Valentina Tolkunova, a famous Soviet singer, lived an interesting life, full of the sorrows and joys of an ordinary person. But at the same time, throughout her life, she delighted listeners with her gentle and soulful voice.
Childhood
Valentina Tolkunova was born in the Krasnodar Territory. The father and mother of the future singer served on the railway. Valya grew up in a wonderful family, surrounded by love and good music. Valentina then conveyed this calmness and family warmth in her songs all her life. The singer's brother Sergei also became a famous musician.
Valentina knew by heart many songs of the then famous performers and often sang at home. In 1948, the family moved to Moscow, and Valya was soon accepted into the choir of the Central House of Railway Workers' Children, where Semyon Osipovich Dunaevsky became her teacher. These were the first steps of Valentina Tolkunova on the musical path.
Education
After graduating from school, Valentina was admitted to the conductor-choral department of the Moscow Institute of Culture. After graduation, the singer entered the Gnessin Institute and graduated as a vocalist. At the beginning of her career, the singer performed jazz music in a vocal and instrumental orchestra under the direction of Yuri Saulsky. But soon Tolkunova changed the genre of the songs she performed and began a solo career.
Creative way
Valentina Tolkunova always sang about people and for people. Her compositions were about something personal, dear - love, family, children, simple human joys. The timbre of Valentina Tolkunova's voice, gentle and affectionate, cannot be confused with anything.
Valentina Tolkunova successfully performed on all famous stages of the Soviet Union, performed music for films. She collaborated with such famous composers as Mikael Tariverdiev, Oskar Feltsman, Eduard Kolmanovsky.
She is familiar to the Russian listener from the songs "Tired Toys Sleep", "I Stand at a Half-Station", "I Can't Otherwise", "Snub-noses".
Personal life
Valentina Tolkunova was married twice. Her first husband was Yuri Saulsky, a musician, head of a creative team. But the marriage was short-lived, only 6 years. Probably, the reason for the breakup was the big difference in the age of the spouses - Valentina was almost 20 years younger than her husband.
A few years later, the singer met journalist Yuri Paporov, and soon the young people got married. The singer's only child, the son of Nikolai, was born in marriage.
Probably, this marriage also did not bring happiness to the singer. Yuri Paporov constantly traveled abroad on business trips and could be absent from home for years.
According to rumors, Valentina Tolkunova had another romantic relationship with physicist Vladimir Baranov. But the singer's lover was married, and she was married, and Valentina did not dare to break the bonds of marriage.
last years of life
Valentina Tolkunova was diagnosed with cancer back in 1992. After the treatment, the disease receded for some time, and the singer for another 16 years delighted listeners with her songs. But in 2010, the disease returned in an even more severe form, and Valentina refused treatment.
The singer passed away on March 22, 2010. At her grave, there is a flow of flowers from admirers of her work.
