Home > Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov

Born at Tikhvin , near Novgorod, into an aristocratic family, Rimsky-Korsakov showed musical ability from an early age, but studied at the Russian Imperial Naval College in Saint Petersburg and subsequently joined the Russian Navy. It was only when he met Mily Balakirev that he began to concentrate more seriously on music. Balakirev encouraged him to compose and taught him when he was not at sea. He also met the other composers of the group that were to become known as " The Five", or "The Mighty Handful", through Balakirev. While in the navy, Rimsky-Korsakov completed a symphony, the first such piece to be composed by a Russian. He also completed his well known orchestral piece Sadko (1867) and the opera The Maid of Pskov (1872), before resigning his commission in 1873.

Rimsky-Korsakov and the other members of "The Five" frequently collaborated on or edited each other's compositions. In particular, after the death of Modest MussorgskyModest Petrovich Mussorgsky ( March 21, 1839 March 28, 1881; sometimes spelt Modeste Moussorgsky , was a Russian composer. He was a member of The Five, the group of composers under the leadership of Mily Balakirev dedicated to producing a distinctly Russi in 1881Events January 16- 24 ? Siege of Geok Tepe ? Russian troops under general Skobeleff defeat Turkomans January 25 Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell form the Oriental Telephone Company February 5 Phoenix, Arizona is incorporated. February 13 First issu, Rimsky-Korsakov took on the task of revising several of Mussorgsky's pieces for publication and performance. For example, Rimsky-Korsakov's arrangement of Mussorgsky's Night on Bald MountainNight on Bald Mountain is the common name for St. John's Night on the Bare Mountain a musical piece by Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky, a Russian composer and member of The Five, Mily Balakirev's group dedicated to producing a distinctly Russian kind of music is the version generally performed today. However, critical opinion of Mussorgsky has changed over time so that his style, once considered unpolished, is now valued for its originality. This has caused some of Rimsky-Korsakov's other revisions, such as that of Boris GodunovBoris Godunov is an opera by Modest Mussorgsky, based on the drama of the same name by Aleksandr Pushkin. It was first produced in Saint Petersburg, Russia in 1874. The work exists in two main versions: the original 1869 version, and a revised version fro, to fall out of favor and be replaced by productions more faithful to Mussorgsky's original manuscripts.

In 1871Events January January 18 The member-states of the North German Confederation unite into a single nation-state known as the German Empire. The King of Prussia is declared the first German Emperor as Wilhelm I of Germany. January 28 France surrenders to en, despite being largely self-taught, Rimsky-Korsakov became professor of composition and orchestration at the Saint Petersburg Conservatoire . There he taught many composers who would later find fame, including Alexander GlazunovAlexander Konstantinovich Glazunov (or Glazounov ( August 10, 1865 March 21, 1936) was a Russian composer, as well as an influential music teacher. Glazunov was born in St. Petersburg. He studied music under Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. The first of his 8 sym, Sergei ProkofievSergei Sergeevich Prokofiev ( April 23, 1891 March 5, 1953) was a Ukrainian composer. Biography Early years Prokofiev was born in Sontsovka (now the village of Krasne in Donetsk oblast), Ukraine, as an only child. His mother was a pianist and his father a and Igor StravinskyIgor Fyodorovitch Stravinsky ( June 17, 1882 April 6, 1971) was a composer of modern classical music. He wrote works in the neo-classical and serialist styles, but he is best known for two works from his earlier, Russian period: The Rite of Spring and The. He continued to be a prolific composer, producing many orchestral works, including the well known Sheherazade and Capriccio espagnol. He also wrote fifteen operas, including The Immortal Koschei and The Tale of Tsar Saltan, the latter of which includes his most famous piece, The Flight of the Bumblebee, since arranged for all kinds of different instrumental groups. Among his Russian Orthodox liturgical music is the a cappella Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom .

In 1905 Rimsky-Korsakov was fired from his professorship in Saint Petersburg owing to his expressing some political views the authorities disapproved of. This sparked a series of resignations by his fellow faculty members, and he was eventually reinstated. The political controversy continued with his opera Le Coq d'Or (The Golden Cockerel) (1907) which was an attack on Imperial Russia, and which was banned from performance following its premiere.

Towards the end of his life, Rimsky-Korsakov suffered from angina. He died in Lyubensk in 1908, and was interred in Tikhvin Cemetery at the Alexander Nevsky Monastery in St. Petersburg. His nephew Georgy Mikhaylovich Rimsky-Korsakov was also a composer.