Career as a chemist commemorating the 160th anniversary of Borodin's birth In his profession Borodin gained great respect, being particularly noted for his work on
aldehydes. Between 1859 and 1862 Borodin had a postdoctoral position at
Heidelberg University. He worked in the laboratory of
Emil Erlenmeyer working on benzene derivatives. He also spent time in
Pisa, working on
halocarbons. One experiment published during 1862 described the first
nucleophilic displacement of
chlorine by
fluorine in
benzoyl chloride. The radical halodecarboxylation of aliphatic carboxylic acids was first demonstrated by Borodin during 1861 by his synthesis of
methyl bromide from
silver acetate. It was
Heinz Hunsdiecker and his wife
Cläre, however, who developed Borodin's work into a general method, for which they were granted a
US patent during 1939, and which they published in the journal
Chemische Berichte during 1942. The method is generally known as either the
Hunsdiecker reaction or the Hunsdiecker–Borodin reaction. Borodin investigated the condensation of
valerian aldehyde and
oenanth aldehyde, which was reported by von Richter during 1869. During 1873, he described his work to the Russian Chemical Society and noted similarities with compounds recently reported by Wurtz. He published his last full article during 1875 on reactions of
amides and his last publication concerned a method for the identification of
urea in animal urine. His successor as chemistry professor of the Medical-Surgical academy was his son-in-law and fellow chemist,
Aleksandr Dianin.
Musical avocation Opera and orchestral works {{Listen|type=music , 1888 Borodin met
Mily Balakirev during 1862. While under Balakirev's tutelage in composition he began his Symphony No. 1 in E-flat major; it was first performed during 1869, with Balakirev conducting. During that same year Borodin started on his
Symphony No. 2 in B minor, which was not particularly successful at its premiere during 1877 under
Eduard Nápravník, but with some minor re-orchestration received a successful performance during 1879 by the Free Music School under
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's direction. During 1880 he composed the popular
symphonic poem In the Steppes of Central Asia. Two years later he began composing a third symphony, but left it unfinished at his death; two movements of it were later completed and orchestrated by
Alexander Glazunov. During 1868, Borodin became distracted from initial work on the second symphony by preoccupation with the
opera Prince Igor, which is considered by some to be his most significant work and one of the most important historical Russian operas. It contains the
Polovtsian Dances, often performed as a stand-alone concert work forming what is probably Borodin's best-known composition. Borodin left the opera (and a few other works) incomplete at his death.
Prince Igor was completed posthumously by Rimsky-Korsakov and
Alexander Glazunov. It is set in the 12th century, when the Russians, commanded by Prince Igor of Seversk, determined to conquer the barbarous
Polovtsians by travelling eastward across the Steppes. The Polovtsians were apparently a nomadic tribe originally of Turkic origin who habitually attacked southern Russia. A full
solar eclipse early during the first act foreshadows an ominous outcome to the invasion. Prince Igor's troops are defeated. The story tells of the capture of Prince Igor, and his son, Vladimir, of Russia by Polovtsian chief Khan Konchak, who entertains his prisoners lavishly and orders his slaves to perform the famous 'Polovtsian Dances', which provide a thrilling climax to the second act. The second half of the opera finds Prince Igor returning to his homeland, but rather than finding himself in disgrace, he is welcomed home by the townspeople and by his wife, Yaroslavna. Although for a while rarely performed in its entirety outside of Russia, this opera has received two notable new productions recently, one at the Bolshoi State Opera and Ballet Company in Russia during 2013, and one at the Metropolitan Opera Company of New York City during 2014.
Chamber music No other member of the Balakirev circle identified himself so much with
absolute music as did Borodin in his two string quartets, in addition to his many earlier chamber compositions. As a cellist, he was an enthusiastic chamber music player, an interest that increased during his chemical studies in Heidelberg between 1859 and 1861. This early period yielded, among other chamber works, a string sextet and a piano quintet. Borodin based the thematic structure and instrumental texture of his pieces on those of
Felix Mendelssohn. During 1875 Borodin started his First String Quartet, much to the displeasure of
Mussorgsky and
Vladimir Stasov; the other members of
The Five were known to be hostile to chamber music. The First Quartet demonstrates mastery of the string quartet form. Borodin's
Second Quartet, written in 1881, displays strong lyricism, as in the third movement's popular "
Nocturne." While the First Quartet is richer in changes of mood, the Second Quartet has a more uniform atmosphere and expression. ==Personal life and death==