Behind the Iron Curtain
Born 1918, Moscow, Russia
Died 2007, Moscow, Russia
There are instances of mezzo-sopranos in mid-career changing their fach (voice classification) to soprano. Among them have been Shirley Verrett, Grace Bumbry, Christa Ludwig, and Waltraud Meier; however, the prize may have to go to Zara Dolukhanova, who sang mezzo-soprano for 25 years and then switched to soprano for the next seven.
She studied at the Gnessin Institute of Moscow as a coloratura mezzo-soprano and made her operatic debut in 1938 at the Yerevan Opera Theatre as Siebel in Gounod’s Faust. As a mezzo-soprano, Dolukhanova’s voice had an extended range, brilliant top notes, a rich middle, facile coloratura, and a creamy legato. As a soprano, her voice took on more dramatic thrust while her brilliant top now extended to high C.
In 1944 she left Armenia for Moscow and was appointed soloist with the USSR All-Union Radio Symphony Orchestra, with which she sang often over the next two decades. In 1959, she became a leading soloist with the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, with which she sang frequently through the 1960s.
In 1963 she switched to soprano roles, including the title role of Puccini’s Tosca.
Other soprano roles included Norma and Aida.
In addition, she sang the Russian premier of Puccini’s Suor Angelica and Strauss’ Four Last Songs. She performed in the United States, with a debut at Carnegie Hall in 1959, and also toured the UK, Scandinavia, Japan, New Zealand, and Latin America during her long career.
Dolukhanova retired from singing in 1970 and taught for 25 years at the Gnessin Institute, where she had been trained. The great mezzo-soprano Olga Borodina was one of her students.