Russian bass Feodor Chaliapin was “la voce storica” among basses at the turn of the century, the great basso-cantante that combined the art of singing with the art of acting and strove to find the ideal vocal expression for his characters. “To him, the voice was only a pretext and a docile, sometimes insidious instrument of will and whim. He was a tenor, baritone or bass as he wished, making use of all colours on the lyrical palette” He remains perhaps one of the four truly mythical figures of opera to this very day.