Lyric tenor. Acclaimed Artist of the Belarussian Soviet Socialistic Republic (1968).
Born on the 19th of August 1935 in the city of Svoboda (today Liski), Voronezh county. Started singing when he was in school.
In 1954, he entered the Voronezh Musical College, and was then drafted to the army, where he was a soloist of the Voronezh
Military District Army Ensemble. In 1958, Kirichenko started his studies at the Chajkovskij Moscow State Conservatory (class of V.
G. Shushlin). After finishing his studies at the conservatory, he continued to work on different operatic roles under the guidance
of his new teacher, the great Sergej Lemeshev.
In 1963, he became a soloist of the Belarussian State Academic Theater of Opera and Ballet. Possessing a light and agile voice of
warm timbre, he succeeded in creating a number of unforgettable characters in both Western and Russian operas. The concert
repertoire of Kirichenko included a large number of operatic arias, romances, Neapolitan and Soviet songs. He also put great
emphasis on the works of Belarussian composers. He went on tours to many countries of the Eastern Bloc.
Kirichenko is considered one of the most prominent tenors in the history of the Belarussian State Theater. He performed alongside
such great singers as Galina Vishnevskaja, Galina Kovaleva, Louis Quilico, Georg Ots, Jurij Guljaev, Jurij Mazurok, Tiit Kuusik
and others.
Kirichenko passed away on the 25th of April, 1974, aged only 38, at the peak of his career.