Manole[7] was born on July 14, 1967 in a Romanian city located in a mountain region in Vălenii de Munte[8] of Prahova County. Her parents were Ion and Eugenia Manole. Being raised in a spiritual family, she developed a great passion for music. She was inspired to be a singer by her mother, who sang folk music. As a child, Magdalena-Anca was eager to learn the secrets of how to play the guitar, and so the young artist began taking lessons from Ana Ionescu Tetelea, a folk singer from Ploieşti.[9] At age fifteen she became a member of the Cenacle Youth of Prahova, which was led at that time by the poet Lucian Avramescu.[10] Simultaneously, Mădălina Manole continued her studies attending The High school of Chemistry in Ploieşti,[11] from which she successfully graduated.[12] After graduating from the Băneasa School of Air Traffic Controllers, Mădălina Manole worked in this field for four years.[12] In adolescence, as a young singer she sought to become successful in the music field by forming with Ştefania Ghiţă a group called Alfa şi Beta,[13][14] and they participate at the shows of Cenaclul Flacăra.[15] As such, Mădălina Manole becomes the youngest member who had participated in the circle festivities (Cenaclului Serbările Scânteii Tineretului)[16] and at the same time she worked with various artists such as Victor Socaciu and Roșu și Negru.[17][18]
Between 1982 and 1985 the folk singer attended the art school called Şcoala Populara de Arta, being part of the group that had Mihaela Runceanu and Ionel Tudor as mentors .[19][20] In late 1980 Dan Ştefan entrusted her with the song “Pentru noi nu poate fi alt cer” (For Us There Cannot Be Another Heaven”, which is featured in the movie Nelu directed by Dorin Doroftei.[21] On this occasion the singer played her first role in a movie.[22]
In 1994, she married her life partner Şerban Georgescu. At that time, their marriage was questioned both by the press and her fans, who accused her of having financial interests in marrying Georgescu, given the age difference between the two.
In 1988, Mădălina Manole met Şerban Georgescu through Costin Diaconescu, an old friend who worked at Radio România. The two artists would soon begin working together, and she participated in the same year at the music festival called Mamaia (Festivalul de Muzică Uşoară Mamaia) with the song a A sentimental man (Un Om Sentimental) composed by Diaconescu.[23]
This song received fourth place, and it would bring about the collaboration of the two which had a major role in her career as a singer. In the late 1980s Manole participated with Runceanu and Laura Stoica in a tournament in Transylvania aimed at raising funds for the financial revitalization of the Oradea. In 1989 the singer went on stage at the festival Amara Gala which she was to cherish throughout her professional carrier, returning there twice afterward.
Since 1990 Manole gave recitals in different regions of Romania, and a year later one of her songs, composed by Georgescu and entitled Lovely Girl (Fată Dragă),[23] gained popularity on radio stations in the country and became the composition that would represent the artist. As she was becoming very popular,the singer signed a management contract with Electrecord and her first album was released in 1991 under the auspices of this company. Simultaneously her first fan club was created in her honor, which was led by the students Ciprian Antochi şi Claudia Panaite, and in 1992 new branches were opened in different regions of the country. At the time Manole began to perform on stage, giving a series of international concerts in the Romanian Diaspora located in United States, Austria, Belgium and Germany.[23]
Given the commercial success of her Album "Lovely Girl" (Fată Dragă) and her great popularity as a singer, Billboard magazine ran a piece on her. Manole decided she would have to record a new music album in 1993. The Album, entitled 'So what?' (Ei și ce?)', contains eight pieces pertaining to the folk-rock genre, most of the compositions being created by Serban Georgescu. The album was very successful in Romania, and a designated radio station Radio Contact called Mădălina the best pop artist.[23]
In 1995 she sang in the opening concert Whigfield in Bucharest, and a year later, at the opening concert of the band Los del Rio. In 1997, she released the album Smooth, Smooth Mădălina („Lină, lină Mădălină”),[23] which accomplished a record popularity. Mădălina Manole became the first performer of Romanian pop music to be registered with the great catalog of international music produced by the PolyGram Group (through Zone Records in Romania). The second noteworthy success of this album is that Mădălina Manole was the first pop artist who had the courage to interpret authentic folklore, in an original way, with a folk orchestra led by the late Dorel Manea. The album tracks included songs by Maria Tănase,[23] Maria Lătăreţu,[23] and Lucreția Ciobanu.[23]
In 1997, she created the Cultural Association of Mădălina Manole (Asociaţia Culturală Mădălina Manole) to promote cultural and humanitarian pursuits. She was invited to attend the most important television and radio shows, and her name is remembered along with very famous entertainment and music artists. She sings at hundreds of shows in Romania. She once declared that:
I remember that I was away at least 20 out of 30 days monthly! All the time I was packing and unpacking suitcases, I was missing the bed I had at home, but the auditoriums and the tens of flower bouquets I was receiving, the joy on people’s faces when they were seeing me live on the streets of their towns, the dolls I was receiving from children at each show, the autographs and the letters from my fans, the songs they sang along line by line, all of these made me forget of the things less pleasant from my life as an artist, (such as) the longing for the loves ones at home, the scandalous newspaper articles, and the things that at artist has to give up, sacrifice, or keep a diet.
With Octavian Ursulescu in 1997, Manole presented the anniversary edition of the International Festival Golden Stag[23] of the Braşov Theatre. Mădălina Manole was chosen by Procter & Gamble[23] International to use her image to launch a cosmetic product in Romania.[23] She was selected and received the nickname girl with hair of fire, alluding to the hair colour with which she appeared in the spotlight. In 2000, she obtained awards for best performer and best pop female voice of the year of Romania and Radio Awards and Music Industry Awards in Romania. In 2000, the album Sweetest of all (Dulce de Tot) is assessed as the best pop album by Radio România Actualităţi.[23]
Manole was married to the composer Şerban Georgescu, 15 years older than she was. After their divorce, Mădălina Manole said "there were moments in the day that I adored him and other times when I would want to shoot him." On June 8, 2009 she gave birth to a son when she was 42 years old. The baby boy was 2,600 g and measured 56 cm, born two weeks earlier than expected. In early October 2009, she married her boyfriend Peter (Petru) Mircea and she named her son Peter (Petru) Jr. On February 19, 2010, she released a new album. The album was entitled 09 Mădălina Manole[23] and it was her 9th album.
Madalina was found dead by her husband at their house in the early morning of July 14, 2010, her 43rd birthday, after an apparent suicide. Investigations are currently under way.[26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33] She allegedly caused her own death by drinking nearly a pint (nearly half a litre) of Carbofuran.[34]
The Romanian Orthodox Church said, as thousands mourned the death of the popular singer, that it would not give her a full burial service because she committed suicide.[35][36] However there does not appear to be a final determination of the cause of death.
Madalina Manole was named the best female voice by the Romanian public
Mădălina is buried at the Bolovani cemetery in Ploieşti. The funeral was attended by about 40,000 people.[34][36]
