Rotaru after the death of her husband. Sofia Rotaru told the truth about her late husband, caring son and beloved grandchildren

Ten years ago, the creator of the Chervona Ruta ensemble, husband and producer of the famous singer, passed away

Anatoly Evdokimenko passed away when he was only 60 years old. The musician's heart stopped beating after his third stroke. Anatoly Kirillovich’s wife, the famous Ukrainian singer Sofia Rotaru, was touring in Germany at that time. She interrupted her tour and urgently flew to Kyiv to visit her husband. But Evdokimenko never regained consciousness, could not say goodbye to the one he loved more than anything in the world.

Anatoly Evdokimenko’s own career as a musician faded into the background - he became his wife’s first assistant, mentor and producer. They lived together for 34 years, learning cruel world show business hand in hand. First in Anatoly Evdokimenko’s native Chernivtsi, then they moved to the capital. The Evdokimenko family remained living in Chernivtsi. Two years before the musician’s death, his father passed away, followed by his mother. Now Anatoly’s older brother Valery Evdokimenko, who introduced Anatoly to music many years ago, lives in a large apartment in the very center of Chernivtsi.

“I’m only three years older than Tolya, but I always felt responsible for my younger brother,” says Valery Evdokimenko. “Our family has faced difficult trials. When Tolya was born, our father, a career military man, ended up in a concentration camp. For a long time we didn’t even know if he was alive. All care for the family fell on the shoulders of the mother, a teacher. junior classes. We evacuated to a small village in the Odessa region. But when the time of famine began, my mother realized that she and her two children would not survive there. Our distant relatives lived near Chernivtsi. Mom collected a few belongings and brought us to Bukovina by train. It was believed that here it was possible to at least feed the children. At this time we learned that my father had been transferred from a concentration camp to a penal battalion. It was tantamount to news of death. I remember my mother cried all night, and in the morning she told us: “We’ll stick together, sons.”

*Valery Evdokimenko (left) older than Anatoly for three years. Younger brother always obeyed my elders

- But your father returned after all?

A real miracle happened. Dad went through a concentration camp, a penal battalion, and then another camp. And at the end of 1946 he returned home completely rehabilitated. I was seven years old then, and Tolya was four. Already at that age we knew that the man should be in charge in the family. We ran to graze our nurse, the cow Zorka. She was surprisingly smart. It seems that she considered my brother and me to be her children. When the rain unexpectedly caught us in the field, we climbed under Zorka, and she stood there without moving the entire time while we were hiding from the downpour.

- Did Tolya grow up a musical boy?

We were both interested in music. When I was eight years old, I started asking my parents to buy an accordion. But the family lived very poorly; there was no money for an instrument. The only thing that mom and dad could buy us was a small violin. Since I did not want to give up my dream of an accordion, Tolya began to learn to play the violin. He mastered it quite quickly musical literacy, easily learned the most complex works. At that time we already lived in Chernivtsi, and there was a small closet in our house. This is what Tolya chose for his music lessons. He locked himself in a closet among sacks and wooden boxes and spent hours learning plays. I quickly changed music and got involved in science. I graduated from school with a gold medal, then university. Our professional paths with Tolya turned out to be different.

- But Anatoly did not continue to engage in creativity after school...

I entered a textile technical school, but only because of the desire to quickly start earning money. He was assigned to a cotton spinning factory. The working conditions were appalling, Tolya suffered from odors and dust. It was clear that such work could undermine your health. Then he decided to continue studying and entered the university at the physics department. He was engaged in optics, he had the ability to technical sciences. During my studies I started at musical orchestra play the trumpet.

- They say it was you who convinced your brother to master this instrument?

At that time I was studying in Lviv and often went to clubs. Was the most fashionable jazz music, and I became a real fan of hers. I remember after one of the concerts, which made a huge impression on me, I called Tolya and said: “I know what instrument you should play. This is a pipe." And Tolya began to study.

- Did he always obey you like an older brother?

