born April 1, 1873, Oneg, near Semyonovo, Russia died March 28, 1943, Beverly Hills, Calif., U.S. Russian-born U.S. composer and pianist. He studied at the St. Petersburg and Moscow conservatories. After playing his first concerto for his graduation as a piano student (1891), he stayed on to earn a composition degree, writing his first opera, Aleko (1892). His first symphony (1897) was such a disaster that he could not compose for three years. Known for his titanic virtuosity as a pianist, he toured widely while returning to composing prolifically. He moved to the U.S. after the 1917 revolution. His works, most of them in a lush late-Romantic style, include three symphonies, four piano concertos, the tone poem From the Isle of the Dead (1909), and Symphonic Dances (1940)
v. born April 1, 1873, Oneg, near Semyonovo, Russia died March 28, 1943, Beverly Hills, Calif., U.S. Russian-born U.S. composer and pianist. He studied at the St. Petersburg and Moscow conservatories. After playing his first concerto for his graduation as a piano student (1891), he stayed on to earn a composition degree, writing his first opera, Aleko (1892). His first symphony (1897) was such a disaster that he could not compose for three years. Known for his titanic virtuosity as a pianist, he toured widely while returning to composing prolifically. He moved to the U.S. after the 1917 revolution. His works, most of them in a lush late-Romantic style, include three symphonies, four piano concertos, the tone poem From the Isle of the Dead (1909), and Symphonic Dances (1940)