Dmitri Smirnov - Ah, dispar, vision (early version)
Dmitri Smirnov (1882-1944) was a beloved Russian tenor whose career spanned some three decades. Born in Moscow to a wealthy family, Smirnov lost his father as an infant. Luckily, his doting stepfather was a music lover who enjoyed showing off his powerful bass voice. Young Dmitri was inspired by his stepfather, who encouraged the young boy to join the choir of his hometown church. Despite his vocal gifts, Smirnov enrolled in the University of Moscow as a law student. While there, he began singing as a chorister with Savva Mamontov’s Private Opera Society and appeared in numerous productions with the company. He made his solo stage debut at the age of 21 as Gigi in Esposito’s now forgotten operetta Camorra at St. Petersburg’s Hermitage Theatre. After finishing a tour with Mamontov’s company (using the stage name of Dmitri Soloviov), he realized that vocal study was in order. He began working intensely with soprano Emiliya Pavlovskaya and entered a competition sponsored by the Bolshoi Theatre. Judges were impressed and offered the young tenor a two year contract with Moscow’s Imperial Theatre. Smirnov’s official debut came about in April of 1904 as Prince Sinodal in the Bolshoi’s production of Rubinstein’s opera The Demon. He soon became a valuable member of the Bolshoi’s roster, singing a variety of roles in such operas as La Traviata, Rigoletto, Faust, Die Zauberflöte, Prince Igor, Sadko, and May Night. In 1907 he made his debut at the Maryinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg as Lensky in Yevgeny Onegin. His popularity was such that he was invited back to the theater every season for the next decade. Smirnov’s international career began that same year with an appearance as Dmitri in Boris Godunov at the Opéra de Paris under the direction of Sergei Diaghilev. 1908 saw him at La Scala for the first time and the same year he appeared as Nadir in Les Pêcheurs de Perles at Monte Carlo. Smirnov’s Met debut came about on December 30, 1910 as the Duke in Rigoletto. Reviews were unanimous…and unflattering. One reviewer referred to his, “…charming voice, light and perhaps white, but badly trained.” Others remarked that Smirnov simply did not possess the requisite vocal heft to fill the cavernous theater. After 15 performances of four operas…La Traviata, La Bohème, Roméo et Juliette and the aforementioned Rigoletto…Smirnov’s days at the Met came to a quiet end. During his two seasons at the Met, Smirnov also made appearances in Boston, Chicago, Montevideo and Buenos Aires. However, with the exception of a brief sojourn in Washington in 1926, the tenor’s departure from the Met essentially ended his career in the Americas. Smirnov returned to Europe, where he continued his career. When the Revolution made life dangerous, the tenor left his homeland and never really had a permanent home again. After spending the 1920s singing throughout Europe with appearances in London, Brussels, Berlin, Frankfurt, Cologne, Rome, Barcelona, Madrid, Lucerne and Basel, he accepted an offer to return to his homeland for a series of concerts. He did not stay long, relocating to Estonia, then London. Following the death of his wife in 1937, Smirnov travelled to Athens, where he taught briefly at the Conservatory there. After returning to Estonia, he assumed the post of Chairman of the Russian Theater and Music Society. Later that year, the tenor remarried and moved with his new bride (age 17!) to Riga. An invitation of a professorship at Moscow Conservatory (as well as a series of concerts in Leningrad) had to be declined owing to the war. Instead, Smirnov remained in Riga, teaching voice from his studio there. His personal appearances continued, although sporadically. As late as 1942, the tenor was touring Western Europe, including concerts in Berlin, but the tour had to be halted when Smirnov contracted pneumonia. His health failing, he returned to Riga where he began work on his memoirs. A heart attack led to a month long stay in a Riga hospital. Although he seemed to by rallying, a second, more serious attack brought the life of Dmitri Smirnov to an end on April 27, 1944. He was 61 years old. Dmitri Smirnov boasted a wide ranging repertoire that included over 40 roles from such works as Pique Dame, Rusalka, Ivan the Terrible, Halka, Le Damnation de Faust, Manon, Barbiere di Siviglia, Fedora, Mefistofele, Madama Butterfly, Il Tabarro, Tosca, Lakmé, Francesca da Rimini and Lohengrin. His legacy of nearly 100 discs was recorded for the Gramophone Company, Parlophone and Odeon between 1909 and 1930. These recordings reveal an essentially lyric voice with a curious flair for the Italian language and style. In this recording, Smirnov sings "Ah, fuyez, douce image" (or "Ah, dispar, vision" in Italian) from Massenet's Manon. This was recorded in Moscow for the Gramophone Company on November 23, 1910.
