Edita Piekha - 83: What the legendary singer was silent about for many years

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

On July 31, the famous singer, People's Artist of the USSR Edita Piekha turns 83. It would seem that she has everything one can dream of - a successful professional career, fame, recognition, prosperity, love of millions of listeners, a happy family. But in fact, for many years she hid from the public why she felt unhappy, unloved and misunderstood by the closest people …

Edita Piekha was born into a family of Polish immigrants who came to France in search of work. Her mother was a housekeeper and her father was a miner. This profession ruined him - he died at the age of 37 due to silicosis caused by coal dust. Edita's 14-year-old brother Paul was also forced to go down into the mine to help the family - only those who worked in the mines could live in service houses. He worked there for only 3 years, until pulmonary tuberculosis took his life too.

Edita's mother remarried, gave birth to a son, Jozef. The stepfather spoiled his child, but did not love his stepfather. He was very strict and unfair with her: she came home very late from school, since it was a long way to get there. But her stepfather believed that Edita was walking somewhere, and severely punished her. Years later, the singer admitted: "". He forbade her to read books, and she had to hide and read under the covers at night.

Years later, Edita Piekha admitted that her father was her only protector in childhood. She was 4 years old when he died, and there was no one to protect her. Therefore, she had to become strong and learn to fend for herself on her own. Relations with her half-brother did not work out - he constantly emphasized the difference between them and reminded her that she was no match for him. All evil was ripped off on Edita, and Jozef was the darling of fate. But communication between them was interrupted for many years for another reason. The singer admits that she could not forgive him that he only cared about the graves of his father and mother, and did not tell her sister that the graves of her father and brother were destroyed. Only in adulthood, after 40 years of silence, they were able to realize their mistakes, forgive each other and re-establish communication.

After the war, Edita's family returned to Poland. Here she graduated from school and a pedagogical lyceum, and in 1955 she ended up in Leningrad, having won a competition for the right to study in the USSR. Her stepfather wanted her to learn to be a dressmaker and go to work in a garment factory, and Edita dreamed of becoming a teacher. She entered the Department of Psychology of the Faculty of Philosophy and enrolled in the choir of the Polish community. This decided her further destiny - the collective was led by Alexander Bronevitsky, who invited Edita to the Druzhba ensemble at the Conservatory. Together they began performing in the USSR and toured dozens of countries around the world.

Alexander Bronevitsky became not only her mentor, but also her husband. The singer said about him: "".

From the outside, it seemed that they had an ideal family. But in fact, their relationship was never harmonious: the husband did not hide the fact that he had other women, but at the same time tormented his wife with baseless jealousy. After 20 years of marriage, they separated. After that, she married twice more, but called these marriages unsuccessful, and considered parting with Bronevitsky a big mistake - she believed that she could extend his life if she could forgive everything and stay close.

In 1961, daughter Ilona was born to Edita Piekha and Alexander Bronevitsky. The singer wanted to leave the stage for a while to devote herself to motherhood, but she never succeeded. When his daughter was 8 months old, Bronevitsky insisted that his wife go on tour. The singer said: "". She returned to concert activities, and her grandmother was engaged in raising her daughter. Because of this, Ilona harbored a grudge against her mother and once said to her: "".

The relationship between mother and daughter improved when Ilona Bronevitskaya grew up and followed in the footsteps of Edita Piekha. And when her son Stas was born, she, too, had to leave him with her grandmother, while she herself went on tour. Only with age, Ilona Bronevitskaya realized that her mother sacrificed her family for the sake of duty to the audience, and in many ways she herself repeated the path of her mother.

Stas Piekha, who was named after the singer's own father, was also not spoiled by parental attention in childhood, and he spent most of his time on the street with friends. As a teenager, he began to drink and use illegal drugs, which his relatives did not know for a long time. "", - admitted Stas Piekha. When his mother and grandmother found out about his addiction, they isolated him from his previous social circle and sent him to a specialized clinic. Together they managed to save him. In the end, all the members of the star family were able to improve relations, now they communicate well and try not to remember past grievances.

Despite all the difficulties that she had to endure, today Edita Piekha feels absolutely happy and does not complain about her fate: "".

Unfortunately, in her personal life, she was not as successful as in the profession: Why Edita Piekha decided to "leave women's happiness on the sidelines".