The creative path and biography of rotaru sofia mikhailovna. Sofia Rotaru What is the name of Sofia Rotaru's husband

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Biography, life story of Sofia Rotaru

... In the crowded hall of the Sports Palace, the lights went out, a tense silence reigned, and then it was acutely felt how impatiently the audience was waiting for her ... A melody sounded, and Sofia Rotaru appeared in the mosaic of colored lights ... The hall burst into applause ...

Family and childhood

So, let's start from the beginning of the beginning - from home. Born on August 7, 1947, Sofia Rotaru in the song region - in the village of Marshintsy, Chernivtsi region. Not a single celebration, not a single ceremony is complete there without songs. It seems here the earth itself gives birth to songs. There were no more such pure, beautiful voices like Mikhail Fedorovich (he was born on November 22, 1918) and Alexandra Ivanovna Rotaru (04/17/1920 - 09/16/1997) in Marshintsy.

Mikhail Fedorovich was the first in the village to join the party, went through the whole war, being a machine gunner, and reached Berlin. He was wounded and returned home only in 1946. Now the soldier's memory more and more often brings his father back to those terrible years, the battles, the faces of the dead friends are remembered.

The family, besides Sophia, had five children: two brothers and three sisters. The elder sister Zina (born on 10/11/1942), who suffered a serious illness, lost her eyesight in childhood.

Zina, having perfect pitch herself and easily memorizing new songs, taught Sofia many folk songs and, in general, became the youngest and second mother, and her beloved teacher. Then Sophia, not afraid to seem enthusiastic, will say: "... And we all learned from her - such a musical memory. And the soul!"Zina, spending a lot of time at the radio, learned Russian along with songs. And taught him brothers and sisters. At home Rotaru spoke only Moldavian. Naturally, as the eldest, Sofia was mother's first assistant. In the morning, Sonya and her mother went to the market. to trade - you had to live on something.

- Mom woke me up in the dark, - Sophia recalls, - and I really wanted to sleep. She says: "Who will help me?" I slept all the way. We arrived at six in the morning. It was necessary to take a place in the market in advance, to spread everything out. And only when the trade began, I came to my senses. It was interesting to me. There was always a queue near us, because my mother was clean, she was known and expected. She had regular customers.

CONTINUED BELOW

Sofia Mikhailovna never trades on the market. And he forbids his friends and relatives to do this. " It's a hell of a job, - she says to her husband, - Do not dare".

Often, very often Sofia had to replace her mother, to work for her in the field. It was during these years that her character was formed.

- By his formation as a singer and, probably, as a person,- says Sofia Rotaru, - I most likely owe it to those women with whom I worked in the village, it is from them that I learned to understand the meaning of life. In difficult times I received help from them - simple and generous.

In this environment, Sofia Rotaru finds the most humane, deepest and sincere notes for her future songs. Sofia began to sing from the first grade in the school choir, she also sang in the church choir.

In her youth, Sofia was attracted by the theater, she studied in a drama club and at the same time sang folk songs in amateur performances. Sofia, for example, loves to remember how she took the only button accordion at school and at night, when the kerosene lamp went out in the house, she went into the barn, picked up her favorite tunes of Moldovan songs. Father, Mikhail Fedorovich, who worked as a foreman of winegrowers for about thirty years, remembers how one day professional artists came to the village for the first time, and he brought Sonya to them backstage and proudly said: " Here is my daughter. She will definitely be an artist!"

Being very lively and lively, Sofia loved sports, and especially athletics, and of course she made progress: she was the champion of the school in all-around, went to regional Olympiads. Once, at the regional Spartakiad in Chernivtsi, she became the winner in the 100 and 800 meters ...

The victory of Sofia Rotaru in the regional amateur art competition in 1962 opened the way for the regional review. For her enchanting voice, fellow countrymen then presented her with the title of "Bukovinian Nightingale". The voice was really amazing - it was striking in its strength and breadth, extraordinary sonic saturation. There was so much charm and passion in him, he was so relaxed and excitingly good that there was no reason to doubt the happy fate of the young singer.

1963 brought a first-degree diploma at the regional show of amateur performances in Chernivtsi. As the winner, she goes to Kiev to participate in the Republican competition.

The year 1964, in turn, was pleased with the victory at the republican festival of folk talents. On this occasion, her photo was placed on the cover of the magazine "Ukraine" No. 27 for 1965. By the way, this photo later played an important role in her life. After that competition, People's Artist of the USSR Dmitry Gnatyuk said to his fellow countrymen: " This is your future celebrity. Memorize my words". Reviews, contests, - really the 17-year-old girl was not dizzy with success? But no, her parents always taught her to critically evaluate her work and persistently go towards the goal, regardless of difficulties. After graduating from school in 1964. Sonya firmly decided to go in Chernivtsi to enter a music school.

The beginning of adulthood

Much to her regret, Sofia learned that the music school does not have a vocal faculty. Well, I entered the conductor-choir ... In 1964, Sofia sang for the first time on the stage of the Kremlin Palace of Congresses, and Moscow was conquered. " And who will marry you? Mom used to say. - One music in my head"In the meantime, in the Urals, in Nizhny Tagil, there was a young guy from Chernivtsi - Anatoly Evdokimenko, the son of a builder and a teacher, who also had" one music "in his head: as a child he graduated music school, played the trumpet, dreamed of creating an ensemble. And they got the same magazine "Ukraine" with a photo. beautiful girl on the cover. He showed the photo to his colleagues: " Look what kind of girls we have in our villages! Can you imagine what is happening in the city?"And he attached the cover on the wall near his bed. And then he returned home and began to look for Sofia. I searched for a long time, finally, I found the school, Sonya's friends ...

Actually, Sonya did not imagine that she would ever sing with a pop orchestra. In addition to violins and cymbals, she did not recognize other instruments for accompaniment until she met her future husband Anatoly Evdokimenko, a student at Chernivtsi University and at the same time a trumpet player in a student pop orchestra. Anatoly intuitively understood that only with music, and again with music, one can win the heart of Sofia. He was the initiator of the appearance of a soloist in the orchestra. True, at first only folk Ukrainian and Moldavian melodies were selected for Sofia. By the way, even today folk songs occupy a significant place in her repertoire: " I cannot live without them. As I hear - tears ..."But Anatoly persuaded Sofia to try herself as a soloist of a pop orchestra. And then one day Sofia still succumbed to persuasion, took a chance - she sang the song" Mama "; Bronevitsky. And the song turned out.

In 1968, at the graduation party at the music school, Associate Professor Pulinets assured: " Already now we can talk about her as a pop actress who will have great success with the widest audience.".

The beginning of a song career

It is curious that in 1968 S. Rotaru celebrated her birthday, having won the title of laureate of the IX World Festival of Youth and Students in Sofia (Bulgaria). So the debut on the stage of the then amateur singer took place. Sofia Rotaru was sent to IX World festival youth and students as a participant in the folklore competition. Tolik was determined to go with her to the festival. They urgently needed a double bass player for Bulgaria. And then Tolya mastered the double bass in two months. True, the calluses did not leave his fingers for a long time. Overwhelming success, first place. When Sofia was awarded the gold medal, she was literally covered with Bulgarian roses. And one orchestra member joked: " Sofia's flowers for Sofia". And the newspapers were full of headlines:" 21-year-old Sofia conquered Sofia. " The last song was dedicated to the first female cosmonaut, the Hero, who was present in the hall. Soviet Union Valentina Tereshkova. The chairman of the jury said then: " This is a singer with a great future".

Then the time came for another debut: after graduating from a music school, she became a teacher. Until now, Rotaru recalls this day with excitement and joy, as if reliving the feelings that she experienced before the first lesson ...

On September 22, 1968 in Marshintsy, Sofia and Anatoly played a wedding. The parents didn't mind. Mom just said: " You just, Sonya, think well, you are getting married - that means for the rest of your life!". The wedding was" modest "- about two hundred people. By evening it started to rain, but even he did not interrupt the fun: the happy bride in a long dress, soaked to the skin, continued to dance until she dropped ...

They spent their honeymoon in Novosibirsk - since at that time Anatoly was graduating from the university and was sent there for practice. He worked at the Lenin plant, and the young family lived right there, in the dormitory of the 105th military plant. Sonya cooked food for everyone, and in the evenings she sang in the "Rest" club. The newlyweds left after 3 months.

However, Sofia had only one thing in her mind ...
Sofia Mikhailovna once shared: - After a year of our marriage, I began to dream of a child. And from time to time she hinted about this to Tolik. And he made big creative plans and was in no hurry with the child. In addition, we lived with my parents in a 2-room apartment, he had not yet graduated from the university. There was not enough money, it was not customary in our family to ask our parents for it. We are adults. Okay, okay, I think ... And somehow I say to him: "Listen, the doctor said that I will soon become a mother." Although in fact I was not in a position at that moment - I had to go for a little female trick. Tolik shook his head: "Well, good." He relaxed, lost his guard and began to wait for the heir to be born..

But he had to wait not nine months, but eleven, because Sonya became pregnant only two months after that conversation.

- Now I believe I did everything right, - Rotaru smiles slyly. - Then I simply would not have time - these endless tours would begin ...

Rotaru got to the hospital on the night of Sunday to Monday. All day before she cried: Tolik did not take her with him on a fishing trip. His parents rebelled: " Where else are you going? Sonya, are you going to give birth any minute now, and you're going to catch carp?" which she went with her husband to the hospital .. Looking amazing in any situation was her lifestyle.

