Background
FOMIN, Nikolay was born in 1864 in Saint St. Petersburg.
composer Pianist and music teacher
FOMIN, Nikolay was born in 1864 in Saint St. Petersburg.
1891 graduate Saint St. Petersburg Conservatory, where he studied under North.A.Dubasov (piano), A.G.Rubinstein (conducting) and A.K.Lyadov (harmony).
Professor of folk orchestration, Leningrad Conservatory. Specialized in Russian instrumental folk music With V.V.Andreyev developed variants of Russian pizzicato instruments (dombras, balalaykas, etc).
Developed improved psaltery' with range of five octaves and devised plectrum to facilitate the playing of arpeggios and increase the volume of sound. Developed orchestration principles for folk instruments. Wrote orchestral arrangements of numerous Russian folk songs and adapted compositions by Russian and West European musicians for folk orchestras.
Made major contribution to the development of Russian folk instrumentation.