| He studied privately with Rimsky-Korsakov (1879-81) and had his First Symphony performed when he was 16. He became a member of the circle around the patron Belyayev, who took him to meet Liszt in Weimar, and in 1899 was appointed to the St Petersburg Conservatory, which he directed from 1905 until leaving the Soviet Union in 1928. During these later years he composed relatively little: the bulk of his output, which includes nine symphonies, much else for orchestra, the ballet Raymonda (1897) and seven quartets, dates from before World War I. He has a significant place in Russian music in that he reconciled Russianism and Europeanism. He absorbed Balakirev’s nationalism, Rimsky-Korsakov’s orchestral virtuosity, Tchaikovsky’s lyricism, Borodin’s epic grandeur and Taneyev’s contrapuntal skill. |