Ruzhena Sikora is a Soviet pop singer. The performer was awarded the title of People's Artist of the Russian Federation. Sikora is included in one of the volumes of The Theater Encyclopedia together with Alexander Vertinsky, Lydia Ruslanova, Klavdia Shulzhenko and Leonid Utesov.
Sykora means titmouse in Czech. The singer inherited her surname from her father, singer and composer.
An uneasy path to a vocation
The future famous vocalist was born in 1916, in Novorossiysk, on June 16. From the age of three, the girl performed solo concerts in the courtyard of the house.
The father dreamed that his daughter would become a famous pianist. When the girl was eight, an old piano appeared in the house. On this instrument, Ruzhena began to study the profession. The girl did not leave him. Very soon, she confidently played her parent's entire repertoire.
Once Vladimir Vladimirovich invited his daughter to become his accompanist at one of the concerts. The performance went well. Ruzhena gradually got used to the scene. As a result, a family duet took place. The father-baritone performed, the schoolgirl-daughter accompanied him.
The performers traveled to clubs, city organizations, palaces of culture. Performances continued until the mid-thirties. Father suddenly passed away in 1936. From the age of eighteen, Ruzhena left the stage and went to work in the cooper shop of a local cement plant.
She had to select rivets for packing. The young worker, who worked without gloves, was pitied and sent to work as an accompanist-pianist in the plant's club. Films were shown every day. All Ruzhena's time passed in a stuffy and dark room.
She then skimmed through silent films to find a suitable accompaniment to the film. At home, the girl was only late at night. In the morning she hurried to the office again.
Sikora tripled to work in the accounting department of the Masloprom factory to receive food rations. She had to drink fish oil so as not to get sick from hunger.
Singing career
Ruzhena returned to the stage. Now she performed solo. Her beautiful voice quickly won over the listeners. His charm was complemented by fine manners and good looks. The young star made such a strong impression that the city authorities decided to send her to Rostov-on-Don to receive an education.
After brilliantly withstanding the tests of the admissions committee, Ruzhena became a student of the vocal department. She graduated from college in 1941. Even during her studies, the girl began to solo in the orchestra of the North Caucasian Railway.
The audience was captivated not only by her vocal skill, but also by her ability to play songs. At such concerts, the famous conductor and pianist Alexander Tsfasman drew attention to her. He offered the artist a job in a professional jazz orchestra, the first in the Union. Ruzhena could hardly believe in luck. She knew that only the stars were working with Tsfasman.
Together with the new collective, Sikora performed in May 1941 at the Green Theater in the capital at the All-Union Agricultural Exhibition. The girl had to leave the orchestra with the outbreak of the war. Ruzhena sang on the stage of the Udarnik and Khudozhestvenny cinemas.
Her freezing accompanist played with gloves, and the audience could hardly stand the cold. But the singer herself performed "Katyusha" in an open festive dress.
Solo performances
Despite the difficult situation, Sikora did not leave Moscow. She continued her performances. Then the girl became a member of the front-line concert brigade. Together with Mikhail Garkavi and a couple of dancers Anna Redel and Mikhail Khrustalev, she visited the front line more than once.
In 1946, Ruzhena Vladimirovna's popularity became nationwide. She won the pop art competition. Sikora again performed solo with Tsfasman. Since 1948, the singer began her solo career. She successfully chose lyrical and soulful songs for her repertoire. The vocalist prepared new compositions for each season. She was written by Fradkin, Blanter, Bogoslovsky.
One of the first on the stage Sikora began performing in foreign languages. She sang so well that Italian sailors who arrived on a friendship visit tried to talk to her, deciding that this language was also native to Sikora.
For her performance in a terrible storm in Norilsk, Ruzhena received a gratitude from the Ministry of Culture for her courage. Soon, the singer arranged her personal life, becoming the wife of the pianist Viktor Goryshnik. Now their concerts have turned into mini-performances. The vocalist told peculiar stories.
She constantly improved the skills of the performer, entered the Gnessin School. Even during such a period, Sikora did not stop performing.
Pass to eternity
During the tour, the car in which the singer and her husband were traveling had an accident. Ruzhena Vladimirovna was lucky and she survived. The vocalist spent seven months in the hospital.
She got to her feet, but could not perform again. The decision was not easy. Sikora left the stage at the peak of fame. She took up the education of young people. At the singing school of the capital's Central House of Art Workers, she began teaching.
More than nine dozen records remained with the recordings of songs performed by her. In April 1968, near Novorossiysk, sailors lowered a capsule with a message to descendants into the depths of the water. Among the documents in it was Sikora's entry. The singer received a document giving her the right to participate in the opening of the capsule in 2017.
The performer called him a pass to eternity. However, Ruzhena Vladimirovna did not live up to the specified time. She passed away in 2006.
