Alexander Borodin

Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin ,November 1833 February 1887 was a Russian Romantic composer of Georgian origin, as well as a doctor and chemist. He was one of the prominent 19th century composers known as The Mighty Handful, a group dedicated to producing a uniquely Russian kind of classical music, rather than imitating earlier Western European models.

Borodin was born in Saint Petersburg as an illegitimate son of a 62yearold Georgian nobleman, Luka Stepanovich Gedevanishvili, and a married 25yearold Russian woman, Evdokia Konstantinovna Antonova. Due to the circumstances of Alexanders birth, the nobleman had him registered as the son of one of his Russian serfs, Porfiry Borodin, hence the composers Russian last name. As a result of this registration, both Alexander and his nominal Russian father Porfiry were officially serfs of Alexanders biological father Luka. The Georgian father emancipated Alexander from serfdom when he wasand provided housing and money for him and his mother. In spite of this, Alexander was never publicly recognized by his mother, who stayed close but was referred to by young Borodin as his aunt.

Source: Wikipedia