Maria Cebotari Street in Chisinau

 Maria Cebotari Street (between 1834-1918 – Buiukanskaia Street (Buiucani); in 1918-1924 – Haruzin Street; in 1924-1944 – Cuza-Vodă Street; in 1944-1990 – Gorkii Street), colloquially also called Maria Cibotari Street, is a street in the historical center of Chisinau.

Along the street there are a number of architectural and historical monuments (individual houses, as well as administrative buildings (Chamber of Commerce and Industry, CIVIS Center, "Spiru Haret" Theoretical High School, the Palace of the Republic, as well as the "Ștefan cel Mare și Sfânt" Public Garden and others).

The street starts at the intersection with Alexei Mateevici Street, intersecting 8 other streets and ending at the intersection with Alexandru cel Bun Street.

But who was Maria Cebotari?

Maria Cebotari (alternatively Cibotari, born February 10, 1910, Chişinău - died June 9, 1949, Vienna), was one of the greatest sopranos, opera soloists and Romanian actress.

She studied at the Florica Niţă Normal School for Girls and at the Metropolitan Chapel in Chişinău led by Mihail Berezovschi, followed by the "Unirea" Conservatory in Chişinău (1924-1929) with Maria Zlatov, Gavriil Atanasiu and Anastasia Dicescu (singing), Mihail Berezovschi (harmony), Clara Fainstein (piano) and Grigore Gâdei (theory).

After completing her studies at the conservatory in her hometown, she was hired as an actress at the Moscow Art Theater. In 1929 she went to Berlin, where she took singing lessons. She made her debut in 1931 in the role of Mimi in Giacomo Puccini's opera La Bohème at the Dresden Opera. She remained there as a soloist until 1943; between 1935 and 1943 she also performed on the stage of the Berlin State Opera. She was later hired as a permanent soloist at the Vienna State Opera, where she remained until her death in 1949.

At only 24 years old, Maria Cebotari was awarded the highest honorary title existing in Germany and Austria at the time – Kammersängerin.

She played in eight films, film adaptations in Germany or Austria, alongside cinema stars of the time, including her husband, Gustav Diessl.

It is a central-latitudinal artery with a length of approximately 1.3 kilometers. Previously it had several names: Buiukanskaya (19th century), Haruzino (early 20th century), Cuza-Vodă (1924-1944), Gor’kogo (1944-1990).

It was one of the quietest streets in the city, as it is today. Here were located houses with elevated architecture, with courtyards and well-kept gardens, this street is home to buildings of important official institutions, cultural centers and public purposes: the Parliament and the Presidency of the Republic, the National Opera, the Palace of the Republic, the German Embassy, ​​the “Jolly Alen” Hotel, the “Codru” Hotel, the “Stefan cel Mare” Public Garden.

The street name evokes the name of the distinguished opera singer Măria Cebotari (10.11. 1910, Chişinău – 9.VI. 1949, Vienna), lyric-dramatic soprano.

As a child, M. Cebotari sang in the choir of the Chişinău Cathedral, led by M. Berezovski. In 1924-1929 she studied at the "Unirea" Conservatory in Chişinău (with professor G. Afanasiu), then at the Higher School of Music in Berlin (with O. Daniel), in 1929 she performed in Chişinău, Bucharest and Paris. Since 1931 she has been a soloist of the Opera Theaters in Dresden, Berlin and Vienna. She has toured in England, France, Italy, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, Switzerland.

M. Cebotari had a beautifully timbred voice, full of warmth and emotion. She performed about 60 roles in operas, including: Mimi from La Boheme, Cio-Cio-san from the homonymous opera Tatiana from Eugene Onegin, Liza from The Queen of Spades, Suzana from The Marriage of Figaro, Ţerlina from Don Juan, Gilda from Rigoletto, Margaret from Faust, Juliet from Romeo and Juliet, etc. She sang in operetta performances, performed main roles in the films: Girls in White, Lullaby, Love Songs, etc.

Nemerenco, Valeriu. Buiucani: Files from the village and sector history. – Ch. : Prut International, 2002. – 200 p.