A son was born on the twenty-fourth of August 1970. They gave him the name Ruslan. He turned out to be an absolute copy of his father.

We have never seen anything like this in Chernivtsi! Tolik met his wife and son with an orchestra. All the musicians of the city gathered under the windows of the hospital and played. Some on the trumpet, some on the violin, some on the flute. Passing cars slowed down, trolleybuses and buses stopped, people poured out of all nearby houses ... When Sonya appeared, fireworks of champagne corks flashed in the air. All the way home, the happy father danced with his son in his arms ...

And in 1971 at "Ukrtelefilm" director Roman Alekseev made a musical film about the tender and pure love of a mountainous girl and a Donetsk boy "Chervona Ruta". Songs of V. Ivasyuk and other authors were performed by V. Zinkevich, N. Yaremchuk and others. Sofia Rotaru became the main character... The film was a significant success. And when in October Sofia received an invitation to work at the Chernivtsi Philharmonic and create her own ensemble, the name of the ensemble appeared by itself - "Chervona Ruta" ...

Also because this was the name of one of the first songs of the genius composer and poet Vladimir Ivasyuk. In the songs of Volodya, the beauty and romance of the Bukovinian region, the freshness and chastity of the first love, the boundless faith in happiness were amazingly combined. Sofia considers meeting with composer Ivasyuk a lucky gift of fate. None of the composers with whom she will work later felt so deeply the singer's soul, her understanding and perception of life. Most of his songs were written especially for her, for her extremely beautiful voice. They were modern, but at the same time built on the multinational melody of the peoples living in Bukovina. It was a new, surprisingly bright word in the song culture of Ukraine. Indeed, Volodya's songs gave the singer wings, it was with them that her pop star sparkled.

Evaluating the role of Sofia Rotaru in popularizing Volodya's songs, his father, the famous Ukrainian writer M. Ivasyuk, will literally say the following in front of an audience of thousands of fellow countrymen: " We must bow deeply to the Moldavian girl Sonia, who spread my son's songs all over the world".

Indeed, all over the world, because in thousands of different concerts of Sofia in many, many countries, Volodya's songs have always sounded and sound, many of which have become classics of the art of song.

Chervona Ruta is the name of a flower taken from an ancient Carpathian legend. Ruta blooms only on the night of Ivan Kupala, and the girl who manages to see the blooming rue will be happy in love.

The head of the ensemble was Anatoly Evdokimenko. Despite the fact that he worked at the department for some time, he had scientific articles, he changed his profession. Madly in love with his wife, he then graduated from the directing department of the Kiev Institute of Culture, became the director of all her concert programs.

The debut of "Chervona Ruta" was a performance in the Star City with Soviet cosmonauts. It was there that Sofia Rotaru and the "Chervona Ruta" ensemble first declared themselves as outstanding representatives of the whole direction of Soviet pop art, characteristic feature which is a combination in the repertoire and style of performance of elements of folk music with modern rhythms. As soon as she finished singing "Chervona Ruta", the audience literally shuddered with applause. With such an unexpectedly warm welcome, she was extremely excited. For some reason, she thought: if these people, unusual in her imagination, find joy in her songs, then she must sing, stubbornly follow the chosen path. And then another cosmonaut V. Shatalov, on behalf of his colleagues, wished her great success in songwriting.

Sofia only strengthened her desire. Then she sang on the stage of the Central Concert Hall "Russia", the Kremlin Palace and on the stage of the Variety Theater. Debuting on the metropolitan stage, Rotaru least of all resembled a timid newcomer. He was quite a mature master, confident in his strength. The singer's external restraint, which left no room for fussiness and unjustified gesticulation, surprisingly harmonized with the flight of her over-expressive voice. She sang as if these were the most important concerts in her life. It seemed that she had been accumulating mental strength for a long time so that today, now, she could express all her passion, all the joy and pain without a trace. Rotaru's overwhelming creative "generosity" aroused the audience extraordinarily, causing a hot wave of reciprocal feeling ...

Growth in popularity

This was the beginning of the widespread recognition of Sofia Rotaru. It has been since 1971 that she has been counting down her professional creative activity.

Its authors are V. Ivasyuk, student of the music school Valery Gromtsev, head of VIA "Smerichka" Levko Dutkovsky. And the deputy director of the Chernivtsi Philharmonic, Pinkus Abramovich Falik and his wife, Honored Artist of the Ukrainian SSR Sidi Lvovna Tal were then her second parents. Falik was at that time one of the largest administrators with worldwide recognition. Even before the war, he was the producer of the famous English singer Jeri Scott.

The artistic council did not approve the very first professional program of "Chervona Ruta". Then it was necessary to maintain a certain line. For example, "love, Komsomol and spring" ie the whole performance was supposed to be saturated with joy, optimism. And she sang " Enemies burned their native hut". The commission of the Ministry of Culture did not like the program, the program was banned. In fact, they cut off oxygen. Falik saved them. He called Moscow, and Chervona Ruta, bypassing all permits, was included in the program" Stars of Soviet and Foreign Stage. " company to the Germans, Bulgarians, Czechs, Yugoslavs. In Tashkent, after the concert, people asked if she liked the Soviet Union, where she learned so well to sing in Russian. It turned out that she was mistaken for a Bulgarian. There were unforgettable and funny, funny incidents at concerts.

It was in Grozny at the stadium: she appeared on the stage - slender, in a tight-fitting red dress with a zipper on the back. And then, just during the performance, the "lightning" burst. The audience, of course, noticed. She holds the dress with her hands so that it does not fall off, and suddenly some compassionate citizen runs out onto the stage with a huge pin. He turned her back to the audience and saved it under the general fun.

In 1972 with the program "Songs and Dances of the Land of the Soviets" Sofia Rotaru and "Chervona Ruta" took part in a tour of Poland.

In 1973, the Golden Orpheus competition was held in Burgas (Bulgaria), Rotaru received the 1st prize at it, performing E. Dogi's song "My City" and "Bird" - a song in Bulgarian dedicated to the memory of Pasha Hristova, the authors of which are T Rusev and D. Demyanov. The same year brought her the title of Honored Artist of the Ukrainian SSR. Songs performed by her "Codru" and "My City" in the Moldavian language were recorded in the film "Spring Consonances - 73".

At the "Song - 73" festival, E. Doga's song "My City" performed by Sofia Rotaru became a laureate ...

When Sofia Rotaru goes on stage and starts singing, you forget about everything in the world. Her transparent, enchanting voice penetrates the soul, excites and conquers everyone who loves the stage, loves the song. Here she stands in front of a microphone in the light of a searchlight - slender, festive, like a spring twig. How much charm, beauty, how much sincerity and excitement in her, when in the beautiful language of music and poetry she confidentially shares with us everything that makes her happy and sad ...

In the May Day "Festive Party in Ostankino" in 1974, she sang with the artist from the GDR Michael Hansen. In the same year, Rotaru graduated from the Chisinau Institute of Arts and became a participant in the "Burshtin Nightingale" festival in Sopot (Poland), where she performed "Remembrance" by B. Rychkov and "Vodograi" by V. Ivasyuk. For the performance of the Polish song from the repertoire of Halina Frontskowiak "Someone" (Russian text by A. Dementyev) received the II prize. On "Song-74" Sofia Mikhailovna performed "The Ballad of Mother" by E. Martynov to the lyrics by A. Dementyev.

At the Song-75 festival, Swan Faithfulness and Apple Trees in Blossom reached the finals. The song "Smuglyanka" was performed with the Yugoslavian singer Mickey Efremovich. A year later, at the next festival, the songs "Give me back the music" and "Dark night" were performed. The second was performed with Anatoly Mokrenko.

In creativity, the most important thing for Sofia Rotaru is contact with the song, with its creators. Other composers also wrote songs for her. Evgeny Doga wrote "My City", Arno Babadzhanyan - "Give me back the music", Oskar Feltsman wrote the song "Only for you", Yuri Saulsky - "An ordinary story" ...

Sofia proudly says: " I was the first performer of many songs of one of my favorite composers, Evgeny Martynov. I love his "Swan Faithfulness", "Ballad of Mother". In my repertoire there are songs of different genres, but almost always - a dramatic plot, a dramatic melody. The song for me is a small story with its own world of feelings, dramatic structure, heroes ..."

And nevertheless, her main attraction for listeners is that the singer remains faithful to the folk style of performance. The nationality is manifested in the formulation of the voice, and in the simplicity, restraint of behavior on stage, and, finally, in the choice of the repertoire: Rotaru's songs are always lyrical, chanting. And yet, in a folk song you will not find random, meaningless, empty words, and this, undoubtedly, taught Sophia, among many new modern songs, to choose only those that are full of deep meaning, evoke reflections. Indeed, in her opinion, in those three or four minutes, which the song lasts, the artist must tell a lot to the listener, make him richer.

The song "Chervona Ruta" itself is still the hallmark of Sofia Mikhailovna. For she found her rue ...

1980-1985: The rise of the actress and new collaborations

In 1980 Sofia Rotaru won the first prize at the international competition in Tokyo for the performance of the Yugoslav song "Promise" and was awarded the Order of the Badge of Honor.

