Andrej Kucharský

Kucharský's mother was a Russian singer, so already while still studying veterinary medicine, he took voice lessons – first in Bratislava, then with Tito Schipa in Italy. He made his debut as Lenskij in 1956 at the Slovak National Theater in Bratislava, whose member he was until 1965, with guest appearances in Prague, Moscow, Leningrad, Kyiv, Warsaw, Sofia, Budapest, Belgrade. In 1965, he was officially allowed to go West (rare luck for a ČSSR singer), and became a member of the Salzburg Landestheater and the Nürnberg opera theater for two years, then went to Dortmund for one season. 1967–71, he was a member of the Munich Staatsoper, and 1975–81, of the Munich Gärtnerplatztheater. 1980–82, he sang in Mainz. Guest appearances: Bregenz Festival, Vienna Staatsoper, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Deutsche Oper am Rhein, Hamburg, Stuttgart, Frankfurt, Köln, Teatre del Liceu Barcelona.

He had an unusually wide repertory, from Idomeneo to Pelléas, from Almaviva to Otello. In concert, he sang well into his 60s. From 1987 to 2004, he taught Slavic Vocal Music at the music academy in Munich.

Reference 1: Kutsch & Riemens, reference 2

I would like to thank Michal Pekárek for the recording and the picture.