Vasso Devetzi

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Vasso Devetzi
A black-and-white image of a woman smiling at the camera. She has dark hair and eyes.
Born(1927-09-09)9 September 1927
Thessaloniki, Greece
Died1 November 1987(1987-11-01) (aged 60)
Neuilly-sur-Seine, France
OccupationPianist
Known forRelationship with Maria Callas

Vasso Devetzi (Greek: Βάσω Δεβετζή; 9 September 1927 – 1 November 1987) was a Greek pianist. She was renowned for her work, but best known for her relationship with Greek opera singer Maria Callas.

Biography

Vasso Devetzi was a Greek pianist.[1]: 167  She was born on 9 September 1927 in Thessaloniki, Greece,[2] and trained in Paris and Vienna under conductors such as David Oistrakh, Mstislav Rostropovich, and Rudolf Barshai.[3] She was renowned for her skills on the piano.[4]: 401 [5]: 473 [6] She first performed in the United States in 1970.[3] When discussing her work with the Moscow Chamber Orchestra, performing six Piano Concertos by Bach, Marc Pincherle and Maurice Roy for Revue des deux Mondes praised her understanding of his work and the clarity of her technique.[4]: 401  Albert Goldberg for Los Angeles Times praised her performance at Royce Hall, calling his review 'rave'.[3] However, her February 1958 performance at Wigmore Hall was criticised in a review by The Musical Times, saying it lacked sensitivity.[7]: 211 

Devetzi died of a heart attack[8] on 1 November 1987, in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France.[9]: 728 

Relationship with Maria Callas

Devetzi was close friends with opera singer Maria Callas.[10] In 1975, Callas's former lover Aristotle Onassis was hospitalised in the American Hospital of Paris.[11]: 335  Callas, greatly devastated, was comforted by Devetzi and updated on his condition by her, as her mother was being treated for cancer in the same hospital.[11]: 335–336  Callas became severely depressed following his death.[11]: 337  To help her, Devetzi took Callas to Halkidiki in 1976 for an eight-day holiday, following which Callas felt revitalised again.[11]: 344 

Towards the end of Callas's life, she relied on Devetzi to deliver her sedatives, due to her addiction to such drugs.[12] Callas died of a heart attack on 16 September 1977.[11]: 349–350  While Devetzi was preparing for a concert at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, she received news that Callas was dead. She revealed the news to the public while on stage.[11]: 350 

After Callas's death, Devetzi ordered a quick cremation of her remains[8] and arranged the funeral at St. Stephen's Greek Orthodox Cathedral, Paris. She was the executor of Callas's will and testament.[13]: 578 

Devetzi allegedly pressured Callas's mother Evangelina and sister Jackie to give her $1 million to establish the Maria Callas Foundation.[8] She then became president of it.[1]: 167  However, Jackie allegedly claimed that the foundation did not exist, and that none of the funds were donated.[13]: 578 

References

  1. Fogel, Henry (1984). "Maria Callas in Paris: Great Arias from French Opera". The Opera Quarterly. 2 (1): 167–169. doi:10.1093/oq/2.1.167. ISSN 0736-0053. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  2. "Devetzi, Vasso (1927-1987)". Bibliothèque nationale de France. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  3. Goldberg, Albert (30 January 1974). "Vasso Devetzi at Royce Hall". Los Angeles Times. p. 72. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  4. Pincherle, Marc; Roy, Maurice (1969). "LES DISQUES". Revue des Deux Mondes (in French): 401–406. ISSN 0035-1962. JSTOR 44600100. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  5. Roy, Maurice (1965). "LES DISQUES". Revue des Deux Mondes (in French): 472–474. ISSN 0035-1962. JSTOR 44591462. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  6. "Greek pianist to play FC". Anaheim Bulletin. 16 February 1977. p. 51. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  7. "Opera and Concert Notices: London". The Musical Times. 99 (1382): 205–212. 1958. doi:10.2307/937800. JSTOR 937800. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  8. Sherwood, James (26 October 2004). "Mystery of the Callas millions resurfaces as jewels are put up for auction". The Independent. Archived from the original on 6 July 2018. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  9. Nagy, Kären N. (1989). "Obituary Index". Notes. 45 (4). Music Library Association: 722–731. ISSN 0027-4380. JSTOR 941213. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  10. Sergey, Bednov (10 February 2005). "КТО УБИЛ МАРИЮ КАЛЛАС?" [WHO KILLED MARIA CALLAS?]. Trud (in Russian). Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  11. Huffington, Arianna (14 October 2002). Maria Callas: The Woman behind the Legend. New York: Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-0-8154-1228-1.
  12. Alberge, Dalya (11 April 2021). "Drugged, sexually abused, swindled... Maria Callas's tormented life revealed". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  13. Pescetto, Marco (2023). "Maria Callas nel centenario della nascita: la fragilità delle corde di vetro" [Maria Callas on the centenary of her birth: The fragility of glass strings] (PDF). Atti della Accademia Ligure di Scienze e Lettere. 7 (in Italian). 5: 568–580. ISSN 0392-2219. OCLC 643976777. Retrieved 12 May 2026.