Leonid Portnoy was born into a creative family. My father taught at a famous dance school. And her mother, a graduate of the Kyiv Conservatory, was a professional vocalist (coloratura soprano). It is not difficult to guess that since childhood, the family had a great influence on the development and direction of the interests of the future chansonnier.
By the age of 20, Leonid had established himself as a serious soloist in the then very popular VIA "Crickets". The team was a kind of beat group that did not disdain performances in restaurants and performed world songs by The Beatles and The Rolling Stones.
In parallel, he also showed himself in the House of Folk Art, thanks to which he mastered acting skills to perfection. And just two years later, the Odessa Philharmonic found a new star. Subsequently, when Leonid had to immigrate to the United States, he more than once recalled with gratitude these years, which became, for sure, decisive for him.
From 1977 to 1983 Portnoy lived in Chicago. Pleasure and nostalgia are embodied for him in the possibility of musical performance. And Leonid does not miss the slightest opportunity. Soon he is recognized by local musical figures and offered a joint project in Canada. In 1983, he moved to Toronto, where he was offered a place in the best institution in the city. Here he works with Spanish, Russian and Italian musicians.
Such a rich experience and everyday vocal perfection almost automatically leads to the recording of the first album in 1985 ("Halfway"), with which concert tours begin in the USA, Canada, Israel, Germany. As Leonid himself later admits, it was the period of work in Toronto that turned out to be important and directly influenced the sound of his compositions.
Subsequent records are not long in coming. And the Night Stars come out one after another "(1987)," Be with me "(1988)," And life goes on "(1989). In 1990, Leonid Portnoy took first place at the Italian Song Festival in Toronto. Almost immediately after this was followed by the release of the new album "Symphony of Love" in 1991. Around the same period, he made acquaintance with Philip Kirkorov.
A little later, in 1994, Portnoy decides to visit Russia to shoot a video sequence for the song "Son and Daughter" from his new album "Freeze Frame" (1994). Here, the already accomplished artist also meets Igor Krutoy, Philip Kirkorov, Tigran Keosayan (who will become the director for the video "Son and Daughter", as well as for some other works), Mikhail Tanich, Igor Demarin. According to Leonid, it is they who will play a decisive role in the artist's decision to move to Moscow.
In 1995, together with the album "Give me hope", the most recognizable track "Who created you like this" is presented to this day. The following years will also become no less successful: "Son and Daughter" (1996), "Let's disperse" (1997). In the period from 1999 to 2002, Portnoy repeatedly tours many cities in America, Canada, Israel and Germany. In May 2002, the artist comes home to Moscow, and, inspired by a long tour, almost immediately begins work on the collection Life Goes On (2003).
The next period, the artist deservedly enjoys the rest. And almost all concert venues in Moscow strive to book a concert by Leonid Portnoy. In 2008, the next collection "Who Created You Like This" was released, which included the most famous hits, previously published on separate albums.
A kind of recognition for the artist was a state award. Leonid Portnoy was awarded the Highest Order of Public Recognition "Honorary Citizen of Russia".
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In this article, you will learn about who Leonid Portnoy is. Biography, photos and features of the creative path of this artist will be given below. We are talking about a chanson performer.
Biography
So, our hero is the singer Leonid Portnoy. His biography began in Odessa. It was in this city that he was born in 1950, on November 6th. His parents are professional musicians. The mother of our hero graduated from the Kyiv Conservatory, choosing a vocal class. My father was a dance school teacher. It is obvious in what creative environment Leonid Portnoy was brought up. His biography received a new round of development in the seventies. During this period, while in Odessa, he was the vocalist of the Crickets group.
Creation
It was in the composition of the vocal and instrumental ensemble that Leonid Portnoy began his activity. His biography during this period was closely connected with the House of Folk Art. Later he worked at the Odessa Philharmonic.
