Kabalevsky was born in
Saint Petersburg in 1904, but moved to Moscow at a young age. His father was a mathematician and encouraged him to study mathematics, but he showed a fascination for the arts. He studied at the
Academic Music College in Moscow and graduated in 1922. He then continued his studies with Vasily Selivanov. In 1925, he then went on to study at the
Moscow Conservatory where he learned composition with first
Georgy Catoire, then
Nikolai Myaskovsky and piano with
Alexander Goldenweiser. By the age of 26 his list of compositions included the String Quartet, Op. 8,
Piano Concerto, Op. 9, Eight Children's Songs, Op. 17, and various works for solo piano. In 1925 he joined PROKULL (Production Collective of Student Composers), a student group affiliated with Moscow Conservatory aimed at bridging the gap between the modernism of the
ACM and the utilitarian "
agitprop" music of the
RAPM. (add cit.) In 1932 he was appointed senior lecturer at the Moscow Conservatory and by 1939 was a full-time professor. He also worked as a music critic for the
All-Union Radio and as an editor for the
Sovetskaya muzïka and the publisher Muzgiz. His music focused on bridging the gap between children's technical skills and adult aesthetics. He also wrote a book on the subject, which was published in the United States in 1988 as
Music and Education: A Composer Writes about Musical Education. He joined the Communist Party in 1940 and received the Medal of Honour from the Soviet government for his musical skill in 1941. In 1948, when
Andrei Zhdanov issued his
resolution on the directions and changes for Soviet music, Kabalevsky was originally on the list of composers who were allegedly the most guilty of "
formalism", but due to his connections within official circles, Kabalevsky's name was removed. Another theory states that Kabalevsky's name was only on the list because of his position in the leadership of the
Union of Soviet Composers. His traditional stance as a composer, combined with his strong sense of civic duty expressed in his educational work, endeared him to the Soviet regime and earned him a long list of honours and awards, including the
Lenin Prize in 1972 and the
Hero of Socialist Labour in 1974. This is a testament to his ability to work creatively in the same conditions in which so many of his contemporary composers had difficulties. though this judgement has been applied to many other composers of the time. Some of Kabalevsky's best-known "youth works" date from this era, such as the Violin Concerto and the First Cello Concerto. Kabalevsky wrote for all musical genres and was consistently faithful to the ideals of socialist realism. Kabalevsky frequently travelled overseas; he was a member of the
Soviet Committee for the Defense of Peace as well as a representative for the promotion of friendship between the Soviet Union and foreign countries. In 1961, Kabalevsky made a recording of his
Overture Pathetique,
Spring, and
Songs of Morning, in which he conducted. It was released in the U.S. in 1975 on the Westminster Gold label. Also in 1961, Kabalevsky orchestrated
Franz Schubert's well known
Fantasia in F minor, originally written for four hands on one piano, producing a virtuoso piece for a piano soloist playing with a symphony orchestra. This work has been recorded several times. He was awarded a number of state honours for his musical works, including those given by the Soviet government. In regards to his teaching, he was elected the head of the Commission of Musical Aesthetic Education of Children in 1962, and was also elected president of the Scientific Council of Educational Aesthetics in the Academy of Pedagogical Sciences of the USSR in 1969. Kabalevsky also received the honorary degree of the president of the International Society of Musical Education. His notable students included
Leo Smit. He died in Moscow on 14 February 1987. == Legacy ==