Born 1914, Plovdiv, Bulgaria
Died 1993, Rome, Italy
Boris Christoff was an outstanding Bulgarian basso, famed as a singing-actor and often compared to the legendary Feodor Chaliapin.
His operatic debut took place in Calabria in 1946. In 1950, he was invited to sing at the Met, Rudolph Bing’s first year as General Manager, but was refused entry to the U.S. as he was a citizen of an Eastern Bloc country. Once restrictions eased, Christoff made his U.S. debut at San Francisco Opera. He never sang at the Met but had a highly successful international career until 1986.
Christoff’s voice was rich, dark, and highly expressive, making him ideal for roles as king, high priest, and the devil. He was widely acclaimed for his portrayal of Boris Godunov. Watch the final death scene here:
Christoff was also celebrated for his portrayal of King Phillip II in Verdi’s Don Carlo. Here is his magnificent “Ella giammai m’amò”:
The great basso made many complete opera recordings, beginning the tradition of recording all three roles of Pimen, Varlaam, and the title role in Boris Godunov. He also made many recordings of Russian songs and was the first to commit to disc all 63 of Mussorgsky’s songs. Listen to this delightful rendition of “The Song of the Flea.”
The career of Boris Christoff shows that it is possible to have a stellar operatic career despite never having appeared at the Met.