Tragic, but still a happy biography of Peter Leshchenko

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

The biography of Pyotr Leshchenko, one of the most famous artists of the 20th century, known today, consists of scattered facts that often do not have documentary evidence. During the life of the singer, no one thought about how important it is to record the facts and details of his biography, besides, there was no time to do this, and no one.

Not much is known for certain. In the village of Isaevo, not far from Odessa, a boy was born in a poor peasant family in 1898. Three years later, his father died. The mother remarried and moved the children to Chisinau. Petya was lucky with his stepfather, Alexei Vasilievich knew how to play musical instruments and instilled a love for this occupation in his stepson.

In Chisinau, Petr Leshchenko sang in the church chapel and helped (whatever he could) his parents. With the outbreak of war, he enrolled in the ensign school and soon became an officer in the Russian army. Then participation in military events, wound, hospital. Still not fully recovered, the future artist found out that now he is a subject of the Romanian crown. The fact is that Romania treacherously annexed to its landsthe territory of Bessarabia, although it was a Russian ally.

Former front-line officer was forced to earn a living by all means available to him. However, he perceived a career as a carpenter or dishwasher as a forced occupation. The young man dreamed of singing from the stage. Performances in the cinemas "Suzanna" and "Orpheum" are the first steps towards his goal. Almost two years of this stage practice contributed to the professional development and the emergence of faith in future success.

The biography of Peter Leshchenko is connected not only with Chisinau, but also with Riga, Paris and Odessa. At the age of twenty-five, the young artist sought to improve his professional skills. He wanted to study, and therefore went to the Eternal City for this, where there was a famous ballet school, which was taught mainly by Russian emigrant dancers. Here Peter met the Latvian Zinaida Zakis, who, despite her young age (she was 19 years old), had already achieved success in classical dance. They perform together, tour, performing joint choreographic numbers, sometimes Leshchenko sings. A professional collaboration could not help but develop into a closer relationship, they got married.

In 1930, the biography of Peter Leshchenko takes a sharp turn. If until now he was a dancer and partner of his wife, now he is becoming a professional singer. He is 32 years old, he does not have a very strong, but pleasant voice, but this is not so important. He's popular, his vocals are wonderful for recording, and his repertoire deservesseparate attention. Leshchenko succeeded in what no one before him could do. He combined two of the most beloved genres of the public: romance and tango. The result exceeded all expectations.

In the pre-war years, the biography of the singer Pyotr Leshchenko is quite fully illustrated by the records he made at Columbia and Bellacord. He works closely with these companies, millions of records are sold everywhere: from Buenos Aires to Tokyo. There is no time for anything other than music.

Leshchenko was not interested in politics. In 1942, having arrived in Odessa, occupied by the Romanians, he gave concerts at the Russian Theater, and then opened his own cabaret in Theater Lane. The biography of Peter Leshchenko is connected with the sunny Black Sea city, not only in connection with creativity, but also on a personal level. It is to Odessa that he owes a new deep feeling that has gripped a far from young artist. He met Vera Belousova, who became the main love of his life. But his wife Zinaida did not want to give in, she wrote a letter (essentially a denunciation) to the military command, in which she recalled that her husband was a Romanian subject, and besides, he was liable for military service. The world-famous singer is dressed in a bright green overcoat, an angular Romanian army cap and sent to the Crimea, where he is entrusted with the management of the officer's canteen and the organization of soldier's leisure. This harsh measure proved ineffective, and the couple divorced in 1944.

After the capitulation of Romania, Leshchenko performed for eight years in front of a very diverse audience. He was very fond of singing for the Sovietmilitary personnel, these concerts were a great success. And in 1952, an employee of the Romanian counterintelligence, already communist, brought out on the cover of a cardboard folder in Latin letters the name known to the whole world: “Leshchenko Petr”. The artist's biography was replenished with another event: he was arrested.

The singer died in 1954. The circumstances of his death are unknown. Did they beat him? Apparently not. Leshchenko, most likely, was tortured by overwork and poor food. He ended up in the dungeon, probably at the request of the "Soviet comrades." What was he accused of? This, too, remains unclear. But gramophone records with a recording of his voice have survived, which still gives inexplicable pleasure to lovers and connoisseurs of popular music.