Alexander Gradsky
Alexander Borisovich Gradsky (Russian: Алекса́ндр Бори́сович Гра́дский; born Alexander Borisovich Fradkin; November 3, 1949) is a Russian rock singer, bard, multi-instrumentalist and composer. He was one of the earliest performers of rock music in Russia. His diverse repertoire includes rock 'n' roll, traditional folk songs performed with a rock twist, and operatic arias. He has composed two rock operas and numerous songs including soundtrack music for several films.
Alexander Gradsky Александр Градский | |
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.png.webp) Alexander Gradsky in 2015 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Alexander Borisovich Fradkin |
| Born | 3 November 1949 Kopeysk, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union |
| Genres | Rock Bard music Classical Folk Blues |
| Occupation(s) | Singer Songwriter Musician Vocal teacher |
| Instruments | Vocals Piano Guitar Bass guitar Violin Drums |
| Years active | 1963–present |
| Associated acts | Tarakany Slaviane Los Panchos Skify Skomorokhi John Denver Cyndee Peters |
Early life and musical beginnings
Alexander Gradsky was born on November 3, 1949, in the Russian city of Kopeysk, into a family of mixed Jewish and Russian origin.[1] His father Boris Fradkin was an engineer working in a factory, and his mother Tamara was an actress. His mother encouraged him to learn to play the violin as a child, and her brother, Boris Gradsky, Alexander Gradsky's uncle, was a dancer who toured abroad with the famous Moiseev dance group and brought home records of Western music artists including Elvis Presley, Louis Armstrong and Little Richard.[2] Such music was not ordinarily available in Soviet Russia at that time.[3][4]
By the age of 12, Gradsky was singing Elvis Presley songs and accompanying himself on guitar.[5] In 1963, at the age of 13, he sang with a Polish student band called Tarakany (Тараканы – The Cockroaches) in a concert at the International Club of Moscow State University.[3] This is believed to have been the first public performance of rock 'n' roll by any Russian musician.[3]
Other bands
In the mid-1960s, Gradsky joined the band Slaviane (Славяне – The Slavs) as lead singer.[3] The band's repertoire consisted almost entirely of Beatles and Rolling Stones covers.[4] In 1966-'67, he was working with three bands: Slaviane, Los Panchos and Skify (Скифы – The Scythians). However, he found himself disagreeing with his Slaviane bandmates over the direction the band should take. Gradsky wanted to perform original rock songs in his native Russian language, whereas the other band members did not think that such endeavours could be successful and wanted to continue performing imported songs.[3]
Gradsky consequently decided to form his own band, Skomorokhi (Скоморохи – The Jesters or The Buffoons) in 1967. His band became popular playing original Russian songs, as Gradsky blended elements of Western rock music with the lyric-centred, folk-influenced Russian bard music which was popular around that time.[3] He enrolled in Gnesin Music Academy in 1969, and continued to perform with Skomorokhi while a student. A successful performance at the Soviet pop-rock festival Silver Strings was followed with airplay and record deals.[5]
Solo career
In 1973, film director Andrei Konchalovsky asked Alexander Gradsky to compose and perform music for the film Romance for Lovers (Романс о влюблённых – Romance o vlyublyonnyh), which was released in 1974, the same year in which Gradsky graduated with a master's degree in vocal performance.[4][5] Gradsky performed all the male vocal parts in the film soundtrack, which brought him fame as a solo artist.[5] His many records released during his long career encompass a variety of genres.[4][5] His first rock opera, Stadium (Стадион – Stadion), was released as a double LP in 1985.[6] He also composed a rock ballet The Man (Человек – Chelovek), released in 1988.[6]
Gradsky is a tenor who is reported to have a three-and-a-half octave vocal range, and also plays 12 instruments.[7] He performed the demanding role of the Astrologer in Rimsky-Korsakov's opera The Golden Cockerel (Золотой Петушок – Zolotoy Petushok) in Moscow's Bolshoi Theatre in 1988.[5]
His collaboration with John Denver, with whom he performed the 1986 song Let us Begin..., brought him to wider international attention.[5] In 1999, he performed a recital at New York City's Carnegie Hall.[7]
Since the late '80s, Gradsky has been teaching vocals at the Gnesin Music Academy as well as performing.[5]
On July 16, 1988 Gradsky performed at the San Francisco, California Golden Gate Park Bandshell as part of the American Soviet Peace Walk Concert. Later that evening he also played acoustic guitar and sang during the intermission (set break) at the Grateful Dead Rex Foundation Charity concert at U.C Berkeley's Greek Theater.
In late 2009, Alexander Gradsky released a 4-CD opera adaptation of Mikhail Bulgakov's novel The Master and Margarita (Ма́стер и Маргари́та), starring Gradsky himself as Master, Woland, Yeshua and Behemoth.[2] The opera also stars Nikolai Fomenko as Koroviev, Mikhail Seryshev (formerly of Master) as Ivan, and Elena Minina as Margarita,[2] in addition to many renowned Russian singers and actors in episodic roles, including (but not limited to) Iosif Kobzon, Lyubov Kazarnovskaya, Andrei Makarevich, Alexander Rosenbaum, Arkady Arkanov, and the late Georgi Millyar (voice footage from one of his movies was used).
