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Moscow, Soviet Union (2001 – present)
Regina Spektor was born on February 18th, 1980, in Moscow, Soviet Union, to a musical family. Her father, a photographer, was also an amateur violinist. Her mother was a music professor in a Russian conservatory and now teaches at a public elementary school in Mount Vernon, New York.
Spektor studied classical piano from the age of six, practicing on a Petrof piano given to her mother by her grandfather. She was also exposed to the music of rock and roll bands such as The Beatles, Queen, and The Moody Blues by her father, who obtained such recordings in Eastern Europe and traded cassettes with friends in the Soviet Union. The family left the Soviet Union in 1989, when Regina was nine, during the period of Perestroika when Jewish citizens were permitted to emigrate. The seriousness of her piano studies led her parents to consider not leaving Russia, but they finally decided to emigrate, for religious and political reasons.
Traveling first to Austria and then Italy, the family settled in the Bronx, New York, where Spektor graduated from a middle school yeshiva. She then attended the Frisch Yeshiva High School in Paramus, New Jersey on a scholarship for two years, but, feeling out of place, eventually transferred to a secular public school, Fair Lawn High School, in Fair Lawn, New Jersey, where she finished the last two years of her high school career.
Spektor has stated that she was originally interested only in classical music, but that she later became interested in pop, rock, and punk as well.
Beginnings as a songwriter
Spektor studied classical piano from the age of six, practicing on a Petrof piano given to her mother by her grandfather. She was also exposed to the music of rock and roll bands such as The Beatles, Queen, and The Moody Blues by her father, who obtained such recordings in Eastern Europe and traded cassettes with friends in the Soviet Union. The family left the Soviet Union in 1989, when Regina was nine, during the period of Perestroika when Jewish citizens were permitted to emigrate. The seriousness of her piano studies led her parents to consider not leaving Russia, but they finally decided to emigrate, for religious and political reasons.
Traveling first to Austria and then Italy, the family settled in the Bronx, New York, where Spektor graduated from a middle school yeshiva. She then attended the Frisch Yeshiva High School in Paramus, New Jersey on a scholarship for two years, but, feeling out of place, eventually transferred to a secular public school, Fair Lawn High School, in Fair Lawn, New Jersey, where she finished the last two years of her high school career.
Spektor has stated that she was originally interested only in classical music, but that she later became interested in pop, rock, and punk as well.
Beginnings as a songwriter
Top Albums
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Begin to Hope
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Soviet Kitsch
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Songs
Regina Spektor
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11:11
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Shoutbox
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ofgriding wrote:
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5Aix07MLHE <
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Mezamnia wrote:
really good stuff, love it in 500daysofsummer
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theweaselway wrote:
i agree with the person below
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willspeed4food wrote:
I insist that Corinne Bailey Rae and Regina Spektor get together and form the greatest female duo of all time. If not for an album, at least for a song.
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gabethevegan wrote:
Black'N' White Photography is The Best for Portraits..thats a fuckin stuuner of a Pic
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fireandmusic wrote:
love Regina to brilliant little pieces.
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gabethevegan wrote:
I am a late convert to this very Interesting Artist..Watching coverage of Glastonbury..Seeing her at the Piano..Entrancing and inchanting that Varied audience.felt you were in the presence of a Real Artist...Love Fidelity but so far its all Gold...And what a Gorgeous woman she is Mmmmm!!!!!!!!!
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garbane_le wrote:
she is very original singer-songwriter. her lyrics are so much different than others artist's lyrics.
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modernromance_x wrote:
i discovered regina spektor not too long ago, i loove her, her voice is so beatuiful :)
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jjjul wrote:
She needs to come back to MOSCOW before I cry.
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withpassion wrote:
She needs to come back to Milwaukee before I cry.
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gabibees wrote:
she's the best singer ever... inspires me so much!
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spankmyfrank wrote:
1111 played track. 8)
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Adio_Bam wrote:
new song sounds sooo good, no doubt the best female singer-songwriter out there
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arulpragasam wrote:
great show last night
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roligtmedhatt wrote:
Swedish northern forest indie poppers Heart-Sick Groans back with another charming science of sleep-y video for their lemon fresh track "Three Day Blow"!!! --> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8RVX_yUwV0 DONT MISS!!!
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Cristobal91 wrote:
I hadn't listened to Far since it leaked months ago cause I thought it was boring at first, but now I suddenly started falling in love with it, it's got quite a few gems just like her other works.
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jjjul wrote:
new song! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmBesYCdYjI
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aloor wrote:
Regina we love you! Please come back to Italy!! Italian fan base http://www.reginaspektor.it
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Enokii wrote:
I think her duet with The strokes is amazing, her voice goes so well with Julian's one.
Videos
See more
Events
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Nov
30
Regina Spektor
O2 Academy Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
3 shouts
| 55 attendees
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Dec
1
Regina Spektor
O2 Academy Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
12 shouts
| 77 attendees
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Dec
3
Regina Spektor
Manchester Apollo, Manchester, United Kingdom
11 shouts
| 69 attendees
News
Regina on The Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson on 11/06/2009
5 Nov 2009 | from blog.myspace.com/reginaspektor
Regina will be appearing on The Late, Late Show with
Craig Ferguson (CBS) on the night of Friday, November 6, 2009 (early morning of November 7th), right after the David Letterman's Late Show:12:37-1. …
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5 Nov 2009 | from blog.myspace.com/reginaspektor -
21 Oct 2009 | from blog.myspace.com/reginaspektor -
13 Oct 2009 | from blog.myspace.com/reginaspektor
Listeners
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CrustyAnus
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sonatina
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Recent Activity
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AudraM, emu6, sappelbaum25 and 5 other people added Regina Spektor to their libraries. 27 minutes ago
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sistasouljah wrote about Regina Spektor in Favorite Albums of 2009. 2 hours ago
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devonstern added Regina Spektor to devonstern’s library. 2 hours ago
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SalivatingPony tagged Regina Spektor with ‘folk’. 2 hours ago
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SalivatingPony, andrelcmartins, rakelle37 and 32 other people added Regina Spektor to their libraries. 2 hours ago
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Staini tagged Regina Spektor with lirika and unreal. yesterday evening
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bflowers96, adatewithelvis, Pyjamas_Sam and 25 other people added Regina Spektor to their libraries. yesterday evening
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EllenSantos tagged Regina Spektor with ‘pop’. yesterday afternoon
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theworldofando, randomtexan1, laura9721 and 20 other people added Regina Spektor to their libraries. yesterday afternoon
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untilwebleed wrote about Regina Spektor – 11:11 in Everyone's doing it: Top 50 albums of the 00s.. Tuesday afternoon
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