Vospominaniia

Memoirs

Anna Vrubel’ (1855-1929), sister of the famous painter, was a school-teacher. Her memoirs were written at the request of A. Rimsky-Korsakov, but they were not used. She recalls her encounters with Musorgsky at the Valuevs’.

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I always picture Musorgsky at the piano giving an unusually picturesque rendition of his works with truly shattering force. At the same time I see the astonishing modesty of the brilliant composer, a man who, for the sake of pleasing the young people, was willing to play the piano for hours on end just to accompany our dancing.

Once an outing to a beautifully hilly site was organized. A rather large group of people participated in this trip and admired the magnificent sunset for a long time. The heart of this group was Musorgsky. He was accompanied by his musical colleague—the singer Leonova.¹