Semen Hulak-Artemovsky

Semen Stepanovych Hulak-Artemovsky (, also referred to as Semyon Gulak-Artemovsky and Artemovs’kyj) (February 16 1813 – April 17 1873), was an opera composer, baritone, actor, dramatist and pioneer of Ukrainian theatre who worked in Imperial Russia. He is known mainly for his comic opera Zaporozhets za Dunayem (‘A Zaporozhian Beyond the Danube’), as well as for his dramatic talent and his powerful, rich baritone voice. He was the nephew of the poet and a close friend of the Ukrainian poet and artist Taras Shevchenko. Biography Semen Stepanovych Hulak-Artemovsky was born in Gorodishche, Kiev Governorate (today part of Ukraine), the son of a priest. He studied at the Kyiv Theological Seminary from 1835 to 1838. In 1838, at the age of 25, having gained the attention of the Russian composer Mikhail Glinka, Hulak-Artemovsky was brought to the capital St Petersburg. There he received vocal training from Glinka, and entry into the Imperial Chapel Choir. The following year, Hulak-Artemovsky left St Petersburg to continue his studies in Italy. In 1841, towards the end of his stay, he began performing opera in Florence. Upon his return to St. Petersburg the following year, Hulak-Artemovsky b