Elena Vaenga: short biography, photos and videos, personal life
Elena Vladimirovna Vaenga (b. 1977) is a Russian pop singer and actress, composer and songwriter.
Parents and family
Elena's real name is Khruleva, she was born on January 27, 1977 in a military medical hospital in the small port town of Severomorsk, Murmansk Region. When Lena decided to connect her life with music and creativity, her mother chose the pseudonym Vaenga for her. That was the name of the city of Severomorsk until 1951 and the river that flows nearby.
Lena's mother was a chemist by education and profession, her father was an engineer. In the northern village of Vyuzhny, which is now called Snezhnogorsk, they worked at the Nerpa shipyard, the enterprise was classified and served nuclear submarines. Elena then dedicated the song to her native North and dad: “You have eyes of northern colors.”
Her mother's maiden name is Zhuravel. Grandfather Vasily Semyonovich served as rear admiral in the Northern Fleet, he is mentioned in the book Famous People of St. Petersburg and in some military encyclopedias. Grandmother Nadezhda Georgievna baptized Elena, the singer has had a wonderful relationship with her all her life. Grandmother came to all the St. Petersburg concerts of Vaenga, Nadezhda Georgievna even had her own place in the 17th row of the Oktyabrsky Concert Hall.
My paternal grandparents were native Petersburgers who survived the siege. During the war, my grandfather served near Oranienbaum as an anti-aircraft gunner, and my grandmother remained in the besieged city as a doctor in a hospital.
Elena's dad is a very strict person, he was one of the last to come to terms with his daughter's decision to connect his life with the stage.
Lena also has a younger sister, Tanya, and a half-sister, Inna (daughter of her father from her first marriage).
Childhood
On the coast of the Kola Peninsula in the small village of Vyuzhny, with five thousand inhabitants, the childhood of the future singer passed.
The girl was brought up in strictness. Every day at 6 in the morning, dad came into the room, raised Lena, and together they went for a run or ski training. The only exceptions were those days when a blizzard was expected in the village, and a storm warning was announced.
Her every day was literally scheduled by the minute: morning training with her father, school, classes in circles, doing homework.
Lena's musical talent began to manifest itself when she was still a very young girl. At the age of three, she began to dance to the sounds of a working vacuum cleaner, and even at preschool age she had a dream - to become an actress.
Once the father played some melody on the piano, and Lena repeated it exactly, then the parents realized that it would be nice to send their daughter to a music school.
Having started her studies at a comprehensive school, Elena was simultaneously engaged in skiing and music. And already at the age of 9 she composed her first song "Doves". With this composition, she won the All-Union Competition for Young Composers, which was held on the Kola Peninsula.
Student years
After school in 1994, Lena left for St. Petersburg, where her grandmother lived. There she became a student at the Rimsky-Korsakov Music College, the girl decided to continue her studies in the piano class. It was very difficult for Elena, her level of musical education clearly did not reach St. Petersburg. Therefore, she did not succeed in studying “excellently”, she had to do a lot and diligently in addition.
Her efforts were not in vain, a capable student was transferred from a paid form of education to a budget one. Lena graduated from a music school with a diploma of a teacher-accompanist and herself determined the level of her skill: “I am an average pianist, I am far from Richter, but I can be a good teacher”.
But Elena did not see herself as a pianist in the future. She wanted to be creatively realized as a composer, and if she was lucky, then a famous pop singer. Therefore, the girl decided to study further and became a student at the Leningrad Theater Academy on the course of G. Trostyanetsky.
Less than two months of study, as Elena had to leave for Moscow, an offer was received to record the first album of songs written by her. Stepan Razin became the producer, and the first video for the song "Long Corridors" was released under the pseudonym Nina.
The album was recorded but not released. The producer simply sold all her work to other pop artists. Disappointment choked the young talented girl to tears, she went back to St. Petersburg. Elena was offended by the whole show business, the only consolation was that she heard her compositions performed by famous Russian pop singers: Tatyana Tishinskaya and Alexander Marshal, the Strelki and Ladybug groups.
