Dmitrij Borisovič Kabalevskij (Russian Дмитрий Борисович Кабалевский, commonly transliterated in English as Dmitri Borisovich Kabalevsky) (1904 - 1987)

His Life

Dmitri Kabalevsky

Kabalevsky was a celebrated Soviet composer. He was born in St. Petersburg on December 30, 1904. His father was a mathematician and expected Dmitri to study mathematics. Against his father's will, Dmitri studied at the Moscow Conservatory in 1925, where he studied with Miaskovsky and became a professor in 1932. During World War II, he wrote many patriotic songs, having joined the Communist Party in 1940. He died in Moscow on February 14, 1987.

He was awarded a number of state honours for his musical works. Besides being a celebrated composer, he was also a writer and pianist. In the 1950's and 1960's, he became a public figure in Soviet Union.

His Works

Among his works were:

• Violin Concerto (op. 48, 1948)
• 24 Little Preludes (op. 38, 1924), based on Russian Folksongs by Rimsky-Korsakov.
• 3 Piano Concertos (1929, 1936 and 1952)
• Opera Colas Breugnon (1938)