But it turned out that the musician emigrated. America for later life was chosen by Leonid Portnoy. His biography at that time was filled with performances. They took place in restaurants in Chicago. This continued from 1977 to 1983. In 1983, the artist moved to Canada, namely to Toronto. There he sang together with Russian, Spanish and Italian musicians.
In 1985 Portnoy recorded his debut work. She became the album "Halfway". In 1987, the disc "Night Stars" was released. In 1988, the album "Be with me" appeared. In 1989, the work "And life goes on" was recorded. In 1991, the "Symphony of Love" appeared. Also, his authorship belonged to the albums: “Freeze frame”, “Give me hope”, “Let's disperse”, “Life goes on” - one of the most famous.
Fame
In 1990, our hero became the winner of the Italian song festival, which was held in Canada. In 1992, Philip Kirkorov, returning from Canada, where he visited the chansonnier, released a joint vinyl disc, which was called "Moscow-Toronto". In 1994, Leonid Portnoy went to Moscow. In the Russian capital, Tigran Keosayan, a well-known director, shot a video for the musician for a composition called “Son and Daughter”. This work has not left television screens for a long time.
In 1995, the same director shot the next video clip for the song "Old Friend". In 1998, Igor Dimarin and Mikhail Tanich wrote a song specially for our hero called "Let's disperse." The video clip was shot by the director and cameraman. This work was also broadcast on television for a long time.
In the period from 1999 to 2002, the singer actively performs in the cities of America, Germany, and Israel. After a long tour, he returned to Russia. It happened in 2002, in the spring. The artist's songs are incredibly popular today, especially in karaoke bars. The most famous works "Son and Daughter" and "Who Created You Like This" later also became part of Philip Kirkorov's repertoire. In recent years, he has retired from show business. He led a quiet life.
The musician passed away when he was 65 years old. The death of his father was confirmed by the musician's son, Cyril. Now you know who Leonid Portnoy is. The biography of the artist is described in detail above.
The popular Russian chansonnier and songwriter Leonid Portnoy, who died in August 2016, was known not only to fans in our country. He was well known by Russian-speaking residents in the United States. And not only Russian speakers: Portnoy sang in English and Italian. His author's song "Son and Daughter" became one of Philip Kirkorov's hits. Leonid died quite suddenly, in his sleep, for no apparent reason. True, his son Cyril remembered that his father had a heart condition. Leonid Portnoy's wife, Tatyana, has not yet recovered from the shock.
Leonid's life took place on two continents and there were a lot of events in it that influenced his family life. He was married three times, as he admitted, once, to a journalist who interviewed him. Born in Odessa, Portnoy, together with his parents, left the country in the late 70s. From 1977 to 1983, he sang in restaurants and nightclubs in Chicago, and then moved to Canada, where in 1990 he won the Italian Song Festival. Probably his first two marriages happened at this time. Both of his wives, as he recalled, were 21 years old at the time of their wedding.
The third wife, Tatyana, oddly enough, was also 21 at the time of their marriage. At that time, she already had a son, Cyril, from her first marriage, to whom Portnoy replaced his deceased father. The 24-year-old son spoke about this, after the death of Leonid, with sincere gratitude and love. In 2002, the Portny family returned to Russia. Already middle-aged and tired of the eternal trips and concerts, Leonid preferred homeliness and tranquility to all parties. The family provided him with constant support, understanding and warmth.
They say that he drank heavily and smoked, was offended by the public, which quickly forgets their idols. In particular, Portnoy complained about this to producer Iosif Prigozhin: they spoke on the phone two months before their death. But lately, the singer, at the insistence of the family, saved his strength and tried to be calm. He valued the opinion of his wife and listened to her. The couple, as before, spent a lot of time together. Before coming to Russia, Tatyana often accompanied him to concerts and meetings with friends.
Living mostly abroad, Leonid Portnoy rarely became the object of attention of the Russian press. Therefore, information about his children may not be entirely accurate. According to Cyril, his father accepted him as his own, despite the existence of two children from previous marriages. From his words it is clear that in addition to two boys, Leonid also has a daughter - Sondra, whose photo, along with himself, he posted on his account on the Internet. Now, of course, she is already quite an adult girl.
