The Bulgarian bass Boris Christoff (1914-1993) was born in Plovdiv. He sang in the celebrated Gusla Choir before being helped by King Boris with funds to study in Rome with Riccardo Stracciari, later studying in Salzburg. His delayed début took place in a concert in Rome in 1946, before stage appearance as Colline. He was engaged by La Scala the following June as Pimen in Boris Godunov, and in 1949 he sang the title-rôle at Covent Garden where he would appear regularly for the next quarter century. His Metropolitan début was cancelled in 1950 because of his Bulgarian nationality and it was a further six years before he sang in San Francisco and later Chicago (1957-63). He sang at the 1949 Salzburg Festival under Karajan in Beethoven’s Choral Symphony and the Verdi Requiem. His first stage appearance there was in Don Carlo in 1960. Christoff sang widely throughout Europe for over thirty years in mainly Russian and Italian (especially in Verdi) parts in addition to Hagen, Gurnemanz and King Marke. His voice, though not large, was smooth, round and well projected. He possessed great dramatic powers and was a very compelling singing actor. His brother-in-law was Tito Gobbi.
