Petro Ivanovitch
REST IN PEACE 1947-2023
Born to a Gypsy family from ex-Yugoslavia, now Serbia, Petro Ivanovitch was born in Zemun close to Belgrade. He learned a traditional instrument the tamburitza (4 strings) before adapting to the balalaika which he tunes differently (B,E,A). He arrived to France at the end of the sixties and continued a career as a musician and singer with his group the Tziganes Ivanovitch with whom he played at many Parisian venues such as the Olympia, Bobino... He recorded several LP whose considered as references in the world of Gypsy music. He was known as the “Godfather of Gypsy Music in Paris”.
Performers of Gypsy songs and Russian romances. The peak of popularity of the team came in the seventies. The backbone of the ensemble were brothers - Peter and Slobodan Ivanovich. Older brother Peter Ivanovich - musician, guitarist, singer, virtuoso playing a balalaika, has masterfully playing the bass and the Yugoslav national product - tamburitse. Younger brother, Slobodan (1949-1985) - guitarist and singer. Petro Ivanovich was born in 1950 and grew up in Yugoslavia, his grandfather was a Russian Gypsy, originally from Russia. In the 1968th year, when Peter was eighteen, with his father, he moved to Paris. Six months, father and son played together in a small Russian restaurant "Killer Whale" on the Champs-Elysees, and later also came here and his younger brother - Slobodan. Soon after my father went on tour with the famous ballet. Petro Slobodan taught to play guitar and together they began performing in the restaurant "Taras Bulba" in Bonn Novella. By 1970, the ninth year Pyotr invites guitarist George Partoh and appears trio of musicians - "Les Trois Tziganes Ivanovitch" (Trio Gipsy Ivanovichi "). A little later, "the trio" is converted to a "quartet" under the title "Les Tziganes Ivanovitch" ( "Gypsies Ivanovichi"). In the ensemble, but the brothers Ivanovich, playing Armenian George Partoh and a new party, a young talented guitar player of Russian descent Andrey Shestopalov, which is still occasionally performs with Peter Ivanovich, as well as making records with other famous artists (in 1981 in Paris, participated in the recording A. Khvostenko famous album - "Last raspberries, and in the late 90's, organized in Paris on his own band" The Seagull ").
Two years after his brother's arrival in Paris, in 1970, the record company, "Phillips" recorded their first debut record "Gypsies Ivanovichi. The album was met with great interest and the ensemble becomes popular in France. They played such a large French stage, as concert halls "Olympia" and "Bobino", which usually invite only talented musicians. A few years later, in the wake of the success and popularity, the brothers opened his own restaurant, "Gypsies Ivanovichi," which came to many celebrities and artists. Even the next president of France Jacques Chirac, being at that time still a minister, came to this restaurant. Brothers Ivanovich here were such famous singers as Paradise Udovikova, Dina Verni, Natasha Udovikova-Bielenberg and many other artists. Later in the studio "Phillips" brothers Ivanovichi recorded their second CD. With the release of new album their music love all of Paris. Talent music ensemble "Gypsies Ivanovichi": Peter and Slobodan, guitarists Andrew and George, listened and understood everywhere. They sang the delightful voices and masterfully incendiary playing on guitar and balalaika music, which seems born from the depths of the human soul ...
Next was a tour around the world, friendship with celebrities such as Sophia Loren, Brigitte Bordeaux, Serge Gainsbourg, Jane Birkin, Jean Marais, Marcel Marceau, Yul Brynner and others. The ensemble has toured throughout Europe and the United States, worked for some time with a popular singer Ivan Rebrov from Germany, just as Peter Ivanovich almost 20 years working together with gypsies and Alyosha Valley Dimitrijevic (after the death of his own father, Alyosha, and Valya Dimitrijevic replaced brothers mother and father). In the first half of the 70-ies, the success of "Gypsy Ivanovich" in Europe to some extent was comparable to the success of the Beatles - the brothers went to black limousines and assembled the entire stadiums in various European countries. They had a big yacht, where they staged a party, a gathering of 150-200 well-known artists, and walked, walked till morning ...
In 1985, tragedy struck ... Right in the restaurant died younger brother Peter, Slobodan. This was an irreplaceable loss. The younger brother was a kind of "locomotive" of the collective. It turns life around him in celebration - he loved life, music, cards, casinos, women, and every day there was a bud-a New Year's or Christmas, no one lived as a full-blooded and had fun, like brothers Ivanovichi ... The grave of Slobodan located near the graves of the composer Berlioz in Montmartre. Slobodan I. lived only 36 years ... Slobodan left two sons.