The singer continued to experiment on her image and appeared on stage for the first time among domestic female artists in a trouser suit, performing the song "Temp" by Alexandra Pakhmutova to the verses of Nikolai Dobronravov. The songs "Temp" and "Waiting" were written for the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow and were included in the cultural program of the Games. "Temp" also became the soundtrack for the feature film "Ballad of Sports" directed by Yuri Ozerov. In 1980, the singer again reached the final of the Song of the Year, performing "My Land" by N. Mozgovoy and "Waiting" by Y. Saulsky and L. Zavalnyuk.

In 1980, the film "Where are you, love?" (originally called "The Year of Vocation"), filmed at the Moldova Film studio, in which, among many songs, the singer sang the song "First Rain", without an understudy riding in the back seat of a motorcycle along a narrow embankment in the middle of the sea. According to the autobiographical plot, the village singer was invited to the ensemble, with whom she won the grand prix at international festival with the song "Where are you, love?" R. Pauls on poetry. At the box office, the film was watched by about 22 million viewers. In the same year, a double album - "Songs from the film" Where are you, love? "

A. Mazhukov's composition "Red Arrow" in 1980 became the debut of the young poet Nikolai Zinoviev in the pop genre. The song was banned on the All-Union Radio by the head of the music editorial office Gennady Cherkasov because he did not like the way Sofia Rotaru sings. But since the premiere of the song took place on television, she managed to become famous even without radio air. In 1981, the film received the jury prize for popularizing the songwriting of Soviet composers at the XIV All-Union Film Festival in Vilnius under the section feature films... This film was Sofia Rotaru's first experience in feature filmmaking. Many critics called this role a failure, nevertheless the film won the audience's love, and the songs sounded in the film became legendary: "Red Arrow" (music by Alexei Mazhukov, poems by Nikolai Zinoviev), "Where are you, love?" (music by Raymond Pauls, poems by Ilya Reznik), "Dance on the Drum" (music by Raymond Pauls, lyrics by Andrei Voznesensky).

The next stage of creativity began with the search for a new style - rock music and the film "Soul" with "Time Machine" in 1981 with songs and. Having received the first offer in Yalta to star in the main role in the film, Sofia Rotaru refused, so she was sick and the doctors did not recommend her not only shooting, but also further performances.

This prompted Alexander Borodyansky and Alexander Stefanovich to describe an autobiographical story about the dramatic situation in the singer's life, about the loss of her voice, and the disclosure of her soul at this moment (dialogue on the pier with an elderly person) with a subsequent reassessment of values. Seeing a new rewritten script, as well as songs written in a completely new style for the singer, Sofia Rotaru agreed, moreover, she agreed to give up concert performances for some time in order to star in the film. Thus, the film has become a musical melodrama, affecting not only the artist's private life and human relations, but also the question of the attitude towards talent and the responsibility of talent to those for whom he creates. An actor became Rotaru's partner in the film, a Leningrad actor played a lyrical hero, the Time Machine rock group - a new group of singer Victoria Svobodina. The film was watched at the box office by about 57 million viewers.

Sofia Rotaru reached the finale of Song of the Year in 1982 with the songs Melancolie by P. Teodorovic and G. Vieru and Get Up! R. Amirkhanyan and H. Zakian. The songs “Happiness to you, my land” by Yu. Saulsky and L. Zavalnyuk and “And the music sounds” by A. Mazhukov and N. Zinoviev were included in “Song of 1983”.

After concerts in Canada and the release of the Canadian album in Toronto's Canadian Tour 1983 in 83, Sofia Rotaru and her team were banned from traveling for five years. There was no official reason, but when the State Concert received calls from abroad, they refused on the pretext that “ this doesn't work here". During the recording of the disc in Germany, the State Concert assigned her a rate of 6 rubles per minute of sound. The German side had to pay 156 marks and called back to Moscow. The next day, the translator told Sofia Rotaru: “ Our chef decided to make you a small present, because Moscow does not allow you to raise the rate ... "", - said Sofia Rotaru.

In 1983, Sofia Rotaru gave 137 concerts in the collective and state farms of the Crimea. The collective farm "Russia" of the Crimean region and the Ministry of Culture of the Moldavian SSR put forward concert programs of Rotaru in 1983-1984 for the State Prize of the USSR. However, the award was not awarded to the eminent singer, since all her solo concerts since the end of the 1970s have been held exclusively under a plus phonogram.

In 1983 Sofia Rotaru received the title of People's Artist of Moldova. In the same year, while listening to a melody specially written for her by the composer Kiriyak with the poet Vieru, Rotaru insisted on words about romance. She was supported by her husband and artistic director Anatoly Evdokimenko, and the poet wrote, but about the singer. Romantică is an adjective in Romanian for romantic.

In 1984 she presented "Romantică" at the "Song of the Year" festival. This song is included in most solo programs. The second song performed was "I Can't Forget" (composer D. Tukhmanov, lyrics by V. Kharitonov). The singer performed it in dramatic image courageous nurse of World War II. Rotaru was invited to the GDR TV program "The Motley Cauldron", where she sang a song in German.

In 1984 the LP "Gentle Melody" was released. The album was a return to the original image with the song "Melancolie" ("Tender Melody") by Vieru. In 1985, Sofia Rotaru received the Golden Disc prize of the All-Union Melodiya Company for the albums Sofia Rotaru and Gentle Melody - the best-selling discs of the year in the USSR, which sold over 1,000,000 copies. In the same year, Sofia Rotaru was awarded the Order of Friendship of Peoples.

In the final of “Songs-85” the audience together with the singer sang “Stork on the Roof” by D. Tukhmanov and A. Poperechny and “In My House” by D. Tukhmanov and A. Sayed-Shah.

1986-1989: New Wave - Europop and Hard Rock

In the mid-1980s, a certain turning point was outlined in his work. The musical film "Monologue of Love" (1986) was imbued with the search for a new aesthetics of creativity, in which, unlike the previous "Sofia Rotaru Invites You" (1985), only I. Poklada's composition "Water Flows" carried the same folklore character and image of a collective farm girl, became a star. In the film "Monologue of Love" Sofia Rotaru sang the song "Amor" as a windsurfer, on the high seas and without a backup. "Monologue of Love" - an album released in 1986 with soundtracks and songs from the musical film of the same name, was Rotaru's last work with the original Ukrainian composers. The "Chervona Ruta" ensemble returned to the Ukrainian song and left the singer, which was a big surprise for Rotaru and Anatoly Evdokimenko, artistic director of "Chervona Ruta". In one of her interviews, Sofia Rotaru, when asked by a journalist, “ Have you ever been really scared?"Answered:" When I was betrayed. This was due to the team "Chervona Ruta", which Tolik (A. Evdokimenko) organized at one time. It was the peak of popularity when we were carried in our arms, when cars were lifted at concerts. It seemed to the guys that they can count on success without me, that I treat them wrong, that the repertoire is not the same, that they receive little money ... When Tolik and I left for their homeland, they got together and decided that they did not need us. They left with a scandal and with the name "Chervona Ruta».

A sharp change in the direction of Rotaru's creativity occurred after the beginning of cooperation with the composer Vladimir Matetsky in 1986. Already appeared "Lavender" and "Moon, Moon" by Muscovite Vladimir Matetsky - two of the most popular songs of the USSR in 1986. The joint album of Rotaru and Matetsky "Golden Heart" was already recorded with Moscow studio musicians. Sofia Rotaru moved on to compositions of the Europop style ("It was, but passed," "The moon"), up to the elements of hard rock ("My time", "Only this is not enough"). Matetsky and his co-author, poet Mikhail Shabrov, practically monopolized the right to cooperate with Rotaru over the next 15 years, producing talented works that were included in large numbers in concert programs in 1990-2000, and became popular due to Rotaru's charismatic personality and her outstanding vocal abilities. ...

The beginning of this collaboration was laid by the song "Lavender", written by V. Matetsky in 1985 for her duet with Jaak Yoala and has not yet lost its popularity. "Lavender" was followed by "Moon, Moon", "It was, but passed", "Wild Swans", "Farmer Woman", "Sentiabrilo", "Moonlight Rainbow", "Stars as Stars", "Night Moth", "Golden Heart "," My life, my love "and many others.

In 1986, the composer V. Migulya wrote the song "Life" especially for the singer, which was rarely heard.

Active touring and constant presence in music broadcasts led to the fact that by the end of the 80s S. Rotaru objectively became the leader of the Soviet art of song. On May 11, 1988, Sofia Rotaru was awarded the title of People's Artist of the USSR, the first of modern pop singers for her great services in the development of Soviet musical art.

At the same time, the transition to the Russian-language repertoire caused a certain rejection in Ukraine. Accusations of betrayal of national culture, in addition to the general growth of nationalism, were actively fueled by Soviet state production structures, philharmonic societies and concert associations, which, during the economic reforms, lost control over the financial side of Rotaru's concert activities. In order to avoid large-scale provocations, Rotaru refused to participate in the "Chervona Ruta" festival held in her homeland in 1989. In the late 80s, the aggravated interethnic relations led to the fact that in 1989, at a national concert in Lviv at the Druzhba stadium, a part of the audience present, opposed to Sofia Rotaru, greeted the singer with posters “ Sophia, punishment awaits you!”And whistles, which led to clashes with her fans.

