Ivan Rebroff (born Hans Rolf Rippert; 31 July 1931 – 27 February 2008) was a German vocalist, allegedly of Russian ancestry, who rose to prominence for his distinct and extensive vocal range of four octaves, ranging "from a low F to a high F, one and a quarter octaves above C". An imposing figure on stage, usually bearded and dressed in Cossack clothing, his presence was enhanced by his height, being over 2 metres tall.
Rebroff was born on 31 July 1931 in Berlin (prematurely, he asserted, at seven months, on a train platform) as Hans Rolf Rippert to German parents. His parents were Paul Rippert, an engineer born in 1897 in Liebenwerda, and Luise Fenske, born in the city of Bromberg (now Bydgoszcz, Poland). He claimed Russian descent, and while often disputed, this has never been totally refuted. In a 1989 interview with Izvestia, he said "according to documents I am Ivan Pavlovich Rebroff" (Russian: Иван Павлович Ребров).
He studied singing at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg. Although his knowledge and pronunciation of Russian was imperfect, he became famous for singing Russian folk songs, but also performed opera, light classics and folk songs from many other countries. He was known on stage for his gusto. He performed over 6,000 concerts in his career, including a two-year seven-day-a-week stint at the Théâtre Marigny in Paris, singing and acting, among other greats, the role of Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof. When he was well into his seventies, Rebroff still performed 13 concerts in 21 days on an Australian tour.
Rebroff described himself as international, the "connection between East and West". He was named an honorary citizen of the Greek Sporades island of Skopelos, his domicile.
As well as being a singer, he was at least a reasonable violinist and keyboardist (he is pictured playing a church organ but may have also played the piano). Rebroff sang and was able to converse to a lesser or greater extent in several languages in addition to his native German; Russian, French, Italian, English, and Greek.
He died aged 76 in Frankfurt on 27 February 2008, after a long illness. Four days after his death, his brother Horst Rippert, who is nine years his senior (and by his own unsubstantiated accounts shot down Antoine de Saint-Exupéry during World War II), claimed part of Rebroff's vast fortune.
Rebroff was gay, but did not share this widely.
Volksweisen aus dem alten Russland (Folk Songs from Old Russia)
Volksweisen aus dem alten Russland 2 (Folk Songs from Old Russia Volume II)
Original Russische Liebeslieder
Na Sdarowje (Iwan Rebroff Singt Weisen Von Vodka Und Wein)
Slawische Seele (Compilation album shared with Tatjana Iwanow and Dunja Rajter)
Beim Klang der Balalaika, and in French Au son des Balalaikas
Russische Weihnacht mit Ivan Rebroff
Ivan Rebroff (includes "Lara's Theme" from Doctor Zhivago)
Un Violon sur le toit (Original Paris Cast Album of Fiddler on the Roof)
Festliche Weihnacht (with Regensburger Domspatzen boys' choir)
A Festive Christmas (Festliche Weihnacht re-issue)