Personal life
Alexander Gradsky has been married four times. His first marriage was when he was in his early twenties but it was short lasted and they divorced within months. He was married for the second time in 1970 to actress Anastasia Vertinskaya. His third marriage was with a then 20 year old Lomonosov Moscow University economics student Olga Fartysheva. They were married for 23 years and have two children together Daniel (March, 1981) and Maria (January, 1986). Alexander has been in relationship with Ukrainian fashion model Marina Kotashenko for the past 11 years, they have a son Alexander(2014) together.
Discography
Rock operas
| Russian title | English translation | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Стадион | Stadium (rock opera) | 1985 |
| Мастер и Маргарита | The Master and Margarita | 2009 |
Other albums and EPs
| Russian title | English translation | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Давид Тухманов "Как прекрасен мир" | David Tukhmanov "How the World is Fine" (Alexander Gradsky sings two songs) | 1972 |
| Поёт Александр Градский | Alexander Gradsky Sings | 1973 (EP) |
| Романс о влюбленных" | Romance about Lovers | 1974 |
| Песни из к/ф "Солнце, снова солнце" | Songs from the movie "Sun, sun again" | 1976 |
| Александр Градский и ансамбль "Скоморохи" | Alexander Gradsky and "Skomorokhi" | 1978 (EP) |
| Александр Градский & Элтон Джон (Только ты верь мне) | Alexander Gradsky & Elton John (Only you trust me) | 1979 (EP) |
| Русские песни | Russian Songs | 1980 |
| Нам не жить друг без друга | We Can't Live Without Each Other | 1980 (EP) |
| "Сама жизнь" Вокальная сюита на стихи Поля Элюара | "Life Itself" Vocal Suite on verses of Paul Eluard | 1984 |
| "Звезда полей" Вокальная сюита на стихи Н.Рубцова | "Fields Star" Vocal Suite on verses by N. Rubtsov | 1986 |
| "Сатиры" Вокальная сюита на стихи Саши Черного | "Satire" Vocal Suite on verses of Sasha Cherny | 1987 |
| Давайте начнём | Let's Get Started | 1987 (EP) |
| Утопия АГ | Utopia AG | 1987 |
| "Размышления шута" Вокальная сюита | "Reflections of a Jester" Vocal Suite | 1987 |
| "Флейта и рояль" Вокальная сюита на стихи Б.Пастернака и В.Маяковского | "Flute and Grand Piano" Vocal Suite on verses by Boris Pasternak & Vladimir Mayakovsky | 1988 |
| "Ностальгия" Вокальная сюита на стихи В.Набокова | "Nostalgia" Vocal Suite on verses by Vladimir Nabokov | 1988 |
| "Человек" Балет | "The Man" Ballet | 1988 |
| "Монте-Кристо" Музыка и песни из х\ф "Узник замка Иф" | "Monte Cristo" Music and Songs from the Movie "Prisoner of Château d'If" | 1989 |
| Концерт -сюита | Concert Suite | 1989 |
| Экспедиция | Expedition | 1990 |
| (n/a) | Metamorphoses | 1991 |
| Несвоевременные песни | Untimely Songs | 1994 |
| Фрукты с кладбища | Fruit from the Cemetery | 1995 |
| ЖИВьЕМ в "России" | (A)live in "Russia" | 1996 |
| Золотое Старье | Gold Junk | 1996 |
| Коллекция АГ (13CD) | Collection of AG (13-CD set) | 1996 |
| "Легенды русского рока" А.Градский и группа Cкоморохи | "Legends of Russian Rock" A. Gradsky and "Skomorokhi" | 1997 |
| ЖИВьЕМ в "России" 2 | (A)live in "Russia" 2 | 2000 |
| Хрестоматия | Reader | 2003 |
| Песни для Иры | Songs for Ira | 2003 |
DVDs
| Russian title | English translation | Year |
|---|---|---|
| ЖИВьЕМ в "России" 2 Юбилейный видеоконцерт | (A)live in "Russia" 2 Jubilee video concerts | 2004 |
| ЖИВьЕМ в "России" Юбилейный видеоконцерт | (A)live in "Russia" Jubilee video concerts | 2010 |
| "Антиперестроечный Блюз" (фильм -концерт 1990 г.) | "Anti-Perestroika Blues" (Film-concert 1990) | 2010 |
References
- "Alexander Gradsky". Biography (in Russian). Retrieved 28 March 2011.
- "Alexander Gradskiy". Master & Margarita. Retrieved 28 March 2011.
- Yoffe, Mark; Laing, Dave. "History of Soviet and Russian Rock Music". Written for Continuum Encyclopedia of Popular Music of The World: Locations. SOFT POWER. Archived from the original on 2011-08-31. Retrieved 28 March 2011.
- "Biography". Official website (in Russian). Gradsky.com. Retrieved 28 March 2011.
- Ofman, Gregory. "Alexander Gradsky: biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 28 March 2011.
- "Discography". Alexander Gradsky official website (in Russian). Gradsky.com. Retrieved 29 March 2011.
- "Alexander Gradsky will make a recital debut at Carnegie Hall". New York Daily News. 1 March 1999. Retrieved 24 March 2011.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Alexander Gradsky. |
- Official website (in Russian)
- Gradsky's biography (in Russian)
- Alexander Gradsky discography at Discogs
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