'Vassily Savenko ia a true singer who achieves expressiveness without disruption of the singing line. Maximum effect is achieved by means of pure song with a finely controlled release of vocal resources'
John Steane for Opera Now
Born near Odessa, Ukraine, Vassily Savenko graduated in vocal studies from the Tchaikovsky Conservatoire, Moscow under Alexei Bolshakov and also worked with Pavel Lisitsian and Mikhail Kiselev. He is a laureate of the Mussorgsky and Lysenko competitions and has sung principal roles for major opera houses in his native Ukraine and in Russia, including Bolshoi Opera, Moscow, and Kirov Opera, St Petersburg.
Now resident in England, Mr Savenko's Wigmore Hall debut in 1994 launched the showcase series 'Russian Images' which generated an enthusiastic following for his recitals of Russian Art Song. Felix Aprahamian's comment revealed 'A voice so big, so dark, so deep. The Medtner and Rachmaninov were memorable'. Other UK recital series have included 'Pushkin in Music', 'Rachmaninov and Medtner' and 'Russian Vocal Classics'. Last season (1999), Mr. Savenko teamed up with Boris Berezovsky, for a sparkling series of concerts combining voice and virtuoso piano pieces. The first, scheduled at Wigmore Hall, was reviewed in Opera Now: 'Vassily Savenko, a bass-baritone of quite remarkable accomplishments, sang in a programme called 'Pushkin in Music'. [His] fine voice revealed both the depth of its tone and the ringing power of its upper register. The pianist here was Tchaikovsky gold medalist Boris Berezovsky'. (Sep/Oct 99)
Festival appearances have included the Hereford Autumn Festival, the Three Choirs Festival, and the Rimsky-Korsakov Festival at the South Bank (December 1998). 'Discovering Rimsky-Korsakov' was reviewed in Opera Now, again by John Steane: 'It was a joy to hear Savenko again. This is a voice of finely woven texture, vibrant yet without apparent vibrato, enriched throughout by reserves of depth in the tone, the high notes taken with so little effort or perceptible need for adjustment that one never, on this occasion, felt him to be approaching the limit'. For Alexander Pushkin's Bicentenary celebrations in 1999, Vassily Savenko's double-bill at the Cheltenham International Festival of Music included a programme of Pushkin settings with pianist Alexander Blok and the world premiere of David Matthews' Winter Passions with The Nash Ensemble.
Operatic roles include the title roles: Boris Godunov, Prince Igor, Demon, Onegin, Mazeppa, Aleko, Ruslan, and Tomsky Queen of Spades,Ebbn Hakkia Iolanta, Shaklovity Khovanschina, Griaznoy The Tsar's Bride, Salieri Mozart and Salieri, Lanciotto Malatesta Francesca da Rimini (Rachmaninov), Germont ,La Traviata, Renato Un Ballo in Maschera, Amonasro Aida, Scarpia Tosca, Escamillo Carmen. In 1997, he appeared in a concert performance of Rachmaninov's Francesca da Rimini at Bolshoi Opera, Moscow, where his interpretation of Lanciotto Malatesta was highly praised for it's 'dramatic power and vocal intensity'.
'There is no shortage of superb Russian singers right now, but Vassily Savenko, is something rather special. Superb recital exploring a wide repertoire' Michael Scott-Rohan, Classic CD (Oct 1999) on Russian Images
'Russian Song - from Glinka, Balakirev and Mussorgsky to Tchaikovsky, Medtner and Rachmaninov - by Vassily Savenko. (Hyperion CDA67105). This is a voice of great expressive eloquence and power, rich in sonority and depth.' Robert Layton, Classic FM Magazine (Sep 1999)
'With so much competition, the quality of performance and programme is critical, but happily both these discs come up trumps'. Hyperion CDA 67105 and Meridian CDE 84399 Claire Wrathall, BBC Music (Sept99)
Hyperion Records is due to release Russian Images ll early summer 2000.
Hear Vassily Savenko singing Arensky's beautiful romans Autumn: visit Hyperion's Listening Room
E-mail Margarete Rolle Promotions