Tulegenova, Bibigul

Born Dec. 16, 1929, in Semipalatinsk. Soviet coloratura soprano. People’s Artist of the USSR (1967).

Tulegenova graduated from the conservatory in Alma-Ata in 1954. She was a soloist with the Kazakh Theater of Opera and Ballet from 1954 to 1956 and with the Kazakh Philharmonic Society from 1956 to 1971, at which time she returned to the Kazakh Theater of Opera and Ballet. Tulegenova’s voice has a distinctive silvery tone, and her performances are noted for their spontaneity and depth of interpretation. Tulegenova’s roles have included the title role in Rimsky-Korsakov’s The Snow Maiden, Violetta and Gilda in Verdi’s La Traviata and Rigoletto, Rosina in Rossini’s The Barber of Seville, Norina in Donizetti’s Don Pasquale, the title role in Brusilovskii’s Kyz-Zhibek, Gul’barshin in Rakh-madiev’s Alpamys, and the title role in Zhubanova’s Enlik-Kebek. Tulegenova performs in concerts at home and has toured abroad.

Tulegenova was a deputy to the seventh through ninth convocations of the Supreme Soviet of the Kazakh SSR. She has received the Kuliash Baiseitova State Prize of the Kazakh SSR (1966) and the State Prize of the USSR (1970). She has also been awarded the Order of Lenin, the Order of the Red Banner of Labor, and various medals.