Nevertheless, Sofia Rotaru continued to sing Ukrainian songs and constantly included them in the first sections of concert programs. New songs of this period in the Ukrainian language were the works of N. Mozgovoy ("The Edge", "Mine Day"), A. Bliznyuk ("Echo of Fidelity"), E. Rybchinsky ("Leaking Water"), Y. Rybchinsky ("Ball of the Separated hearts "), and later - R. Quinta (" Chekay "," One viburnum "," Fog "). At the same time, she was prepared and presented to the viewer in 1991 new program, included in the album Romance, which half consisted of remakes of songs by Ivasyuk and other famous Ukrainian composers and poets in Ukrainian, in particular, "Chervona Ruta", "Cheremshina", "Maple Vogon", "Edge", "Sizokrily ptah", "Zhovtiy leaf ”, which became classics of the Ukrainian pop song, after which such accusations fell to pieces.

In 1991, the next work of Rotaru and Matetsky was released - LP "Caravan of Love" ("Sintez Records", Riga, Latvia), also with a noticeable influence in the style of hard rock and metal, which was at the peak of its popularity at that time. Simultaneously with the album, the eponymous musical television movie and concert program Golden Heart, which became the last program of the singer of the USSR times, was released.

The collapse of the Union was reflected in the geography of Sofia Rotaru's travels. The USSR Ministry of Culture obliged artists to tour "hot spots". Having refused at first, Rotaru prepared the programs "Friends remain friends" and "Caravan of love" presented in Vilnius, Riga, Tallinn, Tbilisi, Baku and Yerevan. The concerts were held in rooms with no appropriate conditions, which eventually led to pneumonia. Sofia Rotaru said: “ I was warned not to go down to the hall, you never know what. Even the guards were assigned. And I think: with what you go to a person, so he will repay you».

At the end of the 80s, while participating in a combined concert, Sofia Rotaru drew attention to the performance of the ballet "Todes" and invited him to cooperate. The dances of Todes made her songs more spectacular from a stage point of view. In the concert programs of this period, Sofia Rotaru danced almost all the songs with "Todes". This creative union existed for about five years. Alla Dukhova, artistic director of the ballet, said that it was with Rotaru that the ballet "Todes" began its successful activity.

1991-1999: New time

In 1991, Sofia Rotaru presented in Moscow an anniversary program dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the singer's creative activity, decorated with laser graphics, candles and fantastic decorations in the form of a moving blushing flower from the legend of Chervona Ruta, from which the singer entered the stage. Anniversary concerts "Flowers of Sofia Rotaru" took place in the State Central Concert Hall "Russia". Central Television broadcast this program, and it appeared on video in the TV version of the concert. Remaining faithful to the compilation of the first part of her concert programs, the singer sang songs of youth, but already in remix versions of songs by Ivasyuk and other famous Ukrainian composers and poets in Ukrainian, in particular, "Chervona Ruta", "Cheremshina", "Klenoviy Vogon", "Edge", "Sizocryliy ptah", "Zhovty List", which have become classics of Ukrainian pop songs, as well as new "Tango", "Wild Swans" and others. The concert was also attended by the ensemble "Smerichka", which starred with Rotaru in the film "Chervona Ruta". The song "Echo" became the closing part of the second part.

After the collapse of the USSR and the commercialization of the musical space, the singer did not lose her leading positions in show business, she has a stable audience, including in the Russian-speaking diaspora in Europe and the USA. In 1992, a super-hit was released by Rotaru - "Khutoryanka" (music by Vladimir Matetsky, lyrics by Mikhail Shabovr).

The singer left the Philharmonic and continued recording songs at her own studio in Yalta. In 1993, the first two CDs of the collection of the singer's best songs were released - "Sofia Rotaru" and "Lavender", then - "Golden Songs 1985/95" and "Khutoryanka". In 1995, Sofia Rotaru starred in the musical film "Old Songs about the Main" of the ORT television company (director Dmitry Fix, producer Konstantin Ernst), performing the song "What you were" (music by I. Dunaevsky, verses by M. Isakovsky). In August 1996, Sofia Rotaru was awarded the Honorary Distinction of the President of Ukraine. In the same year, Sofia Rotaru was recognized as the "Best Pop Singer 1996" at "Song-96" and was awarded the name prize. In 1996, the songs “Night of Love” by Laura Quint to the poems of M. Denisov and “There is no place for me in your heart” by Vladimir Matetsky to the verses of Mikhail Faibushevich passed to the final of the competition. Also performed was "Swan Faithfulness", which, however, did not get on the air.

In 1997, Sofia Rotaru starred in the musical film "10 Songs about Moscow" of the NTV television company (project by Leonid Parfyonov and Janik Fayziev), with the song "Moscow May" (music by D. and D. Pokrass, lyrics by V. Lebedev-Kumach) with the group Ivanushki International.

In 1997 Sofia Rotaru became an Honorary Citizen of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea; the owner of the honorary prize of the President of Ukraine L. Kuchma for his outstanding contribution to the development of pop art "Pisenny Vernissage" and the Knight of the "Order of the Republic of Moldova".

On September 16, 1997, at the age of 77, Sofia Rotaru's mother, Alexandra Ivanovna Rotaru, died. Before these events, Sofia Rotaru repeatedly canceled performances in the concert schedule, anniversary concerts, filming, and other tours.

On the set of the final of Song-97, the singer sang the songs Your Sad Eyes (Vladimir Matetsky to verses by Liliana Vorontsova), as well as There Was Time (Vladimir Matetsky to verses by Mikhail Faibushevich) and Sweaterok (Vladimir Matetsky to verses by Alexander Shaganov ).

In 1998, the first official (numbered) CD of Sofia Rotaru, the album "Love Me", was released on the label "Extraphone". In April this year, the premiere of Rotaru's new solo program "Love Me" took place at the State Kremlin Palace in Moscow. Also in 1998, Sofia Rotaru was awarded the "Order of Nicholas the Wonderworker" "For the enhancement of good on Earth." Sofia Rotaru becomes an Honorary Citizen of the city of Chernivtsi. The song "Zasentsyabrilo" was performed in a duet with Nikolai Rastorguev.

In 1999, the Star Records label released two more CD-compilations of the singer in the Star Series. At the end of 1999, Sofia Rotaru was recognized as the best singer of Ukraine in the "Traditional Stage" nomination, having received the "Golden Firebird", as well as a special award "for the contribution to the development of national pop music". In the same year, the singer was awarded the "Order of the Holy Princess Olga of the III degree" for special personal merits in the development of songwriting, many years of fruitful concert activity and high performing skills. The Russian Biographical Institute recognized the singer as the "Person of 1999".

2000-2006: Musical leadership in the 2000s

In 2000, in Kiev, Sofia Rotaru was recognized as the "Man of the XX century", "The best Ukrainian pop singer of the XX century", "The Golden Voice of Ukraine", Laureate of the "Prometheus - Prestige" award, "Woman of the Year". In the same year, Sofia Rotaru became the Laureate of the "Ovation" prize, "For a special contribution to the development of the Russian stage." In August 2000, the singer's official website was opened.

In December 2001, Sofia Rotaru released a new solo concert program "My life is my love!" on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of his creative activity. The lyricism of the 80s, the drive of the 90s and the play of halftones, on which Rotaru the director, Rotaru the singer built her program, combined new songs and hits of past years, read in a new way, was added to the expression of the 70s. Many of her songs, no matter how many years ago they were sung, do not fit into the "retro" format, continuing to sound modern in every new concert program of the singer. The premiere of the program took place on December 13-15 at the State Kremlin Palace in Moscow. Sofia Rotaru presented a new solo program "My life is my love ..." in other cities of Russia, Ukraine and Germany. In this program, the singer first appeared independently as a production director, where Boris Krasnov worked with her for the first time as a production designer.

Before solo concerts in Moscow, the film and video association "Close-up" presented a video version of the film "Soul" shot by the Mosfilm studio in 1981 with Sofia Rotaru in the title role. The film took 5th place at the box office in the USSR and is considered at the moment (2009) the most successful film work of Rotaru.

In 2002, the song "My Life, My Love" opened the "New Year's Ogonyok" on the ORT channel. On January 20, the premiere of the TV version of Sofia Rotaru's jubilee solo program "My Life is My Love", also released on video, took place. On March 2, Sofia Rotaru performed for the first time with a club concert at the Metelitsa entertainment complex, which has become an event in the cultural life of Moscow. On March 6, President of Ukraine L. D. Kuchma awarded Sofia Rotaru with the Order of the “Holy Princess Olga” for “significant labor achievements, high professionalism and on the occasion International Day the rights of women and the world ”. In April, the first part of the large All-Russian tour of the singer began, covering most of the regions of Russia from the Far East to the South of Russia. The second part of the tour took place in September 2002, before touring the cities of Germany.

In 2002, a new album "I Still Love You" was released. The official release of the album took place on April 23 at the Extraphone studio in Moscow. This album became the first production experience of Ruslan Evdokimenko, who attracted talented young authors Ruslan Kvintu to create songs. Nevertheless, most of the compositions, as in the previous album "Love Me" in 1998, are the works of the composer Vladimir Matetsky. The variety of styles of each song and the youth drive "Girls with a Guitar" (considered by music critics to be the weakest, and which Sofia Rotaru dedicated to the birth of her granddaughter) first appeared in more than 30 years of Sofia Rotaru's work along with remixes of the songs "You Can't Ask" (by Rimma Kazakova) and “My life, my love” (in R&B style). Part of the print run was presented in a gift design, which includes a bonus track of the new song "Let Go" and an exclusive gift-poster autographed by Sofia Rotaru.