Tolya and I are completely different in character. I am tough and domineering, and Tolya is soft, influenced from the outside. Of course, my opinion was important to him. Moreover, I never lost sight of what Tolik was doing, I tried to help him in everything. Thank God I had the opportunity for this. I followed the Komsomol line, then the party line, became the first secretary of the regional Komsomol committee, and rose to the rank of vice-governor of the region. During the Soviet Union, he could solve many problems. It was I who insisted that Tolya give up his profession as a physicist and take up music seriously. Even the parents did not interfere with this. Tolya started working like many musicians, playing at weddings and in restaurants. This brought him much more money than the salary of a simple engineer. On the top floor of the Chernivtsi House of Officers there was a hall where concerts were often held. When Tolik performed, half of the Chernivtsi girls came running to see him. He was prominent, handsome, slender, with an innate sense of taste. I don’t remember ever putting on an unironed suit or shirt. But I didn’t pick up the pipe with bare hands, always through a handkerchief.

- Forty years ago, one of the most popular ensembles in Soviet times, Chervona Ruta, was born in Chernivtsi.

By the way, this happened in October. The ensemble was organized at the Chernivtsi Philharmonic at the expense of the state budget. The team included Sofia Rotaru and Anatoly Evdokimenko. By that time they had been husband and wife for four years.

- Remember the story of their acquaintance?

This happened in a youth pop orchestra led by Leonid Kosyachenko, organized at Chernivtsi University. The young singer Sonya Rotar, who later became Rotaru, performed there for the first time.

But what about romantic story about the fact that Anatoly Evdokimenko saw and fell in love with Sofia Mikhailovna after seeing her photograph in the magazine “Ukraine”?

I don’t want to offend Sofia Rotaru, but this is nothing more than beautiful legend. There was nothing like that. Tolya was never deprived of female attention. A handsome guy who had a lot of fans. At the beginning of 1968, Tolya and Sonya were sent to Sofia for the festival folk music. They returned home having conquered prize place. That's when they started dating. True, Tolya, as far as I know, was not going to rush into the wedding. One day Sofia Rotaru knocked on my office and said with alarm in her voice: “Valery Kirillovich, Tolya and I are planning to get married, and now he’s thinking about something...” I immediately called home and told my father everything. We had him very strict rules, says: “Since Tolya promised, he must get married.” This whole story ended with a magnificent wedding. They got married in Sofia Mikhailovna’s native village. There were a lot of people at the wedding, Sonya sewed a luxurious outfit from local craftswomen. Tolya was also dressed to the nines. They are a very beautiful couple.

- It was clear that Sofia Rotaru future star?

At one of the amateur competitions, in which Rotaru also participated, People’s Artist of Ukraine Dmitry Gnatyuk sat on the jury. He came up to me after her performance and said: “Look at the charisma this girl has. She will definitely be a star." Sonya was thin, slender, with a very bright eyes And inner strength, which was felt in the distance. I did my best to give her the green light to start her creative work. He also helped in the creation of “Chervona Ruta”. True, it only existed for a few years. Then Sonya and Tolya moved to Crimea.

- Anatoly was not against such a decision?

No, they decided together that it was better for them to leave Chernivtsi, where Sofia was being squeezed. Many did not like the fact that she suddenly changed her last name from Rotar to Rotaru. One of the local KGB chiefs imbued her with Romanian nationalism. Of course, Sonya was completely far from this. And then the secretary of the Crimean regional party committee, Nikolai Kirichenko, quickly pulled her to Crimea. Sofia was given a luxurious apartment on Mukhina Street in Yalta, made a deputy, and awarded the Order of Lenin. In general, she felt comfortable. By the way, Sofia Mikhailovna’s last name according to her passport is Evdokimenko-Rotaru.

- Anatoly Kirillovich was not worried that, in fact, he was in the shadow of his famous wife?

Tolya was such a wax man, you could sculpt anything from him. As Sofia Mikhailovna said, this is what my brother did. They never separated. Both Tolya and Sonya were very devoted to each other. None of them gave any reason for jealousy. The only thing I still cannot understand and forgive is that Sonya took away Tolya’s creativity. He stopped playing music, devoting himself to administrative work. Meet, conduct, negotiate, have a glass with the sponsor - everything is on him. There was no need to do this. Tolya, as a creative person, suffered, and, of course, this affected his health. Then the time of perestroika came, corporate parties began, wild earnings began. Tolya was constantly nervous. You know, sometimes I think if he had continued to make music, he would still be alive.

-Who was responsible for the family finances?

