In January 1904, the premiere of Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Aida" took place at the Kyiv Opera Theater. Theater critics actively discussed the new production, which nearly failed due to a young debutant playing the role of the black king Amonasro. His attempt to transform into an African monarch was unsuccessful: the makeup of soot or boot polish caused laughter in the hall. However, when he sang, the audience was struck by his voice. "The sound flowed, rang, sparkled, enchanted with its timbre, and shook with power. The success was decisive," recalled the director of the Bolshoi Theater, Vladimir Lossky. This debutant was Georgy Andreyevich Baklanov, who later became a world celebrity.

Baklanov discovered his interest in art and desire to sing quite late, during his studies at Kyiv University. His passion for the stage was so strong that he went to St. Petersburg to conquer the capital. Luck was on his side: the opera singer Ippolit Prjanishnikov noticed Baklanov's talent and took him to Italy to study with the teacher Vittorio Vanzo. After studying in Milan, Georgy Andreyevich returned to Russia and wanted to perform in Moscow, but he received rejections as he was advised to gain experience. Not wanting to wait, he signed a contract with the private opera of Mr. Zimin. Soon, news of his baritone spread throughout Moscow. The director of the Imperial Theaters, who had previously rejected Baklanov, begged him to return after a concert, promising him a leading role. Later, Rachmaninoff himself wrote music for Baklanov.

Soon, Georgy Andreyevich began international tours. He performed at La Scala in Milan, the Berlin Opera Theater, the Colon Theater in Buenos Aires, and London's Covent Garden, achieving immense success everywhere. German newspapers noted that "for Russian artists, apparently, nothing is impossible." After the events of October 1917, Baklanov decided not to return to Russia and remained in Germany, where he continued to perform. After Hitler came to power, he emigrated to Switzerland. Georgy Andreyevich passed away in Basel in 1938 at the age of 57.