On May 24, in front of the building of the International Center for Culture and Arts in Kiev, a solemn ceremony of opening the Ukrainian Alley of Stars was held, among which the "Star of Sofia Rotaru" was also lit. On August 7, on the birthday of the singer, Sofia Rotaru was awarded the highest title of Hero of Ukraine in Ukraine " for significant personal services to the Ukrainian state in the development of art, selfless work in the field of preserving national and cultural traditions, augmenting the heritage of the people of Ukraine". On August 9, 2002, Sofia Rotaru was awarded the Order of Honor by the Decree of the President Russian Federation « Per huge contribution in the development of pop art and the strengthening of Russian-Ukrainian cultural ties».

On August 17 in Yalta, on the City Day, Sofia Rotaru presented to more than 6 thousand spectators at the Avangard stadium a show with light, laser and pyrotechnic special effects specially brought from Kiev. Also in the summer on the label "Extraphone" (Moscow, Russia) there were remastered versions of the albums "Golden Songs 85-95" and "Khutoryanka". Part of this edition was presented in a gift box with a bonus track and an autographed poster of the singer.

On October 23, after another stroke, Sofia Rotaru's husband Anatoly Kirillovich Evdokimenko (producer and artistic director of the Chervona Ruta group, director of most of the singer's concert programs) died in a Kiev clinic. Sofia Rotaru canceled all concert performances and television filming, refused to participate in the filming of the musical "Cinderella", for the first time in 30 years did not take part in the finals of the "Song of the Year" festival. After a bereavement, Rotaru temporarily stopped active touring.

On December 25, the official release of the collection of songs by Sofia Rotaru “ The Snow Queen", Released on the label" Extraphone "(Moscow, Russia). Part of the circulation of the album came out with an exclusive gift - a poster of the singer.

In 2002, the official release of the video version of the film "Where are you, love?" directed by Valeriu Gagiu, released by the Moldova-Film studio in 1980. The video version of the film was published by ARENA Corporation. Starring Sofia Rotaru, Grigore Grigoreu, Konstantin Konstantinov, Evgeny Menshov, Ekaterina Kazemirova, Victor Chutak. The singer begins cooperation with guitarist Vasily Bogatyrev.

According to the results of 2002, Sofia Rotaru took the 2nd place in popularity among all domestic performers and groups in Russia (the study was conducted by the sociological service of the Gallup Institute).

On April 11, 2003 Sofia Rotaru got the composition "White Dance" by Ukrainian authors Oleg Makarevich and Vitaly Kurovsky. New stage her work began with performances in the Rossiya Concert Hall in Moscow in honor of the laying of a personalized star on the alley in front of the hall. The main authors working with Rotaru are the composers Ruslan Kvinta (One Viburnum), Oleg Makarevich (White Dance) and (I Loved Him, Alone in the World), as well as the poet Vitaly Kurovsky. In the same year, an album-dedication to "The One" was released, in memory of her husband Sofia Rotaru, with new songs and arrangements in Ukrainian and Moldavian languages, as well as the collection "Listopad".

In 2004, after a four-year hiatus, Sofia Rotaru gave two large solo concerts in Chicago and Atlantic City, where she performed in one of the most prestigious halls - the Taj Mahal casino theater (in 2001, the tour there was disrupted due to the fact that the sound engineer did not receive a visa).

In 2004 the album “The Sky is Me” and “Lavender, Khutoryanka, Further Everywhere ...” were released, In 2005 - “I Loved Him”.

In 2004, 2005 and 2006 Sofia Rotaru became the most beloved singer in Russia according to polls of one of the rating sociological agencies.

2007: 60th Anniversary - Present

On August 7, 2007 Sofia Rotaru celebrated its 60th anniversary. Hundreds of fans, as well as famous artists and politicians came to Yalta from all over the world to congratulate the singer. The President of Ukraine awarded Sofia Rotaru the Order of Merit, II degree. A gala reception on the occasion of the anniversary was held at the Livadia Palace.

The singer's honors continued in September in Sochi, where one of the competition days was dedicated to her work at the Five Stars music competition for young performers. And in October 2007, S. Rotaru's jubilee concerts were held in the State Kremlin Palace, in which popular performers from Russia (A., and others) and Ukraine (Evgenia Vlasova, Tank on Maydan Congo, and others) took part.

The last unreleased single of 2007 "I am your love" took first place, being for four weeks in the "Golden Gramophone" chart of Russian Radio. From March to May 2008, Sofia Rotaru was on a jubilee tour of Russia.

Currently, Rotaru participates in group concerts and television programs, sometimes going on small tours. He is in excellent physical and vocal shape, has great authority in the Ukrainian and Russian musical circles. Doctors forbade Rotar to do facial plastic surgery.

In October 2011, Sofia Rotaru holds anniversary concerts in Moscow (Kremlin) and St. Petersburg (Ice Palace). The concerts are timed to coincide with the 40th anniversary of creative activity. Rotaru is preparing a special program with premieres and new remakes especially for these dates. Due to low-quality organization, high ticket prices, insufficient advertising, concerts are held in incomplete halls. And if in the Kremlin in 2 days the halls were 80% full, then in the Ice Palace of Peter Rotaru was able to collect only a little more than half of the hall. The organizers of the concert suffered heavy losses, including resellers, who gave tickets to the front rows of the stalls almost for nothing. The singer herself, having quarreled with the organizers, said backstage that she would never give recitals in the capitals again. Over the past 20 years, this was the singer's first tour in capitals with such a low occupancy rate.

After counting all Rotaru's songs performed in the finals of the Song of the Year festival, it turned out that Rotaru holds an absolute record among all participants in the entire history - 83 songs performed at 38 festivals (1973-2011, except 2002).

Family

Parents

Father - Rotar Mikhail Fedorovich (22.11.18 - 12.03.04)
Mom - Rotar Alexandra Ivanovna (17.04.20 -16.09.97)

Brothers

Rotar Anatoly Mikhailovich (08.08.55g)
Rotar Evgeniy Mikhailovich (03.02.57)

Sisters

Rotar Zinaida Mikhailovna (11.10.42)
Rotar (Khlyabich) Lidia Mikhailovna (08.04.51g)
Rotar (Pigach) Aurika Mikhailovna (22.10.58) Ukrainian pop singer

Evdokimenko Anatoly Kirillovich (01.20.1942-23.10.2002) People's Artist of Ukraine, musician, artistic director of the group "Chervona Ruta" ..

Children

Evdokimeno Ruslan Anatolyevich (24.08.70g)

Sofia Rotaru News

Sofia Mikhailovna Evdokimenko-Rotaru decided to celebrate her 67th birthday this time in Spain. On August 7 this year, she spent only in a close circle of the closest people. Aurelia Mikhailovna Rotaru, dear 55-year-old se ...

Sergei Lavrov, director of Sofia Rotaru, shared with the public information that Sofia Rotaru never had Russian citizenship. She is often blackmailed in connection with the fact that she allegedly renounced Russian citizenship ...

Photos by Sofia Rotaru

Childhood and the singer's family

The future star was born in 1947 in the distant Bukovina village of Morshintsy. Sofia's parents were simple village workers who worked in agriculture for many years. In addition to the vociferous girl, the family had two more sisters and three brothers. At the same time, the eldest lost her sight in childhood, having contracted an infectious disease. Therefore, Sofia Mikhailovna was considered the eldest in the house and her workload was appropriate - her duties included milking a cow and selling greens at the local market. The younger ones in the house always helped the elders - they inspired family relations and mutual assistance from the very early childhood.

Sofia Rotaru as a child

As the artist and her relatives recall in a few interviews dedicated to the personal life and biography of Sofia Mikhailovna and denying the appearance of a new husband in the fate of the artist, Ukrainian and Moldovan songs were often sounded in the house. It was the father who became the lead singer in the large Rotar family at family gatherings or at the grape harvest.

Sofia Rotaru in her youth

Even at school, Sofia was called the "Bukovinian nightingale" for her unique vocal abilities. In addition to singing, the girl was actively involved in all-around, participated in all school activities and actively mastered folk musical instruments.

Growth in popularity

The young performer of Moldovan and Ukrainian folk songs became famous at the age of 15. Since 1963, Sofia literally, in one breath, won several singing competitions of various sizes and in 1964 worked out her first performance in the Kremlin Palace of Congresses.

Singer at the beginning of her career

In Soviet times, such a dizzying career was not successful for every resident of the capital, not like a young girl from a remote Bukovina village. It was then that the photo of the amateur artist got on the cover of the central edition "Ukraine". This fact played a little later in the personal life and biography of Sofia Rotaru, a huge role, as noted by journalists trying to find out the details about her new husband.

First love, only love

As the sisters of the artist say, the girl did not dream of a romantic relationship then. She wanted to make a career as a singer, for which she had to tour a lot and work at various concert venues in terms of equipment and remoteness from the center.

Anatoly Evdokimenko, the son of wealthy parents, served military service in the army, having a comfortable place in the regimental orchestra - a musically gifted young man perfectly performed bravura marches and anthems on the trumpet. Quite accidentally in the eye young man came across a cover with a black-eyed girl, cheerfully smiling at him from the cover of the central magazine. After reading a note about the "Bukovinian nightingale", the young man in love decided to win the favor of the young beauty, by all means.

Sofia Rotaru in the "Chervona Ruta" ensemble

To this end, Evdokimenko, after demobilization, organizes the Chervona Ruta ensemble and invites the young artist to work in a team created, as it turned out later, just for her. Along the way, he begins to gently look after Sophia and after 2 years becomes her husband, teacher, mentor and best friend - irreplaceable and dear person for 35 years.