It is noteworthy that Portnoy supplied all the pictures of his wife on the Web with affectionate remarks: “Beloved”, “My Tatyana”, “Lyubushka”. It was she who found him dead in the morning, suspecting nothing and hoping to live "happily ever after" with him. After this tragedy, the wife of Leonid Portnoy did not talk to anyone for a long time and did not want to go out into the street. She insisted that her husband should be buried in Canada, next to her parents, despite the high cost of transporting the body and the hassle.
Name: Leonid Yakovlevich Portnoy
Date of Birth: November 6th, 1950 | scorpion
Place of Birth: Odessa, USSR (Ukraine)
Date of death: August 30, 2016 | 65 years old
A place of death: Moscow, Russia
Career: Singer
Genre: variety chanson
Biography
Leonid Yakovlevich Portnoy was born on November 6, 1950 in Odessa in a creative family. My father taught at a famous dance school. And her mother, a graduate of the Kyiv Conservatory, was a professional vocalist (coloratura soprano). It is not difficult to guess that since childhood, the family had a great influence on the development and direction of the interests of the future chansonnier.
By the age of 20, Leonid had established himself as a serious soloist in the then very popular VIA "Crickets". The team was a kind of beat group that did not disdain performances in restaurants and performed world songs by The Beatles and The Rolling Stones.
In parallel, he also showed himself in the House of Folk Art, thanks to which he mastered acting skills to perfection. And just two years later, the Odessa Philharmonic found a new star. Subsequently, when Leonid had to immigrate to the United States, he repeatedly recalled with gratitude these years, which became for him, quite precisely, decisive.
From 1977 to 1983 Portnoy lived in Chicago. Pleasure and nostalgia are embodied for him in the possibility of musical performance. And Leonid does not miss the slightest opportunity. Soon he is recognized by local musical figures and offered a joint project in Canada.
In 1983, he moved to Toronto, where he was offered a place in the best institution in the city. Here he works with Spanish, Russian and Italian musicians. Such a wealth of experience and daily honing of vocals almost automatically leads to the recording of the first album "On the Half Way" in 1985, with which concert tours begin in the USA, Canada, Israel, Germany. As Leonid himself later admits, it was the period of work in Toronto that turned out to be important and directly influenced the sound of his compositions.
Subsequent records are not long in coming. And one after another, "Night Stars" (1987), "Be with me" (1988), "And life goes on" (1989) are published.
In 1990, Leonid Portnoy took first place at the Italian Song Festival in Toronto. Almost immediately this is followed by the release of the new album "Symphony of Love". Around the same period, he makes acquaintance with Philip Kirkorov.
And a little later, in 1994, Portnoy decides to visit Russia to shoot a video sequence for the song "Son and Daughter" from his new album "Freeze Frame" (1994). Here, the already established artist also meets Igor Krutoy, Philip Kirkorov, Tigran Keosayan (who will become the director for the video “Son and Daughter”, as well as for some other works), Mikhail Tanich, Igor Demarin. According to Leonid, it is they who will play a decisive role in the artist's decision to move to Moscow.
In 1995, together with the album "Give me hope", the most recognizable track to this day, "Who created you like this", is presented. The following years will also become no less successful: "Son and Daughter" (1996), "Let's disperse" (1997). In the period from 1999 to 2002. Portnoy repeatedly tours many cities in America, Canada, Israel and Germany. In May 2002, the artist arrived home, in Moscow, and, inspired by a long tour, almost immediately began work on the collection Life Goes On (2003).
In 2008, the next collection “Who Created You Like This” was released, which included the most famous hits, previously published on separate albums. A kind of recognition for the artist was a state award. Leonid Portnoy was awarded the Highest Order of Public Recognition "Honorary Citizen of Russia".
On August 30, 2016, Leonid Portnoy died in Moscow at the age of 66. The cause of his death was heart problems that haunted him for a long time.
