Today, on September 23, Ukraine, together with the whole world community, celebrates the 150th anniversary of the birth of Solomiya Krushelnytska (1872-1952), a Ukrainian singer of world fame, who at the end of the 19th - the beginning of the 20th century was a symbol of perfection and excellence.

In November 2021, the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, signed a Decree on the Celebration of the 150th anniversary of the birth of Solomiya Krushelnytska at the state level, and the 41st session of the General Conference of UNESCO Member States adopted a decision to commemorate this anniversary under the auspice of UNESCO.

Solomiya Krushelnytska performed on the most prestigious stages of the world. Her incomparably beautiful lyrical-dramatic soprano with a range of almost three octaves is truly a unique phenomenon in opera and chamber art. The audiences applauded her in 30 countries on four continents. Her repertoire includes about 60 parts in operas by more than 35 composers — representatives of various national schools and trends. The story of her life is a bright path of success of an extremely talented, charismatic and purposeful woman.

Solomiya Krushelnytska was born on September 23, 1872 in a large family of a Greek Catholic priest in a small village in the west of Ukraine, which at that time did not have its own statehood. The family belonged to an ancient noble family. After graduating from the Conservatory of the Galician Musical Society in Lviv, he studied in Milan, later in Vienna. The singer's debut took place in 1895 in the part of Manon ("Manon Lescaut" by G. Puccini) in Cremona, Italy. Since then, the brilliant career of Solomia Krushelnytska began:

Such conductors as Arturo Toscanini and Leopoldo Mugnone vied with each other for the honour of performing with her. At the invitation of Arturo Toscanini, Solomiya Krushelnytska played the leading roles in the Italian premieres of R. Strauss's operas Salome (1906) and Electra (1909) on the stage of the La Scala Theater. She lent a helping hand to G. Puccini after the unsuccessful debut of his opera "Madame Butterfly" at the La Scala Theater of Milan in February 1904. Owing to the singer's participation in the premiere of the 2nd edition of this opera on May 28, 1904 at the Grande Theater (Brescia), this performance was saved, gained world recognition and remains one of the most popular operas to this day. The singer was active in concert activities.

In 1910, she married the Italian lawyer Cesare Riccioni (1868-1936), the mayor of Viareggio.

In August 1939, she came to Lviv to visit her family and from 1944 until the end of her life worked as a vocal teacher at the Lviv State Conservatory named after Mykola Lysenko.

Solomiya Krushelnytska's life is worth while making feature films, writing novels and documentaries about. Great work, great glory and great love fell to her lot. She was very famous and free in her actions and always emphasized that she was Ukrainian.