Modest Mussorgsky (1839-1881) was a Russian composer and member of the group known as The Five. Born into a landowning family, he served briefly in the military before devoting himself increasingly to music.

His works include the opera Boris Godunov, the piano suite Pictures at an Exhibition, the orchestral tone poem Night on Bald Mountain and the song cycles Songs and Dances of Death and The Nursery.

Mussorgsky’s music is bold, raw and intensely individual, often seeking the natural rhythms of Russian speech and the psychological truth of character. It can seem rough-edged, but the roughness is part of its power.

Many of his works were revised or orchestrated by others, yet his own voice remains unmistakable. Mussorgsky brought Russian music close to the grain of human speech, mud, bells and conscience.