• Name: Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
• Birthday: 03/18/1844
• Birth Place: Tikhvin, Russia
• Died: 06/21/1908
• Place of Death: Lyubensk, Russia
• Period: Post-Romantic
• Genre: Classical

Title	Release
Legend of Invisible City of Kitezh W	1997
Mozart and Salieri	1994
(206) Capriccio espagnol (Kaprichchio na ispankskiye temï), for orchestra, Op. 34
(86) Le Coq d'Or (The Golden Cockerel; Zolotoy petushok), opera in 3 acts with a prologue & epilogue	1929
(106) Russian Easter Festival Overture (Svetlïy pazdnik), for orchestra, Op. 36	1987
(470) Scheherazade, symphonic suite for orchestra, Op. 35	1992
(42) The Tale of Tsar Saltan (Skazka o Tsare Saltane), musical pictures (suite) for orchestra, Op. 57	1993
(25) Christmas Eve Suite (Noch' pered rozhdestvom), for orchestra (with optional chorus ad lib)
(68) Mlada, suite for orchestra
(7) Dubinushka (The Little Oak Stick) (II), tone poem for orchestra and chorus ad lib, Op. 62	1957
Switezianka (The Mermaid of Lake Switez), cantata for 2 solo voices, chorus & orchestra, Op. 44	2001
The Song of Alexis, Man of God (Stikh ob Alexeye, Bozh'yem cheloveke), for chorus & orchestra, Op. 20	2001
The Song of Oleg the Wise (Pesn' o veshchem Olege), for 2 male soloists, men's chorus & orchestra, Op. 58	2001
(3) Night on Mount Triglav (Noch' na gore Triglov), tone poem for orchestra	1986
(3) A Pressed Flower (Tsvetok zasokhshiy), song for voice & piano, Op. 51/3	1996
(3) Allegro, for string quartet in B flat major (for collaborative work "Les vendredis," Book 2, No. 1)	1997
Angel and Demon, duet for 2 voices & piano, Op. 52/2
Arise O God (Vzïde Bog), communion hymn for chorus (Sacred Works No. 21)	1993
(5) At the Grave (Nad mogiloy), prelude for orchestra "in memory of M.P. Belyayev", Op. 61
At the Monastery (V monastïre), for string quartet
(5) By the Sea (U morya) (5), song cycle for voice & piano, Op. 46 W	1910
Canzonetta and Tarantella, for 2 clarinets
(6) Capriccio espagñol (Kaprichchio na ispankskiye temï), for piano, 4 hands, Op. 34arr.
(2) Chopsticks Paraphrases, collaborative work for piano W
(2) Choruses (2), for chorus (also known as "Op. 22"), Op. 18	1989
Choruses (2), for female chorus, Op. 13	1994
Choruses (6), for chorus, Op. 16	1994
(10) Christmas Eve (Noch' pered rozhdestvom), opera in 4 acts W	1990
Collection of Russian folksongs (100), for voice & piano, Op. 24	2000
(6) Concerto (Concertstück), for clarinet & military band in E flat major	1992
(17) Concerto, for piano & orchestra in C sharp minor, Op. 30	1993
(11) Concerto, for trombone & military band in B flat major
Do not sing to me, O lovely one (Ne poy, krasavitsa), song for voice & piano, Op. 51/2	2009
(5) Dubinushka (The Little Oak Stick) (I), tone poem for orchestra, Op. 62
Duets (2), for 2 voices & piano, Op. 47 W
Duets (2), for 2 voices & piano, Op. 52 W
Early spring (To bïlo ranneyu vesnoy), song for voice & piano, Op. 43/4
(46) Eastern Song: The nightingale enslaved by the rose (Vostochnïy romans), song for voice and piano, Op. 2/2	2000
(20) Elegy: The Clouds Begin to Scatter, song for voice & piano, Op. 42/3	2009
(4) Episode from the Legend of Sadko, suite for orchestra, Op. 5	1988
(10) Fairy Tale (Skazka, or Baba Yaga), tone poem for orchestra, Op. 29
(2) Fantasia on Serbian Themes (I), for orchestra, Op. 6
(8) Fantasia on Serbian Themes (II), for orchestra, Op. 6	1997
(9) Fantasia on Two Russian Themes, for violin & orchestra in B minor, Op. 33	1962
For the shores of thy far native land (Dlya beregov otchiznï dal'noy), song for voice & piano, Op. 26/3	1999
Forgive! Remember not those tearful days (Prosti! Me pomni dney naden'ya), song for voice & piano, Op. 27/4
(2) Hebrew Song (Yevreyskaya pesnya), song for voice & piano, Op. 7/2	1995
I am unhappy (Mne grustno), song for voice & piano, Op. 41/2	1998
(2) I Believe, I am Loved (Ya veryu, ya lyubim), song for voice and piano, Op. 8/6
I died from happiness (Ya umer ot schast'ya), song for voice & piano, Op. 55/4	1994
I love the moon (Lyublyu tebya), song for voice & piano, Op. 41/3	1998
In Church (V tserkvi), for piano, 4 hands