Sofia Mikhailovna was in charge of the money. No one could deceive her in financial matters. Tolya and Sonya always lived in grand style. They had apartments and cars. Sometimes there were up to a dozen cars in the park. Tolya, by the way, really loved driving. In general, like a technician, he had his hands on everything. I could make it, fix it, solder it. I am sure that his health was undermined by his bohemian lifestyle.

- Anatoly Kirillovich had three strokes...

Moreover, the first happened in Germany. Then she and Sonya were on tour. The situation is extremely difficult. Tolya was never taken to the hospital; he rested in the back seat of the bus. When I found out about this, I was shocked. The second stroke occurred in August 2002. And he couldn’t bear the third one. After the second stroke, Tolya lived in his house near Yalta. It was difficult to recover, he had difficulty moving, and spoke poorly. One day I went out into the garden and fell. This was the third stroke. I immediately rushed to see him in Yalta. Tolya was lying in bed, unable to talk, but from his gestures I understood how glad he was to see me. Then a professor from Kyiv, who examined his brother, said that irreversible processes were occurring in his body and there was no hope for recovery. We decided to transport Tolya to a hospital in Kyiv. There he died. Sofia Mikhailovna was on tour in Germany at that time and barely had time to see her dying husband.

-Did you manage to say goodbye to your brother?

No, when I arrived, Tolya was already dead. I'm one day late. The nurse later told me that in the last minutes of his life he nervously hit the bed with his hand and called for his mother...

Sofia Mikhailovna Rotaru- Soviet and Ukrainian singer and actress. Sofia Rotaru - People's Artist of the USSR (1988), one of the most popular singers of the Soviet, Russian and Ukrainian stage, Hero of Ukraine (2002).

early years and education of Sofia Rotaru

Sofia Rotaru was born on August 7, 1947 in the village of Marshintsy, Novoselitsky district, Chernivtsi region. Sofia's family is of Moldovan origin.

Father - Mikhail Fedorovich Rotaru (1918−2004), participant of the Great Patriotic War, machine gunner. He reached Berlin, was wounded and returned to his native village. He worked as a foreman of winegrowers.

Mother - Alexandra Ivanovna Rotaru (1920−1997). In addition to Sofia, the family had five children: two brothers and three sisters. Elder sister Zina (born 10/11/1942), who suffered serious illness, lost her sight as a child, according to the singer’s biography on her website.

In her interviews, Sofia Rotaru often said that her entire family is unusually musical.

“It’s hard to say when and how music appeared in my life. It seems that she has always lived in me. I grew up surrounded by music, it sounded everywhere: wedding table, at gatherings, at evening parties, at dances...”, said the singer. The girl began singing in the first grade in the school choir. In addition, although it was not encouraged, Sofia also sang in the church choir.

At school and after graduation, Sofia Rotaru played a lot of sports, athletics, became the school champion in all-around, went to regional Olympiads. At the regional sports festival in Chernivtsi she became the winner in the 100 and 800 meters.

Sofia's first music teacher was her father. He had absolute pitch and a beautiful voice. As a schoolgirl, Sofia learned to play the domra and button accordion, and, of course, was an active participant amateur performances. And home concerts were often held at home; Rotaru’s songs even then delighted the villagers. The father was convinced that Sonya would become an artist.

And then the first successes came. Sofia Rotaru won the regional competition amateur performances and got to the regional show. Countrymen began to call Sofia “Bukovinian Nightingale” for her voice. And in subsequent years, at all competitions, Rotaru captivated the audience with her contralto, winning prestigious awards.

In 1964, Sofia Rotaru was sent to the Republican Festival of Folk Talents, where the young singer took first place. In this regard, her photo was published on the cover of the magazine “Ukraine”. Having seen Sofia's photo, her future husband Anatoly Evdokimenko fell in love with her at first sight.

1964 is a fateful year in Rotaru’s biography. Sofia Rotaru sang for the first time at the Kremlin Palace of Congresses. And again victory. And after graduation, Sofia entered the conducting and choral department of Chernivtsi music school.

At this time, the young man in love served in the Urals. By the way, Anatoly graduated music school, played the trumpet. Future husband After the army, Sofia entered Chernivtsi University and played in the university pop orchestra. It was Anatoly, who finally met Rotaru, who invited her to sing with a pop orchestra. Before this, Sofia sang to the accompaniment of violins and cymbals.