Sofia Rotaru on stage

Child and work

In 1970, a son, Ruslan, appeared in the family. According to the artist's recollections, her husband was against children at such an early age for a long time - Evdokimenko really wanted to reach world heights in the work of the collective he managed, which at first worked on the basis of the Chernivtsi Regional Philharmonic. The young wife had to come up with a fantastic story about failures in the female body, thanks to which the stubbornness of the ambitious spouse was broken.

Contrary to popular belief that after the birth of a child, the career of a talented performer is threatened with oblivion, a year after Ruslan was born, the ensemble becomes mega-popular in the USSR. The first black-and-white musical is being shot about his work, filled with piercing folk and author's melodies performed by the "Bukovinian nightingale" in Ukrainian, Moldovan and Romanian.

With first husband

As Sofya Mikhailovna likes to tell in an interview, her fame would not have become so comprehensive and powerful if not for her family. It was the sisters who replaced little Ruslana's mother with long years her active touring activities. Until now, Sofya Mikhailovna regrets very much that she did not give birth to Ruslana's sister, sacrificing another child for the sake of her career.

And in front of her son, she felt guilty for a long time because of the constant absence of home. As the sisters of the artist tell, in childhood, the first thing Ruslan asked his mother, who returned from another business trip, when she should leave again. These naive words were filled with such longing for her beloved and busy mother that every time before leaving, Rotaru did not find a place for herself.

Sofia Rotaru with her family

By the way, Edita Piekha advised the beginning singer to add the prefix "u" at the end of the surname. According to the singer, this added French charm and mystery to the Moldovan sound.

The pinnacle of success

In 1973, Sofia Mikhailovna won the first prize at the Golden Orpheus competition, took the stage in the finals of the Song of the Year competition. Since that time, for thirty years, Rotaru has not missed a single episode of the legendary program, making an exception only in 2002 due to the death of her husband. And in the same 1974 the woman became the Honored Artist of the Ukrainian SSR. At that time, the singer was only 26 years old! After 2 years, she was awarded the title of Honored Artist of the Moldavian SSR, and in 1979 Sofia Mikhailovna became Folk performer republican level.

Sofia Rotaru and Alla Pugacheva

In 1986, the press was told that the "Chervona Ruta" ensemble was returning to a repertoire consisting of folk songs, and the soloist was leaving for "free bread". The titanic work of Sofia Mikhailovna, in collaboration with the best authors of that time, did their job - the title of People's Artist of the Soviet Union was awarded to Rotaru in 1988. By the way, the Prima Donna received a similar title three years later, which gave rise to the myth of the rivalry between the two greatest singers of the Soviet and post-Soviet era.

Sofia Rotaru now

Long-term work for wear and tear has done its job - the artist is considered one of the wealthiest representatives of show business in the post-Soviet space;

private mansion in Pyatikhatki (Koncha-Zaspa);
a luxury hotel in Yalta;
own house on the Black Sea coast;
comfortable apartment in Kiev.

In addition, Rotaru never forgot about her brothers and sisters - Sofia Mikhailovna always took upon herself all the costs of providing them with decent housing, clothing, education for children.

Sofia Rotaru and Vasily Bogatyrev

In addition, the woman devotes a lot of time to her own family - her son works as the concert director of the parent, her daughter-in-law became her producer and closest assistant. The descendants of the national favorite are successfully mastering domestic and foreign show business in all its manifestations:

granddaughter Sofia has been successfully working in the modeling industry for many years;
grandson Anatoly is one of the most successful photographers in the high fashion industry.

Now, due to the unfavorable political situation, Sofia Rotaru, whose personal life and biography are inextricably linked with Russia and Ukraine, is trying not to participate in inciting ethnic hatred. So, the artist celebrated her 70th birthday in a neutral territory - in Baku. At the same time, there was no news about her new husband in the press.

There have always been legends about the artist herself, retold in a whisper in the kitchen and provoked by quite justified situations in the singer's life:

Sofia Rotaru today

moving to Yalta in 1975. There were rumors about the artist's terrible illness - by the age of 30 she was too thin. In fact, Sofia Mikhailovna did not have any tuberculosis. It was just that at that time the local secretary of the regional party committee was extremely favored by the artist's work, who created the most favorable conditions for living and working for Sofia Mikhailovna and the members of her ensemble. On the contrary, the Chernivtsi party apparatus, fearing sanctions from higher authorities, reacted sharply to the growing popularity of the Chervona Ruta ensemble abroad. It was then that for the first time the collective became restricted to travel abroad, and firmly settled in the Crimea in state apartments. For 5 years, the ensemble worked out its prosperous existence on the generous Tavrian land with numerous tours of the collective and state farms of the peninsula;
voice problems. The interest in the artist's health increased once again after the release of the film "Soul", shot by the ex-husband of Pugacheva. It was during the period of work on the film that Sofia Mikhailovna lost her voice. Working for wear and tear for many years has done its "dirty" job and the artist underwent surgery on the vocal cords. The intervention was unsuccessful, the scars on the artist's "working tool" remained for life.

Thanks to the above article, an ordinary reader will be able to get acquainted with the life of a famous Soviet singer. Now, the greatest fame, Sofia Rotaru acquired on the territory of her homeland - Ukraine.

As for creative talents, many residents of the post-Soviet space know her voice. It is noteworthy that she sings in a contralto voice - a fairly good indicator for a singer. In addition to her vocal skills, Sofia Rotaru boasts a large number of awards and titles that she received in various periods. Now, the singer's discography has more than five hundred songs in various languages of the world. It will be interesting for many to get acquainted with the life and creative path - both ordinary readers and fans who have missed some points. Let's get started.

https://youtu.be/A1fHKKUtP4I

Height, weight, age. How old is Sofia Rotaru?

First of all, a biography should begin with the external indicators of a particular person. This will be especially interesting for fans who follow the singer's life. The main data, as you already understood, is height, weight, age. How old is Sofia Rotaru - just such a question can be heard from those who are familiar with her songs from early childhood. The approximate height is just over 169 centimeters, and the weight is 64 kilograms.

In the summer of 2018, celebrate her 71st birthday Sofia Rotaru. Photos in your youth and now will help you understand how the singer has changed over such a period of time. We hasten to say that everything is in order - she monitors her appearance and supports her in every possible way.

Further, the readers will be interested in the biography of Sofia Rotaru with the date of birth, which we will present for your study. The future singer was born in Marshintsy, in 1947. The village, at the moment, is located on the territory of Ukraine. In view of some historical events Sofia has Romanian roots. Father Michael, after the birth of his daughter, worked in the vineyards, before that he participated in the Great World War II... There were six children in total. Due to a bureaucratic error, the singer has two birthdays - she herself was born on the seventh of August, and the ninth is indicated in her passport.

The environment from the very childhood influenced Sophia's talent. My sister was blind, and because of this she acquired perfect pitch. She could easily repeat any folk song, and later taught Sofia to sing. Later, the singer will repeatedly express her gratitude to her sister, who gave her a start in the musical world.

During her school years, she did not sit still and was distinguished by her energy. Already in those days, relatives predicted a great future. A large number of hobbies also contributed to this. The girl went in for sports and did well in this business - at school she had the champion title in the field of all-around. In addition, young Sofia studied acting and, of course, music. Various amateur performances did not do without the participation of the singer, gradually increasing the level of skill.

Already in the school period, Sofia could boast of a strong contralto, and the first tour did not go without the apt nickname - "Bukovinian nightingale".

Real fame came very quickly. It all started in 1962 - the singer wins a regional competition. Thanks to this, it reaches the regional level, in which it also wins a prize. In 1964, Sofia Rotaru won the talent festival, thus gaining recognition from the entire Soviet Union.

It turned out to reach the world level after 4 years, at the world festival. Young people from all over the world were gathered there, and journalists from other countries noticed her talent. 1971 becomes a landmark - Sofia's compositions are used in the film "Chervona Ruta". Thanks to this, he collects his own pop ensemble and receives nationwide recognition.

Two years later, Rotaru becomes an Honored Artist of the Ukrainian SSR, and this is at the age of 26. This prompted her to record a song album, which is dated 1974. After two years, she leaves for Yalta, and for her activities becomes the People's Artist of the Ukrainian SSR. Songs in various languages expand the geography of demand - Europe also invites Sofia to perform.

In 1986, there are changes in creativity - the group breaks up, and the singer decides to lead solo career... Of course, there was some change in direction. Since that time, various hits have appeared - "Moon", "It was", "Only this is not enough." There are touring tours almost every year, and Rotaru visits almost all corners of his homeland.

After the collapse of the USSR, interest in her person does not fade, and even vice versa - listeners are getting younger. Two collections are released, which include the singer's hits. In the early 2000s, Sofia Rotaru received several more awards related to musical data. In addition to solo concerts, she performs with other pop performers - Nikolai Baskov, Rastorguev and others.

On top of that, the singer tries her hand at cinema. She has several roles in various films - some even became autobiographical.

Fans who follow latest news about your favorite singer wondering where does Sofia Rotaru live now, 2018? Of course, it is certainly difficult to answer such a question for sure, but having some facts, one can assume. So, as you probably know, the singer has several apartments and houses located in different places.