The last official CD of the ensemble, under the title - "Peter Ivanovich, was recorded in Norway twelve years ago. Overall, Petro recorded in Europe, seven-disc giants, most of which was released in the 70th years: "Les Tziganes Ivanovitch" (1970), "Me sem Rom" (1972), "Iagori (Le Feu)" (1973 ), "Bach Le Bonheur" (1976), "Amoro Kher" (1977), "Gori, gori zigansks Ljubov" (1982), Petro Ivanovitch - "Musique Tzigane" (1994). Recently released without the consent of the Petro-disc compilation "Paris - New York - Tel Aviv" (The Very Best Gypsy Song `s), which were issued 25 of his compositions, and now continues with the judicial process.
Pyotr Ivanovich two adult sons from his first marriage - Aleko and could both live in Norway, engaged in music, knows several languages, perfectly educated, virtuzno plays the guitar and begin to try themselves as soloists, as well as take part in organizing the annual International Gypsy Festival Ягори. With second wife, Tatiana, Petro met when she was still working in Russia's gypsy theater "Romen". Once Peter advised a friend to invite a French impresario theater "Romen" in France and performers from Russia arrived in Paris on tour, it was then that Peter and Tatiana met, and even made a joint musical "We - the Gypsies." After three or four years, Tatiana again to Paris looking for work, and Peter took her to sing in his restaurant. Now they have a daughter - Tatiana too.
Currently in France Petro played in theaters, appears on television, but provides more private concerts. Works in a small Parisian restaurant "Jaguaroff". In Paris, he was invited to the speeches, mostly French, and in the south of France, he gives private concerts in the villas of the wealthy "new Russian" immigrants. Of course, he is friends with Russian gypsies and performers from Russia. Recently visited Russia to France, a gypsy band "Stark", they too were in the south of France and met with Petro. In the Moscow Gypsy Theater Romen "is a wonderful actor Moses, is the best friend of Petro, with whom he even" fraternized. Petro loves and knows well-known artistic family of Gypsies Buzylevyh from Russia, from whom he once traveled to visit. Today, Peter Ivanovich many friends in Russia. In the early 80's in Paris Petro met singer emigre from Russia, Mikhail Gulko, who specially flew in from America, that would work with the legendary singer Alesha Dimitrijevic, and lived in the same apartment with his younger brother Peter, Slobodan Ivanovich. Mikhail Gulko still enthusiastically recalls the days of wonderful musicians and the stunning atmosphere.
Now Peter Ivanovich be called "the godfather of" Gypsy music in Paris. Young calls him and asks to play with him - come to learn and enjoy the game wizard. Many famous balalaika players and guitarists of the world, such as Angelo Debarre, Joseph and Dyango Reinhardt, called Petro Ivanovich - Maestro, and proudly told him about the joint statements and to record the disc. Petro has not only a gypsy folklore - he plays anything: Hungarian music, Yugoslav, Jewish, jazz and classical works by Tchaikovsky, Glinka, Rachmaninoff, etc. The present composition of the ensemble: Petro - vocals, balalaika, and his wife Tatiana -- soloist; guitarists - Andrey Shestopalov and Frederic, a young musician Alesha - bass.
Petro masterfully played the balalaika - but not simple, but special. Petro adjusts your instrument differently. But he plays such a special balalaika. It all started with the fact that Peter has played in his youth at chetyrehstrunnom Yugoslav musical instrument - tamburitse. The restaurant "Taras Bulba" in which Peter began his career with his brother, Slobodan, was a small balalaechka which Peter once took to learn a single tune - and both learned to play the trichord instrument. String becoming less and skill - more ... On the published record of the best balalaika world, you can hear the balalaika and special Petro Ivanovich.
Now in Paris only a few artist names Gypsy romance: Motia Yankovskaya - niece of Nicholas Slichenko (director of the Moscow Gypsy Theater Romen "), Tatiana - wife of Peter Ivanovich, and Lily Limanskaya. Similarly, in the restaurant's famous loose "Raspoutine", which still contain the "Le restaurant-cabaret Russe", plays a large instrumental ensemble conducted by Romano, c colistkoy Sonya, Yugoslav singer, performing Gypsy songs.
Courtesy of: https://musecat.ru/music-artist/ijhjfeg/Les-Tziganes-Ivanovitch