Returning to St. Petersburg, Lena became a student at the Baltic Institute of Ecology, Politics and Law. The department of theatrical art was chosen, she got on a course with Peter Velyaminov, whom she considers her best teacher in life.
But Elena was not going to say goodbye to music. Along with studying at the institute, she took part in concerts and competitions:
- "Hit of the Year" (in St. Petersburg);
- "Worthy song";
- "Spring of Romance";
- "Nevsky Breeze";
- "Free song over the free Neva".
Lena graduated from the Baltic Institute with a red diploma, played at the final exam and still continues to appear on stage in the non-repertory production of The Free Couple.
But the music still dragged her more than the theater. Elena was greatly supported by her civil husband and producer Ivan Matvienko. Much later, she will say that her parents and Ivan Ivanovich made her. He persuaded her to professionally return to music, and thanks to Ivan Matvienko, in 2003 Vaenga's first album, Portrait, was released.
But the real love of the audience and popularity came to her after the disc "White Bird", which was released in 2005. The compositions instantly became hits, they were played on the radio, and journalists unanimously declared that a new phenomenon appeared on the Russian stage under the name of Vaenga Elena.
What is the phenomenon? She did not have influential parents, familiar composers and producers who would push Lena on the Russian stage. And the songs were noticeably different from what constantly sounded from TV screens and on the radio.
In the fall of 2009, Elena was awarded the first Golden Gramophone in her life for the musical composition “Smoke”. A year later, she repeated this success with the song "Airport" and in the same year for the first time became a participant in the final festival "Song of the Year" with the composition "Absinthe".
In November 2010, the first solo concert of the singer took place in the State Kremlin Palace. It was held under the symbolic name "White Bird".
In the following 2011, Lena participated in the Chanson of the Year in the Kremlin ceremony, and also won a resounding victory in the Musical Ring program over Leonid Agutin.
A turbulent period of concerts, posters and tours began in her life. Elena traveled all over Russia, to Israel, America and Germany.
The singer's repertoire is very diverse, includes:
- compositions of own composition;
- folk songs and ballads;
- modern and ancient romances;
- songs on poems by Yesenin and Gumilyov.
Sincere and honest, she never sings to the soundtrack, shares joys and problems with the audience, considers them her best psychotherapists.
Elena Vaenga decided for herself this: if a person goes on stage to show himself and his outfits, this is not an artist. It is necessary to hold each concert as if it were the first and last time, to put all your soul into it, to go out to the audience, as if to confession. Perhaps, this is the success of the talented singer, who is infinitely loved by the audience.
Personal life
The first love happened to Elena at the age of 17. She had just arrived in St. Petersburg to her grandmother and was preparing to enter a music school. The feelings were so strong that, despite the excuses of her parents, she packed her suitcase and went to her beloved man.
Her chosen one was Ivan Ivanovich Matvienko, a gypsy by nationality. In addition to being 20 years older than Lena, the man was also married and had a daughter two years older than Elena.
But all this did not constitute any obstacles for the lovers, they really experienced a happy period. Even when it was a rolling ball in a rented apartment, and I had to walk to the institute due to the complete lack of money.
Parents were offended by Lena and did not talk to her for almost three years. This silence of loved ones and loved ones coincided with the most difficult and practically penniless period in her life. But the songs were written in such a period as mushrooms grow after rain. Elena even deduced such a pattern: the worse her life situation is, the better music and poetry turn out.
To enable his beloved woman to make music, record albums and purchase stage outfits, Ivan started an automobile business, which consisted of driving cars from Germany. He became her first producer, with his work and perseverance he brought Lena to the top of the domestic show business, and she is infinitely grateful to him for this.
Despite the almost perfect relationship, in 2011 the couple broke up. It happened quietly and peacefully, without scandals, screams and reproaches, the former common-law spouses continue to communicate well and friendly, live in neighboring apartments.
In 2012, Lena gave birth to a son, Ivan. On the topic of who the father of the boy is, she does not like to communicate with journalists and often starts litigation with those who are trying to conjecture or assume the paternity of little Vanyusha.
To a greater extent, the boy is with his grandparents, since the mother-singer is constantly on tour, but, of course, as soon as Elena has free time, she tries to spend it with her son.