Musical career of singer Sofia Rotaru

In 1968, Rotaru graduated from college and was delegated to the IX World Festival youth and students, held in Bulgaria. The news headlines read: “Sofia has conquered Sofia.”

In 1971, director Roman Alekseev directed the musical film “Chervona Ruta”. On main role Sofia was invited. Afterwards, the Chernivtsi Philharmonic created its own ensemble “Chervona Ruta”. From that moment on, Rotaru and the Chervona Ruta ensemble began collaborating with the talented composer Vladimir Ivasyuk. Ivasyuk created a cycle of popular songs based on folk music, which performed by Sofia Rotaru were sung throughout the Soviet Union.

After the tragic death of composer Ivasyuk, Sofia continued to sing his songs. A Mikhail Ivasyuk- Vladimir’s father - said in front of an audience of thousands of fellow countrymen: “We must bow low Moldovan girl Sonya, who spread my son’s songs all over the world.”

Success accompanied Rotaru at all concerts. Sofia sang on many famous stages of the USSR. With the Chervona Ruta ensemble, Rotaru traveled almost the entire country, had a constant audience on radio and television, and was active in concert activities.

In 1973, in Sunny Beach (Bulgaria), Rotaru became the winner of the Golden Orpheus competition, performing the song “My City” Evgenia Dogi and a song in Bulgarian “Bird”.

In 1983, Sofia Rotaru received the title People's Artist Moldavian SSR. And in May 1988, Sofia Rotaru was awarded the title of People's Artist of the USSR, the first of the modern pop singers.

Famous Soviet composers created their songs just for her. Popular songs Arno Babajanyan("Give me back the music") Alexey Mazhukov(“And the music sounds”), David Tukhmanov(“Stork on the Roof”, “In My House”), Yuri Saulsky("Regular melody") Alexandra Pakhmutova("Pace"), Raymond Pauls("Dance on the Drum") Evgenia Martynova(“Swan Fidelity”, “Apple Trees in Bloom”) and many others still delight fans of Rotaru’s work.

And after the collapse of the USSR, the singer has a stable audience, including in the Russian-speaking diaspora in Europe and the USA. In 1992, a super hit was released performed by Rotaru - “Khutoryanka” (music Vladimir Matetsky, poetry Mikhail Shabrov).

They haven’t stopped listening to Sofia Rotaru’s songs in Russia either, and the singer herself, still just as young, constantly participates in TV programs and comes to give concerts. In the mid-90s, Rotaru took part in the popular films “Old Songs about the Main Thing” and “10 Songs about Moscow.” At “Song-96” Sofia Rotaru was recognized as “Best Pop Singer of 1996”, awarding a prize named after Klavdia Shulzhenko.

Sofia recorded songs at her own studio in Yalta. Her first CD collections were released in 1993 best songs- “Sofia Rotaru” and “Lavender”, then - “Golden Songs 1985/95” and “Khutoryanka”.

In 1997, Rotaru became an honorary citizen Autonomous Republic Crimea.

In 1998, Sofia Rotaru’s first official CD was released, the album “Love Me,” released under the “Extraphone” label. In April, the premiere of the new solo program Rotaru "Love me" Sofia recorded the song “September” in a duet with Nikolay Rastorguev.

In 1999, the Star Records label released two more CD collections of the singer in the “Star Series”. At the end of the year, Rotaru was recognized best singer Ukraine in the “Traditional Variety” category.

The new millennium was marked by new high-profile titles, Rotaru was recognized as “Man of the 20th Century”, “Best Ukrainian Pop Singer of the 20th Century”, “Golden Voice of Ukraine”, “Woman of the Year”, and was awarded “For Special Contribution to the Development of Russian stage».

In December 2001, Sofia Rotaru released a new solo concert program“My life is my love!”, dedicated to the 30th anniversary creative activity. The song “My Life, My Love” opened in 2002 “ New Year's Light"on the ORT TV channel.

Then followed new albums by Rotaru: “I still love you”, “The sky is me”, “Lavender, Khutoryanka, then everywhere ...”, “I loved him”, in general, Sofia made sure that her fans there was something to listen to.

