On April 17, 2023, Russian-American bass and educator Nikita Storojev passed away at the age of 73.

Born in 1950 in Kharbin, China, his family moved back to Soviet Russia five years later. After initially studying philosophy at the University of Sverdlovsk, he shifted to music and studied voice at the Mussorgsky Conservatory in Yekaterinburg, and later at the Moscow Conservatory. After winning the Tchaikovsky Competition in 1978, Storojev served as principal soloist for the Bolshoi Theatre and the Moscow Philharmonic Society over the next five years.

Storojev left the Soviet Union in 1983, emigrating to Mexico and later Europe. He performed at opera houses, concert halls, and festivals worldwide, in cities such as Paris, Vienna, Milan, London, New York, Florence, Munich, San Francisco, Berlin, Tokyo and more. His repertoire comprised over 50 operatic roles and over 300 classical songs.

As a recording artist, he has 25 CDs and five DVDs, performed under figures such as Sir John Pritchard, Claudio Abbado, Mstislav Rostropovich, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Marius Jansons, and more.

After moving to Austin, Storojev became a voice teacher at the University of Texas’ Butler School of Music, where his students have won national competitions, joined young artist programs, and begun their professional careers. He gave masterclasses worldwide, and continued to appear in operatic productions such as San Francisco Opera’s “Lady Macbeth of Mtsenk,” the title role in Komische Oper Berlin’s “Boris Godunov,” and more.