14/02/1813, Troitskoe, Tula region, Russia - 17/01/1869, St.Petersbourg, Russia
Russian composer, one of the founders of the realistic trend in Russian music. He received a versatile home education in literature, theater and music (singing, piano, violin). At the beginning of 1835 he met M.I. Glinka, who had a decisive influence on his further musical development. He has achieved great success in the field of chamber-vocal genre. The best romances – "I loved you", "Wedding", "Tear", "Night Marshmallow" entered the treasury of Russian chamber music. Since the late 1850s, he actively participated in musical and social activities, was elected a member of the committee of the Russian Musical Society (1859), chairman of the St. Petersburg branch of the RMO (1867), became close to a group of young composers (later - the Mighty Bunch); participated in the work of the satirical magazines "Iskra" and "Alarm Clock". He is the author of several operas ("Esmeralda" (1837-1841), "The Stone Guest" (unfinished, completed by C.A. Cui, instrumented by N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov), "Rusalka", 1856), symphonic, chamber-vocal and piano works.
