Osipov, Nikolai Petrovich

Born Jan. 15 (28), 1901, in St. Petersburg; died May 9, 1945, in Moscow. Soviet conductor, teacher, and balalaika virtuoso. Honored Artist of the RSFSR (1942).

Osipov studied under A. M. Dykhov, a member of the Great Russia Orchestra. From 1928 to 1939 he was a soloist with the Moscow Philharmonic Society, and from 1940 until his death he was artistic director and conductor of the State Orchestra of Folk Instruments (since 1946 the Osipov State Russian Folk Orchestra). A brilliant virtuoso, he expanded the expressive and technical possibilities of the balalaika as a solo instrument. Osipov collaborated with a number of composers, including N. P. Budashkin, on a number of works for balalaika.