Dmitri Smirnov (1882-1944) was a beloved Russian tenor whose career spanned some three decades. Born in Moscow to a wealthy family, Smirnov lost his father as an infant. Luckily, his doting stepfather was a music lover who enjoyed showing off his powerful bass voice. Young Dmitri was inspired by his stepfather, who encouraged the young boy to join the choir of his hometown church. Despite his vocal gifts, Smirnov enrolled in the University of Moscow as a law student. While there, he began singing as a chorister with Savva Mamontov’s Private Opera Society and appeared in numerous productions with the company. He made his solo stage debut at the age of 21 as Gigi in Esposito’s now forgotten operetta Camorra at St. Petersburg’s Hermitage Theatre. After finishing a tour with Mamontov’s company (using the stage name of Dmitri Soloviov), he realized that vocal study was in order. He began working intensely with soprano Emiliya Pavlovskaya and entered a competition sponsored by the Bolshoi Theatre. Judges were impressed and offered the young tenor a two year contract with Moscow’s Imperial Theatre. Smirnov’s official debut came about in April of 1904 as Prince Sinodal in the Bolshoi’s production of Rubinstein’s opera The Demon. He soon became a valuable member of the Bolshoi’s roster, singing a variety of roles in such operas as La Traviata, Rigoletto, Faust, Die Zauberflöte, Prince Igor, Sadko, and May Night. In 1907 he made his debut at the Maryinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg as Lensky in Yevgeny Onegin. His popularity was such that he was invited back to the theater every season for the next decade. Smirnov’s international career began that same year with an appearance as Dmitri in Boris Godunov at the Opéra de Paris under the direction of Sergei Diaghilev. 1908 saw him at La Scala for the first time and the same year he appeared as Nadir in Les Pêcheurs de Perles at Monte Carlo. Smirnov’s Met debut came about on December 30, 1910 as the Duke in Rigoletto. Reviews were unanimous…and unflattering. One reviewer referred to his, “…charming voice, light and perhaps white, but badly trained.” Others remarked that Smirnov simply did not possess the requisite vocal heft to fill the cavernous theater. After 15 performances of four operas…La Traviata, La Bohème, Roméo et Juliette and the aforementioned Rigoletto…Smirnov’s days at the Met came to a quiet end. During his two seasons at the Met, Smirnov also made appearances in Boston, Chicago, Montevideo and Buenos Aires. However, with the exception of a brief sojourn in Washington in 1926, the tenor’s departure from the Met essentially ended his career in the Americas. Smirnov returned to Europe, where he continued his career. When the Revolution made life dangerous, the tenor left his homeland and never really had a permanent home again. After spending the 1920s singing throughout Europe with appearances in London, Brussels, Berlin, Frankfurt, Cologne, Rome, Barcelona, Madrid, Lucerne and Basel, he accepted an offer to return to his homeland for a series of concerts. He did not stay long, relocating to Estonia, then London. Following the death of his wife in 1937, Smirnov travelled to Athens, where he taught briefly at the Conservatory there. After returning to Estonia, he assumed the post of Chairman of the Russian Theater and Music Society. Later that year, the tenor remarried and moved with his new bride (age 17!) to Riga. An invitation of a professorship at Moscow Conservatory (as well as a series of concerts in Leningrad) had to be declined owing to the war. Instead, Smirnov remained in Riga, teaching voice from his studio there. His personal appearances continued, although sporadically. As late as 1942, the tenor was touring Western Europe, including concerts in Berlin, but the tour had to be halted when Smirnov contracted pneumonia. His health failing, he returned to Riga where he began work on his memoirs. A heart attack led to a month long stay in a Riga hospital. Although he seemed to by rallying, a second, more serious attack brought the life of Dmitri Smirnov to an end on April 27, 1944. He was 61 years old. Dmitri Smirnov boasted a wide ranging repertoire that included over 40 roles from such works as Pique Dame, Rusalka, Ivan the Terrible, Halka, Le Damnation de Faust, Manon, Barbiere di Siviglia, Fedora, Mefistofele, Madama Butterfly, Il Tabarro, Tosca, Lakmé, Francesca da Rimini and Lohengrin. His legacy of nearly 100 discs was recorded for the Gramophone Company, Parlophone and Odeon between 1909 and 1930. These recordings reveal an essentially lyric voice with a curious flair for the Italian language and style. In this recording, Smirnov sings "Ah, fuyez, douce image" (or "Ah, dispar, vision" in Italian) from Massenet's Manon. This was recorded in Moscow for the Gramophone Company on November 23, 1910.