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Balakirev, Mili Alekseyevich 1836-1910
Russian composer

Born in Nizhny Novgorod, he turned to composing after an early career as a concert pianist, and became the leader of the national Russian school of music. César Cui, Mussorgsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Aleksandr Borodin, and Tchaikovsky were all influenced by him. He founded the Petersburg Free School of Music (1862), and was director of the Imperial Capella (from 1883). His compositions include two symphonies, a symphonic poem Tamara (1867-82), and the oriental fantasy for piano, Islamey (1869).