Alexander Taneyev

Russian composer Born in St. Petersburg in 1850 and died in the same city in 1918. He was the son of a second cousin of the more famous composer Sergei Taneyev, though his own father's name was also Sergei and he was a great music lover and amateur composer. After studying at St. Petersburg University, he undertook musical studies in Dresden and with Rimsky-Korsakov in St. Petersburg. He was a close friend of the group of composers known as the "Mighty Handful", especially of Mussorgsky and Balakirev (the latter wrote orchestral versions of two waltzes by Taneyev), and took a keen interest in the national development of Russian music. Though he composed only sporadically -- his duties as a bureaucrat prohibited him much time out of his office -- he managed to compose two operas, three symphonies, three string quartets, as well as other chamber music, choral pieces and songs. Almost all of his pieces were performed during his lifetime.