Not far from the city of Yalta, Sofia has a cottage. Its main advantage is that it is located near the Nikitsky Botanical Garden. Because the singer suffers from asthma, she often spent summer periods here. But now, due to some political and logistical problems, Rotaru rarely visits this property. In the same city, by the way, the artist has her own hotel, which receives visitors during the "velvet" seasons.

In the capital of Ukraine, Sofia Rotaru also has several apartments. One of them is located right in the central part, near the St. Sophia Cathedral. The singer herself admits that she keeps outfits there that were created by designers for concerts.

According to the latest data, Sofia lives in the settlement of Pyatikhatki, which is located twenty kilometers from Kiev. Here she has her own house, three stories high. The building is surrounded by a high fence, and there is a security service. There are video cameras along the perimeter. In addition, the site is surrounded by a coniferous forest.

You can often hear the question - how did Sofia Rotaru's personal life develop after her husband's death. Of course, it's worth noting right away - the loss of a loved one negatively affected the singer. It is not surprising, because the couple had known each other for almost half of their lives.

After the tragedy, Sofia Rotaru canceled all performances and concerts. Also, I missed the international competition "Golden Orpheus", which I attended for almost forty years in a row. After a time, when the artist came to her senses after the tragic loss, she no longer started a romantic relationship. In contrast, she continued to create in memory of her husband - many live performances were dedicated to him.

The family and grandchildren of Sofia Rotaru is a rather interesting part of the biography of the famous singer. As mentioned earlier, from early childhood, she was surrounded by creative people. Sophia's own sister was blind and had excellent hearing - she taught Russian folk songs and sang with her sister. The head of the family also did not lag behind - he had certain musical talents, and he helped both daughters in every possible way. It is noteworthy that before Russian songs, the family used Moldovan as the main language.

From her only son, the singer already has a grandson and a granddaughter, who, apparently, were named after the “old men” - Anatoly and Sofia.

As you can imagine, the singer did not have a large number of novels, as is now customary in show business. Sofia Rotaru has one marriage, from which she has a son. Of course, various rumors appear on the network every now and then, main theme which are the children of Sofia Rotaru. Several times, the singer wanted to ascribe kinship with other children, but such statements only amuse the darling of millions.

We can assure you that the Soviet artist has one son Ruslan, who has already had two of his children - in 1994 and 2001. Thus, the Rotaru clan expanded, however, under the name of her husband - Evdokimenko.

The son of Sofia Rotaru, Ruslan Evdokimenko with his wife Svetlana, is becoming more and more relevant for netizens. Photos of young people can be found in the public domain. By the way, the firstborn was born to the couple in 1970.

As you know, Ruslan followed in the footsteps of his parents and decided to connect life with art, but in a more modern direction. Now, he works as a music producer, and is quite popular. His wife is also involved with creativity - she is an executive producer. As you can see, the Rotaru clan contains exclusively people of art. It remains to wait for the choice of profession the grandchildren of the folk singer will make.

Sofia Rotaru's husband is Anatoly Evdokimenko. Who is the new husband?

A topic that is not devoid of popularity is the husband of Sofia Rotaru, Anatoly Evdokimenko. Who new husband? - spoke the media a few years after the tragedy. The press tried to guess the new chosen one, but everything turned out to be easier. The singer remained faithful to her husband, and after the death of Anatoly, she no longer started relationships with men.

The acquaintance of the future spouses took place in 1964. Then, Sofia Rotaru got on the cover of "Ukraine" - a popular magazine. Anatoly, who loved the art of music, quickly found the singer and made an acquaintance. After a while, the young people decided to create their own ensemble “Chervonu Rutu”.

Already in 1968, the musicians legalized their relationship by playing a wedding. Anatoly had to go to the Far East to undergo student practice. Sofia Rotaru went with him, where she taught music lessons. Two years after the wedding, the firstborn was born.

Until the death of her husband, both spouses led a joint musical activity- Anatoly often helped organize concerts.

As you already know, today's singer is seventy years old. Despite this, she still looks relatively young. And those who follow her life will say - in spite of everything, age-related changes are almost imperceptible on the artist.

Of course, because of this state of affairs, photos of Sofia Rotaru before and after plastics are gaining popularity. It is difficult, of course, to name the exact date, and it makes no sense - there are several anti-aging procedures, and all are performed at different periods. First of all, experts note facelifts and body shaping, which helped Rotar to maintain his youth. In addition, it is worth noting the lifting of age-old arches and the removal of wrinkles under the eyes.

As for the artist herself, she indirectly speaks about the use of the services of plastic surgeons. At the same time, she continues to take care of her own beauty and monitors her external indicators.

Due to the age of the idol, there is more and more discussion among fans regarding what Sofia Rotaru is without makeup and photoshop. Photos of this nature are easy to find using the Internet. Social networks are especially good at this, but more on that below.

Relatively recently, fans have found what Sofia Rotaru looks like without makeup - the photos on the network have pleased many. The thing is that in the photographs, the beloved singer of millions appears with her natural beauty, without additional retouching and decorations. Fans recommend Sofia not to abuse plastic surgery and leave her natural charm.

It's hard to imagine a modern star without a social media page. However, the official pages of Sofia Rotaru on the Internet appeared at the end of 2016. Since then, Instagram and Wikipedia Sofia Rotaru are gaining more and more popularity.

Wikipedia contains basic and comprehensive information about the artist's life. There you can find all the awards that Sofia Rotaru has earned. It will be interesting for representatives of the older generation to recall the main hits and films with the participation of the singer.

Despite the unquenchable fire in her eyes, grace and beating energy, Sofia Mikhailovna Rotaru celebrated her 65th birthday in 2012. But the legendary singer is not going to leave the stage and end her stunning creative career yet.

Childhood of the future star

The official biography of Sofia Rotaru contains some inaccuracies. The future legend of the Soviet stage was born in the small village of Marshintsy, Chernivtsi region. According to Sofia Rotaru, the date of birth in her certificate is incorrect. Sofia Mikhailovna Rotar, born on August 9, 1947, is registered in the village council. The real date of birth of the singer is August 7 of the same year.

In the difficult post-war years, children from working families worked with early years tirelessly. This is exactly the kind of childhood that the nugget from Marshinets had.

Controversial issue: "Sofia Rotaru who is by nationality?"

An interesting fact: between the two countries - Ukraine and Moldova - an unspoken dispute even arose over the right to call the singer his native. The artist herself proudly says that both countries are native to her. To what ethnos does Sofia Rotaru herself classify herself? Who is this great singer by nationality? Her father is Moldovan, and according to her passport she is Ukrainian.

The world after the Second World War has changed dramatically. The borders of the USSR, as one of the victorious countries, have seriously expanded. This is exactly the story that happened to the singer's native village. Until 1940, Bukovina was the territory of Romania, then it passed to the Ukrainian SSR. But be that as it may, a girl from a Bukovina village in childhood and could not think how incredible life path fate has prepared for her.

By the way, the name of Rotaru is real surname the singer's father. After the transfer of this territory to the "soviets", many residents were forced to change their surnames to Russian. This is how the surname Rotar appeared.

The singer's parents and family

Sophia's father - Mikhail Fedorovich Rotar - was a machine gunner during World War II, went through the entire war to Berlin. Later he returned to his native village and worked as a foreman of winegrowers. Mikhail Fedorovich was an excellent accordion player, had a good voice and ear. Probably, thanks to the gift of the head of the family, all Rotar's offspring were talented - they sang, danced, played musical instruments.

The mother of the future artist - Alexandra Ivanovna - was from a workers 'and peasants' family.

Sophia was the second child in the Rotar family. Subsequently, she had two more brothers and the same number of sisters. In total, the family had six children. Her older sister Zinaida was the support of her mother, and Sonya, in turn, was constantly on the side of Zinochka.

When Zina was four years old, she contracted typhus and lost her sight in one day. Sofia Mikhailovna is grateful to her elder sister Rotaru to this day. After all, my mother constantly worked, and Zina, despite her illness, looked after the kids.

Childhood years were very difficult for Sonechka. I constantly had to work, help my parents with the housework. The family was engaged in the cultivation of fruits and vegetables. After the harvest, Alexandra Ivanovna and Sonya got up even before sunrise and went to the market, sold the grown crop.

From early childhood, Sonya had a great voice and ear for music. The father believed in her future and said that his daughter would be a great singer. And the baby herself really wanted everyone to hear her singing.

But so far only those at home have enjoyed it - the younger sisters Lida, Aurika and brothers Tolik and Zhenya. By the way, the Rotar family was famous for their hospitality, and when guests came to their parents, the head of the family immediately organized a choir.

Youth years. Carier start

Sofia Rotaru, whose date of birth falls on the post-war years, admits that in many ways those difficult times tempered her character. After all, she had to constantly help her parents, and she also studied at school and in circles. The girl learned to play the dombra and button accordion, mastered singing, went to dance club... On weekends she sang in the church choir.

In 1962, Sofia Mikhailovna Rotaru took part in the regional amateur show for the first time and, of course, received her first prize. The next year, the young artist took part in the regional competition, where she also won first place. Already in 1964, she participated in the festival of young talents in Kiev, at which she became the winner.

A photo of the new Russian pop star appeared on the cover of the all-Union magazine "Ukraine". And the recognized master of the Ukrainian stage Dmitry Hnatyuk predicted a great future for the girl.

After such success, she was sent to study at the Chernivtsi School of Music, conductor and choir department.

Sofia Rotaru's husband. Love story

It is not surprising that, having seen such a beauty on TV screens and on the cover of a magazine, many eligible suitors lined up. But Sonya decided that she would marry only a simple guy from Chernivtsi.

