Yestignei Fomin: The Coachmen at the Staging-Post



Yestignei Fomin (1761 - 1800) is best known today for his operas. A contemporary of Mozart and Borynyansky, he was the son of a soldier, however his musical promise was spotted early and cultivated in St Petersburg.  He studied in Bologna for a time, returning to St Petersburg to teach at the Theatrical School and compose operas. His Italian education is reflected in the style of his music, although he freely used Russian stories and musical folk idioms. This video is a selection from Fomin's opera 'The Coachmen at the Staging-Post'; you may recognise a version the song 'In the Field Stood a Birch Tree' in the third piece.

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