In 2007, Sofia Rotaru celebrated her 60th anniversary with pomp. There was a gala reception at the Livadia Palace, and in October the State Kremlin Palace hosted anniversary concerts Sofia. President of Ukraine Victor Yushchenko awarded Sofia Rotaru the Order of Merit, II degree.

To mark the 40th anniversary of his creative activity, Rotaru held anniversary concerts in Moscow (Bolshoi Kremlin Palace) and in St. Petersburg ( Ice Palace) in October 2011.

Rotaru's health status

On August 26, 2018, Free Press reported that Sofia Rotaru was urgently hospitalized in the intensive care unit of one of the Ufa hospitals.

The news reported that Rotaru had no scheduled concerts in Ufa. In the city she performed at one of the corporate events.

According to preliminary information, the singer’s condition worsened towards the end of the performance, after which she was called an ambulance and was urgently hospitalized.

Doctors were allegedly forbidden to say that Rotaru was in intensive care. It is noted that the “best” doctors in the region were called in to provide the necessary assistance, and also prepared “ special conditions».

Sofia Rotaru later commented on the news of her hospitalization. According to her, the day before she actually had some health problems, RIA Novosti reported.

At the same time, the artist thanked her fans for their support and care and added that she now feels fine.

Sofia Rotaru about relations between Russia and Ukraine

According to media reports, after the annexation of Crimea to Russia, Sofia Rotaru did not accept Russian citizenship. She herself later explained that she was registered in Kyiv, so she was not entitled to a Russian passport by law. At the same time, according to her, she would not refuse to give her Russian passport Putin. “You won’t need to apply for a work permit,” Sofia explained.

On the Rotaru website you can read her appeal to the people of Ukraine, made in January 2014 during Euromaidan. In it, Sofia appealed “to everyone to stop the violence.” “All parties to the conflict have an obligation to hear each other and find a peaceful solution.” There are no requests regarding further events, in particular the conflict in Donbass, on Sofia Rotaru’s website.

The photo that the singer’s son posted in 2014 caused a lot of noise. Ruslan Evdokimenko, in which Sofia, holding a yellow-blue flag, and her family congratulated the country on Independence Day. The son signed the photo on the social network with the odious nationalist greeting “Glory to Ukraine.”

Rotaru herself, in an interview with Life, noted that she simply congratulated the people of Ukraine on this holiday, as she “congratulated Russia many times or Uzbekistan and other countries of the former Soviet Union.” Sofia even said that she “had a desire to take a photo with two flags - Russia and Ukraine and write: “I am for the friendship of peoples.” However, she suppressed this desire.

IN last years Sofia Rotaru does not perform concerts in Russia. Its director Sergey Lavrov explains this by saying that the singer does not want to participate in “political intrigues.” “She does not give interviews, although she is offered substantial fees for televised confession at home. She categorically does not want this, because if her interview appears on television in Russia, then in Ukraine she will be torn apart. Unfortunately she became a victim political situation...,” the media quoted Lavrov as saying.

At the same time, and during the period of aggravation of Russian-Ukrainian relations, Sofia Rotaru visited Russia, in 2015 she participated in New Year's concert on one of Russian TV channels and spoke at the 70th anniversary of the Rosatom corporation in the Kremlin.

Summer 2017 creative evening Sofia Rotaru, dedicated to the 70th anniversary, was held as part of music festival"Heat" in Baku. There, Rotaru was congratulated by many Russian colleagues, the organizer of the festival Grigory Leps made a cover of the song “I loved him”, Glucose covered the hit “Luna, Moon”. Rotaru herself sang her famous songs “Chervona Ruta”, “One Viburnum”, “The Sky is Me”. Sofia performed “Melancolie” with her sister Aurika, and “Khutoryanka” with Potapom and Nastya Kamensky.

Income of Sofia Rotaru

Sofia Mikhailovna has a business in Crimea. Rotaru opened its hotel “Villa Sofia” in the most prestigious area of ​​Yalta, the so-called “New City”, at the beginning of 2009. And Rotaru is the owner of a small “ gingerbread house» in the village of Nikita (7 km from Yalta).

Ukrainian Forbes in 2015 included Sofia Rotaru in the rating of “25 most expensive and popular stars Ukraine".

