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Salomea KrusceniskiUkrainian opera singer (soprano) and teacher
Date of Birth: 23.09.1872
Country:  Ukraine |
Content:
Biography of Salomea Krushelnytska
Salomea Krushelnytska was born on September 23, 1872, in Galicia (Austria-Hungary), in the village of Belyavintsy (now in the Buchach district of the Ternopil region of Ukraine), into the family of a Greek Catholic priest. She came from a noble and ancient lineage. In 1873, the family moved several times: first to Osovtsi, then to Petlikovtsi, and for a while, they lived in the foothills of the Eastern Beskids in the village of Tisove in Stanislav County. In 1878, they settled in the village of Belaya near Ternopil, where they remained.
Salomea started singing from a young age. She knew many folk songs, which she learned directly from the villagers. She received the basics of musical education in the Ternopil Gymnasium, where she passed her exams externally. Here she became close with a musical circle of gymnasium students, one of whom was Denis Sichynsky, a renowned composer and the first professional musician in Galicia. In 1883, Salomea made her first public performance at the Shevchenko concert in Ternopil, singing in the choir of the "Ruska Besida" society. Ivan Franko, along with Ukrainian, Russian, and Bulgarian students, composer O. Nizhankovsky, and artist and poet K. Ustiyanovich, attended one of the choir's concerts on August 2, 1885.
Education at the Lviv Conservatory
In 1891, Salomea enrolled at the Lviv Conservatory of the Galician Music Society, where she studied piano and vocal performance. During her studies, she had her first solo performance on April 13, 1892, singing the lead role in George Frideric Handel's oratorio "Messiah." In 1893, Salomea graduated from the Lviv Conservatory with a medal. In the autumn of 1893, she traveled to Milan, Italy, to study with Professor Fausto Crespi. Starting from 1894, she began performing at the Lviv Opera, winning the hearts of the audience.
In the second half of 1890, her triumphant performances began on the stages of theaters worldwide, including Italy, Spain, France, Portugal, Russia, Poland, Austria, Egypt, Argentina, and Chile. Salomea performed roles in operas such as Verdi's "Aida" and "Il Trovatore," Gounod's "Faust," Moniuszko's "The Haunted Manor," Meyerbeer's "Africana," Puccini's "Manon Lescaut" and "Madama Butterfly," Bizet's "Carmen," Strauss's "Elektra," Tchaikovsky's "Eugene Onegin" and "The Queen of Spades," among others.
In 1910, Salomea Krushelnytska married the famous Italian lawyer and mayor of Viareggio, Cesare Ricchoni, who was a connoisseur of music and a knowledgeable aristocrat. They were married in one of the temples of Buenos Aires. After the wedding, Cesare and Salomea settled in Viareggio, Italy. Salomea bought a villa, which she named "Salome."
Later Life and Legacy
In 1920, Salomea Krushelnytska retired from the opera stage after her final performance in Richard Wagner's "Lohengrin" and "Lorelei" at the Naples Theater. She dedicated the rest of her life to chamber concert performances, singing songs in eight different languages. She went on tours in Ukraine, Europe, and America. From 1894 to 1923, she performed in concerts almost every year in Lviv, Ternopil, Stryi, Berezhany, Zbarazh, Chernivtsi, and other cities in Galicia. Salomea maintained strong friendships with Ivan Franko, M. Pavlyk, N. Lysenko, D. Sichynsky, and many other figures from Galicia and the Dnieper region.
Salomea also held special concerts dedicated to the memory of Taras Shevchenko and Ivan Franko, often visiting Western Ukraine to participate in these events.
In 1929, Salomea Krushelnytska gave her final concert in Rome. In 1938, her husband Cesare Ricchoni passed away. In August 1939, Salomea visited Galicia and was unable to return to Italy due to the outbreak of World War II. After the annexation of Western Ukraine to the USSR in November 1939, her house in Lviv was nationalized, and she was left with a four-room apartment where she lived with her sister, Anna. During the German occupation of Lviv, Salomea faced many hardships and started giving private vocal lessons to support herself.
In the post-war period, Salomea Krushelnytska began working at the Lviv State Conservatory named after N. V. Lysenko. However, her teaching career almost came to an end during the "de-Nationalization of personnel" campaign when she was accused of lacking a conservatory diploma. Later, her diploma was found in the archives of the city's historical museum.
Despite numerous appeals, Salomea faced difficulties in obtaining Soviet citizenship while living and teaching in the Soviet Union, remaining a subject of Italy. Finally, she wrote a statement transferring her Italian villa and all her property to the Soviet state, becoming a citizen of the USSR. The villa was immediately sold, compensating the owner with a meager portion of its value.
In 1951, Salomea Krushelnytska was awarded the title of Honored Artist of the USSR, and in October 1952, just a month before her death, she received the title of professor. Salomea Krushelnytska passed away on November 16, 1952, in Lviv. She was buried in the Lychakiv Cemetery next to the grave of her friend and mentor, Ivan Franko.