The future husband of Sofia Rotaru Anatoly Evdokimenko saw his first and only love on the cover of Ukraine magazine. At this time, Evdokimov served in Nizhny Tagil. It turned out that the talented beauty is his countrywoman. The girl from the cover sunk into the heart of the young soldier so much that, having served the due date, he returned to his native Chernivtsi and found her.

At this time, Sofia Rotaru studied at a music school and performed at various song competitions.

After graduating from college, the artist went to Bulgaria, where she took part in the VIII World Song Festival, which was held in Sofia. The young star conquered this city, publications about her immediately appeared on the front pages of newspapers.

In the meantime, Anatoly entered the Physics and Mathematics Faculty of Chernivtsi University, additionally played the trumpet in the student orchestra. This team constantly accompanied Rotaru's performances. So they met. It was love at first sight. In 1968 they got married and began their joint journey, not only in their personal lives, but also on the stage.

Children of Sofia Rotaru

Sofia Rotaru's biography is complete interesting facts... Some publications write that the girl, in order to firmly bind the guy she liked, told him about pregnancy several months earlier. As a result, having passed in position eleven instead of nine months, Sonya gave birth to a son. The singer herself claims that she just threw a fishing rod and looked at her husband's reaction.

For the first few years after marriage, the singer rarely performed. She even had to postpone admission to the Institute of Arts in connection with the family's move to Novosibirsk. Anatoly underwent pre-diploma practice at the plant. In 1970, the singer became a mother. Sofia Rotaru calls the year of birth of her son Ruslan one of the happiest in her life. After all, it was during this period that their young family was constantly together.

A year later, the care of Ruslana had to be shifted onto the shoulders of her husband's parents. After all, the tandem Evdokimenko - Rotaru began to tour throughout the country and abroad.

On those rare days when the family got together, Sofia spent all the time with her son, picking him up from school for several days to enjoy the communication with the whole family. After all, these moments were so rare and precious.

And yet Ruslan grew up as a serious, purposeful young man. Today he is a successful architect and a pillar of his famous mother.

The creative path and recognition of Sofia Rotaru

Already in 1971, the career of the young singer rapidly began to gain momentum. It all started with an invitation to participate in the filming of the film "Chervona Ruta", where the young singer showed herself as a good actress. By the way, this is not her only role. Repeatedly Sofia Rotaru performed songs in the cinema, playing, as a rule, the main characters. Such films as "The Song Will Be Among Us", "Monologue of Love", "Golden Heart", "Where Are You, Love?", And many others will forever be remembered by the audience for the artist's soulful play.

After filming his debut film, Rotaru, together with her husband, organized a vocal and instrumental ensemble with the same name "Chervona Ruta". Anatoly Evdokimenko takes over the management of the team.

In 1973, the singer performed in Bulgaria at the Golden Orpheus competition and brought from there an award for the first place. In 1974 she performs at the Sopot festival and won the second place.

Each festival and competition in which the young singer took part became a prize for her. This is not surprising, because Sofya Mikhailovna has always had a special, heartfelt manner of performing not only folk, but also pop songs. Collaboration already at that time with many talented authors provided her with an excellent repertoire.

Eternal hits of Russian pop stars

The hit that brought all-Union popularity to the young artist was "Chervona Ruta". The biography of Sofia Rotaru is generally inextricably linked with these two words. Both the ensemble and the song - it was they who at one time became the hallmark of the singer. The singer's collaboration with Vladimir Ivasyuk continued with the composition "Ballad of Two Violins" and many others.

In 1974, the singer began to collaborate with Evgeny Doga and Evgeny Martynov. The song "Swan Fidelity" performed by Rotaru has become a hit of the past.

Sofia Rotaru calls songs and collaboration with composer Vladimir Matetsky as another gift of fate. "Lavender", "Moon, Moon", "It was, but passed", "Khutoryanka", "Wild Swans" and many other compositions are known to everyone today.

Sofia Mikhailovna herself calls each new song a small story with her own world of feelings and main characters.

Blow of fate

Unfortunately, the biography of Sofia Rotaru consists not only of ups and downs. There is a place for tragic moments in it. In 1997, the artist's mother, Alexandra Ivanovna, died. And in 2002, the singer's beloved husband, Anatoly, passed away. They lived together for 35 years.

The blow was so strong that the singer left the stage and did not perform for about a year. New stage creative life Sofia Rotaru began with the song "White Dance".

The creative path in the new millennium

In 2003, a new album of the singer "The Only One" was released, dedicated to her husband. Since this year, Rotaru has been actively working, recording new compositions, and touring around the world. Only a loving family and creativity helped to look into the future, Sofia Rotaru admits. The love songs performed by her are dedicated to Anatoly.

In 2004, she gave her first concert in the United States in 4 years.

In 2007, the biography of Sofia Rotaru was replenished with another event - the sixtieth anniversary. Thousands of fans from all over the world gathered in Yalta to congratulate their beloved artist. In the same year she became the owner of the state order of the II degree "For Merit". Of course, the artist celebrated this date with her anniversary concerts in the Kremlin, which greatly delighted her fans.

Today, the singer sometimes goes on tour in Ukraine, Russia and neighboring countries, takes part in some music shows and competitions as a member of the jury.

The family of Sofia Rotaru is increasingly enjoying her presence in the family nest in the Crimean Yalta.

Plans for the future

Talking about future plans, Rotaru does not look far ahead. Today the world famous singer is a loving mother and grandmother of two beautiful grandchildren, Tolik and Sonya. Sofia Rotaru considers the year of birth of her grandchildren to be one of the most magical in her life, but, as the singer herself admits, she is not yet ready to become a great-grandmother.

Today Sofia Mikhailovna is as cheerful and energetic as at the beginning of her creative path... Who would have thought that in a few years this charming woman is going to celebrate her 70th birthday.

Sofia Rotaru is an outstanding singer of our time. Her songs are loved by millions. Despite her 66 years old, she amazes viewers with her irresistible appearance. They say about her that "to look perfect in any situation and under any circumstances" is her style of life.

Sofia Rotaru: biography, family, photo

Those who lived in the Soviet Union are not surprised by the stories of artists who, being born thousands of kilometers from Moscow, managed to achieve fame and recognition throughout the country. Real talent was appreciated in this country. Rotaru's biography originates in the distant village of Marshyntsy in western Ukraine, where in 1947 the future Soviet pop star Sofia Rotaru was born in the family of the wine grower Mikhail Rotar. Her childhood was not easy. The girl had to get up before sunrise and go to the market with her mother, stand behind the counter, and sometimes work in the field. After all, the family had six children, and Sofia was the eldest, after the blind sister Zoya, which means she was the main assistant of her parents. Despite many difficulties, Rotarei was not burdened with her life. Music always sounded in their house: all family members sang. From the first grade, Sofia sang in the school choir, as well as in the village church during the service. Her first musical instruments there were accordion and domra. Nevertheless, Rotaru's biography as a singer begins in 1962, when fifteen-year-old Sofia, having won a regional competition, goes to the regional review in Chernivtsi. Here she also becomes the winner. The next step is a trip to Kiev to the Republican Festival “Young Talents”. And again the girl will win. In 1964, she performed for the first time on the Kremlin stage and received many positive reviews regarding her voice. It seems her fate is sealed. Sofia decides to seriously study vocals and enters the music school in the city of Chernivtsi.

and creative successes

After graduating from college in 1968, she went as part of a delegation to the Ninth World Youth Festival in Sofia. As Bulgarian and Soviet newspapers and magazines later wrote, “Sofia from Ukraine conquered Sofia”. After this triumph, her photo was placed on the cover of Ukraine magazine. At the same time, somewhere in the Urals, a guy from the city of Chernivtsi, Tolya Evdokimenko, is doing military service, who, accidentally seeing his compatriot on the cover of the magazine, falls in love with the girl in the photograph and decides, after the end of the service, to find her by all means. Most importantly, he knows her name.

The biography of Sofia Rotaru (photos from the wedding are still kept in Sofia Mikhailovna) in 1968 makes a sharp turn, and she, being a very young girl, gets married, promising her mother that this marriage is for life. And so it will be. Sofia and Anatoly were inseparable until the end of his days (A. Evdokimenko died in 2002). Two years later, the happy couple had a son, Ruslan. And this is undoubtedly the most significant of all the events that Rotaru's biography tells about. Soon the music film "Chervona Ruta" will be released, in which the main role is played by the Ukrainian singer Sofia Rotaru. Participation in this project brings the young woman all-Union glory. She creates her own ensemble, which she calls the same as the film that contributed to her success - “Chervona Ruta”. Her husband becomes the artistic director of the ensemble. Together with her team, Sofia Rotaru traveled all over the Soviet Union and camps. Her name was on everyone's lips. Such celebrities as Arno Babadzhanyan, Oscar Feltsman, David Tukhmanov and others wrote songs for her. Any song sung by Sofia won the Song of the Year award. However, the most hit songs were the songs of the composer V. Matetskiy: “Lavender”, “Moon, Moon”, “It was, it was, it was, but it's gone”, etc.

Conclusion

After the People's Artist of the three republics (Ukraine, Moldova and Russia), as well as the entire Soviet Union, she retained all her fans. The biography of Rotaru continues to be replenished today with new facts telling about awards, grand concerts, presentations and performances of an outstanding singer of our time.