At the same time, the singer's sister Lydia Khlyabich in the same 2015, she said that due to problems with concerts in Russia, Sofia Rotaru had to cut expenses and “she is already counting the money.” Khlyabich also complained about the small number of vacationers at the Rotaru Hotel in Yalta.

Now Sofia Rotaru lives in Kyiv, in her house in the prestigious suburb of Koncha-Zaspa.

Personal life of Sofia Rotaru

At Sofia Rotaru big family, which supports her in difficult life moments. In 1968, Sofia married Anatoly Evdokimenko, and in 1970, their son Ruslan was born.

Sofia Rotaru’s husband, Anatoly Evdokimenko, died prematurely of a stroke in 2002. The singer took his loss seriously.

Relatives help Rotaru in his work: son Ruslan is the singer’s concert producer, and daughter-in-law Svetlana is a creative director and stylist.

Rotaru's granddaughter Sofia (Sonya) is engaged in horse riding and modeling. Ukrainian news reported that in 2017, Sofia graduated from her studies in Kyiv and entered a private school in England. Rotaru’s granddaughter studied vocals and can follow in her grandmother’s footsteps.

Anatoly, Rotaru's grandson, studied fashion photography at London's Central St. Martin's College of Art and Design. The young man is also mastering the profession of graphic designer and music producer.

On the eve of her anniversary (the singer turned 70 on August 7, 2017), Rotaru flew to rest with her family: her son Ruslan Evdokimenko, his wife Svetlana and grandchildren - Sofia and Anatoly to Italy.

Sofia Rotaru's daughter-in-law published many photos of their vacation on her microblog. In one of them, Svetlana Evdokimenko showed the singer without hair and makeup. Fans of the artist noted that even without makeup, Sofia Rotaru looks no worse than when stylists and makeup artists work on her.

Let's add that, according to her, the singer stays in great shape: sports, healthy eating, a positive attitude towards life and love for people.

The famous Ukrainian musician Anatoly Evdokimenko dedicated his entire life to one woman - his beloved wife, who became. For her sake he created in his youth Music band. In order to perform together with Sofia on the same stage, Anatoly mastered musical instruments - first it was a trumpet, then a double bass.

He created all the conditions for its development musical career, independently directed all her performances and tours. Sofia responded in full reciprocity, always making common interests a priority. Together with his wife, Evdokimenko lived a life full of creative victories and stories of overcoming.

Anatoly Evdokimenko and Sofia Rotaru in their youth

The musician was born in 1942 in Chernivtsi. By education, he was not associated with music or creativity, having received a diploma in mathematics from a higher education institution. educational institution. Goes to the army. Then, having met his beloved Sofia and accepting her love for creativity, he decides to create all the conditions for her development at all costs.

Thanks to his talent as an organizer, Anatoly assembles the musical group “Chervona Ruta”, in which he makes Sofia a soloist. Then he begins to perform as a musician within this group, and then retrains as an administrator and tour director for Rotaru.

Anatoly Evdokimenko is People's Artist Ukraine.

Personal life

In 1968, he legalized a long-standing relationship with the singer, who later became famous throughout Soviet Union. The young people met in a peculiar way - Anatoly saw a photo of the winner music competition on the cover of a magazine and decided to find her and meet her. He found him, confessed his feelings, and actively courted him for another two years until Sofia reciprocated.

Together Sofia and Anatoly traveled all over the world. First, Sofia followed her husband to Novosibirsk, where Anatoly was exiled during his service, then Evdokimenko accompanied his wife during her tour. They lived together as husband and wife for 34 years. The couple has a wonderful son, who already has children of his own. So, the grandson often visited his grandparents.

For the sake of his wife, Anatoly did unusual things all his life. For example, to confess your love to Sofia on her native language, Evdokimenko mastered the Moldovan language in his youth.

Rotaru did not lag behind her husband. She devoted a lot of time and effort to his health in adulthood, literally pulling him out of illness, investing all the proceeds from the tour into his treatment.

Death

Anatoly’s health was not the best, and with age, Evdokimenko faced many serious illnesses. He fought a long, productive battle with cancer, eventually defeating the serious illness.

Unfortunately, after the death of his father, Anatoly experiences his first stroke, followed by a second and a fatal third. The artist’s funeral took place in Kyiv, after which the family went into mourning - Sofia canceled all tours and performances.

In memory of this musician in his hometown they named the street in his honor.