Paul Robeson (redirected from Robeson, Paul (Bustill))

Robeson, Paul 

Born Apr. 9, 1898, in Princeton, USA; died Jan. 23, 1976, in Philadelphia. American basso, dramatic actor, and social figure.

Born into a poor Negro family, Robeson received a law degree from Columbia University in New York. He performed as a dramatic actor in American and British theaters. His best role was that of Othello, which he performed in 1930 at the Savoy Theatre in London. In 1925, Robeson debuted as a singer with a performance of Negro folk songs. He became internationally known after his concert tour through Europe from 1926 to 1928. In 1936 and 1937, Robeson performed for antifascist fighters in Spain. During World War II he made passionate pleas to his audiences to join the struggle against fascism. He toured a great deal until the 1960’s, including the USSR, which he had visited for the first time in 1934.

Robeson possessed a soft and deep bass with a beautiful timbre and a wide range. He sang in 20 languages, and his repertoire included Negro and American folk songs, songs by Spanish and German antifascists, including songs from the repertoire of E. Busch, and folk songs from the USSR. In 1933 he made his first film. Robeson was a member of the World Peace Council and, from 1958, an honorary professor of the Moscow Conservatory. He received the International Peace Prize in 1950 and the International Lenin Prize For Strengthening Peace Among Nations in 1952.

WORKS

In Russian translation:
Na tom ia stoiu. Moscow, 1958.
“Mysli artista.” Sovetskaia muzyka, 1958, no. 11.

REFERENCES

Gorokhov, V. Pol’ Robson. Moscow, 1952.
Afinogenov, A. Dnevniki i zapisnye knizhki. Moscow, 1960. Pages 203, 528.
Kudrov, K. “Pevets bor’by, pevets svobody.” Sovetskaia kul’tura, Apr. 6, 1973.
Robeson, E. G. Paul Robeson, Negro. New York, 1930.
Seton, M. Paul Robeson. London, 1958.

G. M. SHNEERSON