Born in Odessa on August 31st, 1934, Pletenko began to sing professionally in 1955 in a song-and-dance
ensemble of the Ural military district. From 1962 to 1967, he was deployed to a similar ensemble in East Germany, where he got
interested in opera and started visiting theaters.
In 1968, he made his debut at the opera in Sverdlovsk (now Ekaterinburg), where he was to stay for his entire career. A typical
ensemble singers, he covered a wide range of repertory, from Lenskij to German, from José to Nadir, from the Simpleton to
Otello, no less.
He died in Ekaterinburg on February 14th, 2005.
Reference for biographical information and picture.
