Opera Singer. A noted dramatic soprano of Lithuania, the Soviet Union, and Poland, she was also for many years a distinguished professor of voice. Born in the small village of Naliboki in what was then eastern Poland, she trained at the Conservatory of Vilnius, Lithuania, and joined the Lithuanian Opera upon her 1947 graduation. During her dozen years there she was a frequent guest at the Marinsky Theatre of St. Petersburg and at Moscow's Bolshoi Opera, her portrayals including Tatiana of Tchaikovsky's "Eugene Onegin" and Lisa from the same composer's "The Queen of Spades", at least three Verdi roles, the title lead of "Aida", Leonora in "La Forza del Destino", and Amalia from "Un Ballo en Maschera", Xenia from Mussorgsky's "Boris Godunov", three of Puccini's ladies, the jealous lead of "Tosca", the doomed seamstress Mimi from "La Boheme", and the heroine Minnie in "The Girl of the Golden West", the soprano leads of Polish composer Stanislaw Moniuszko's "Hulka" and "The Haunted Manor", and Georges Bizet's cigarette girl "Carmen". In 1959, Jadwiga relocated to Poland where she became a principal soloist of Opera Lodz while making acclaimed appearances at Warsaw and Bytom. Married to basso Stanislaw Michonski (deceased 2012), she held a professorship at the Academy of Music in Lodz from 1963 until 2006, a position that resulted in her teaching two generations of Polish singers. Jadwiga's honors were many including designation as People's Artist of the Lithuanian SSR, the State Prize of the USSR, the Order of Lenin, the Knight's Cross of the Order of Polish Rebirth, and Poland's Medal Gloria Artis. At her death from the effects of advanced age she could be heard on some live recordings of her performances.
Opera Singer. A noted dramatic soprano of Lithuania, the Soviet Union, and Poland, she was also for many years a distinguished professor of voice. Born in the small village of Naliboki in what was then eastern Poland, she trained at the Conservatory of Vilnius, Lithuania, and joined the Lithuanian Opera upon her 1947 graduation. During her dozen years there she was a frequent guest at the Marinsky Theatre of St. Petersburg and at Moscow's Bolshoi Opera, her portrayals including Tatiana of Tchaikovsky's "Eugene Onegin" and Lisa from the same composer's "The Queen of Spades", at least three Verdi roles, the title lead of "Aida", Leonora in "La Forza del Destino", and Amalia from "Un Ballo en Maschera", Xenia from Mussorgsky's "Boris Godunov", three of Puccini's ladies, the jealous lead of "Tosca", the doomed seamstress Mimi from "La Boheme", and the heroine Minnie in "The Girl of the Golden West", the soprano leads of Polish composer Stanislaw Moniuszko's "Hulka" and "The Haunted Manor", and Georges Bizet's cigarette girl "Carmen". In 1959, Jadwiga relocated to Poland where she became a principal soloist of Opera Lodz while making acclaimed appearances at Warsaw and Bytom. Married to basso Stanislaw Michonski (deceased 2012), she held a professorship at the Academy of Music in Lodz from 1963 until 2006, a position that resulted in her teaching two generations of Polish singers. Jadwiga's honors were many including designation as People's Artist of the Lithuanian SSR, the State Prize of the USSR, the Order of Lenin, the Knight's Cross of the Order of Polish Rebirth, and Poland's Medal Gloria Artis. At her death from the effects of advanced age she could be heard on some live recordings of her performances.
Bio by: Bob Hufford
Advertisement
See more Pietraszkiewicz memorials in:
Advertisement
