Dmitri Smirnov

as Romeo in "Romeo and Juliette" by Gounod

Dmitri Smirnov
1882-1944
Russian Tenor
Studied with Emiliya Pavlovskaya and Alexander Dodonov .Début in St Petersburg in 1903 as Gigi in “La Camorra” by Esposito .Became a member of the Bolshoi company in Moscow, in 1904 singing there until 1910. He then sang at the Mariinsky Theatre, St Petersburg, from 1911 to 1917. French début at the Paris Opéra in 1907. Invited to appear at the Metropolitan Opera, where he sang in 1911-12. In 1914, he performed in the "Russian Seasons" at London's Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. He would not sing in the United States again except for two performances of Tchaikovsky's The Queen of Spades with theWashington National Opera—a semi-professional company not related to its present namesake—in 1926.Left his native land after the Russian Revolution of 1917, preferring to continue his career in the West. Among the cities which he visited were Berlin, Monte Carlo, Milan, Rome, Madrid and Buenos Aires. Gave his last recitals during the 1930s. He taught singing in London and Athens and later retired to Riga