Vladimir Mikhailovich Yurovsky (March 7 (20), 1915, Tarasha, Kiev province — January 26, 1972, Moscow) was an outstanding Soviet composer and pianist who was awarded the title of Honored Artist of the RSFSR in 1969.
He was born in Tarasha, Kiev province, into a Jewish family. His father, Mikhail Yankelevich Yurovsky, was a photographer and owner of a photo studio, leaving behind an important series of historical photographs of the city. Vladimir's mother, Khava Yudkovna Yurovskaya, also played a significant role in his life.
At the age of eleven, Vladimir began his professional career as a piano player. He studied at the Kiev Music College, while simultaneously working as a prompter and assistant conductor at the Kiev Opera House. In 1938, he graduated from the Moscow State Conservatory, where he was mentored by N. Ya. Myaskovsky.
On December 30, 1942, the premiere of Yurovsky's ballet Scarlet Sails, based on the story by A. Green, took place at the Bolshoi Theater evacuated to Kuibyshev. Dmitry Shostakovich praised this work in his review published in the newspaper Pravda.
Among his other works are the ballets "Under the Italian Sky" (based on "Tales of Italy" by M. Gorky, 1952), "The Enchanted Boy", "The Golden Antelope" (1960), "Before Dawn" (1961) and "Yanko the Musician" (1961). He also created the opera "The Thought of Opanas", based on the poem of the same name by E. Bagritsky, and a number of oratorios, cantatas and symphonic poems (1934-1964).
Yurovsky has written music for theatrical productions, as well as for feature films and animated films such as The End of St. Petersburg, New Moscow and The Old Rider. His songs, based on poems by Soviet poets, include "You Watered the Horse," the words of S. Yesenin, and "Youth led us," the words of E. Bagritsky.
The urn with Vladimir Yurovsky's ashes is buried in the columbarium of the Donskoy cemetery.