Mainly known for his symphonic works, especially the popular symphonic suite Sheherazade, as well as the Capriccio Espagnol and the Russian Easter Festival Overture, Rimsky-Korsakov left an oeuvre that also included operas, chamber works, and songs. Rimsky-Korsakov's music is accessible and engaging owing to his talent for tone-coloring and brilliant orchestration. Furthermore, his operas are masterful musical evocations of myths and legends.

Born in 1844, Rimsky-Korsakov studied the piano as a child but chose a naval career, entering the College of Naval Cadets in St. Petersburg in 1856. However, he continued with piano lessons; in fact, in 1859, Rimsky-Korsakov started working with the French pianist Theodore Canille, through whom he met Balakirev, an important mentor and friend.

In 1862, after graduating form the naval school, Rimsky-Korsakov was at sea for two and a half years, devoting his free time to composition. Upon Rimsky-Korsakov's return to St. Petersburg, in 1865, Balakirev conducted his friend's First Symphony, which was hailed as the first important symphonic work by a Russian composer.

Rimsky-Korsakov was appointed professor of composition and orchestration at the St. Petersburg Conservatory in 1871. The following year, he married Nadezhda Purgold, a pianist. In 1873, Rimsky-Korsakov left active duty, becoming inspector of navy orchestras, a job which he held until 1884.

During the 1870s, Rimsky-Korsakov composed, conducted, and collected Russian folk songs. In 1878, he started composing the opera May Night, after a story by Nikolai Gogol, his first stage work based on a story containing fantastic motifs. Following the production of May Night, in 1880, Rimsky-Korsakov began work on Snow Maiden, based on Nikolai Ostrovsky's poetic retelling of a Slavic myth, which was performed in 1882.

Saddened by Mussorgsky's death, in 1881, Rimsky-Korsakov devoted himself to editing his friend's unpublished manuscripts. A master orchestrator, Rimsky-Korsakov felt obliged to help colleagues whose manuscripts needed revision. Thus, in 1887, when Borodin died, Rimsky-Korsakov agreed to orchestrate and complete Borodin's opera Prince Igor.

Rimsky-Korsakov wrote the Spanish Capriccio in 1887, completing the Russian Easter Overture and Sheherazade the following year. Having composed these resplendent works, however, Rimsky-Korsakov went through a period of despondency; there were deaths in his family, and, in 1893, Tchaikovsky died.

In 1895, Rimsky-Korsakov's Christmas Eve, another opera after a Gogol story, was produced. The composer's subsequent works recreated the rich world of Russian myths and legends. Sadko, completed in 1896, conjured up a medieval Russian legend. In 1901, Rimsky-Korsakov blended the legend of Kitezh and the story of St. Fevroniya to create a complex Christian-pantheistic narrative. Completed in 1905, the year when the politically progressive composer was temporarily dismissed from this teaching post, The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh and the Maiden, was produced in 1907.

Rimsky-Korsakov's last opera , The Golden Cockerel, completed in 1907, was inspired by a politically subversive story by Alexander Pushkin. The production of this work was a struggle, because the subject matter aroused suspicions among government censors. The opera was finally produced, in 1909, the year following the composer's death, by a private opera company in Moscow. ~ Zoran Minderovic, All Music Guide