Minister of Culture and National Heritage Piotr Gliński twitted: "Bernard Ładysz, a legend of Polish opera, a wonderful singer, actor and soldier, a great Polish patriot, passed away a day after his 98th birthday."
"His extraordinary voice and outstanding performances will stay with us forever. May he rest in peace,” Gliński added.
Born in 1922 in Vilnius, now in Lithuania, Bernard Ładysz fought in the Home Army during World War Two. He was deported by the Soviets to Siberia. Having been caught during an attempt to escape, he was sent to a labour camp in Kaluga, where he worked at clearing the forest.
After the war, he settled in Warsaw, where he studied singing. After four years with the Polish Army Ensemble, he joined the Warsaw Opera company and remained its soloist for almost three decades.
The victory at the International Vocal Competition in Vercelli, Italy, in 1956, skyrocketed him to a brilliant international career, with performances in most of the world’s prestigious venues.
He was the first Polish singer to have recorded a solo LP for the Columbia label and the only Polish singer to partner Maria Callas, in the recording of Donizetti’s ‘Lucia of Lammermoor’ under Tullio Serafin for Columbia (1959).
Ładysz won particular renown for his roles in ‘Boris Godunov’, ‘Prince Igor’, ‘Aida’, ‘Rigoletto’, and Penderecki’s ‘The Devils of Loudun’. He sang in the first performances of Penderecki’s ‘Utrenya’ and ‘St Luke Passion’. He also appeared as Tevye in ‘Fiddler on the Roof’, as well as in several feature films, including Andrzej Wajda’s ‘The Promised Land’.
His distinctions included the Commander’s Cross with Star of the Order of Reborn Poland and an honorary doctor’s degree from the Music Academy in Warsaw.
(mk)