Alexander Borisovich Zhurbin
Born: August 7, 1945 | Tashkent, Soviet Union
Profession: Composer
Accolades: Ovation Award (Living Legend), Global Music Awards Silver Medal (2024)
Alexander Zhurbin is a prolific Russian composer. His first success came in 1975 with a rock-opera, Orpheus and Eurydice, which had 2000 consecutive performances in the former Soviet Union. He has composed scores for over 50 feature films and 40 musicals. He also has worked on multiple musical pieces including opera, musicals, symphonies and movie soundtracks. His songs have been performed by famous artists from Eastern Europe, such as Russian pop icon Alla Pugacheva. Zhurbin is a laureate of the Ovation Award in the Living Legend category.
He graduated from Tashkent’s Uspensky Special Music School in 1963. In 1969 he graduated from Tashkent Conservatory as a cellist and Gnessin Music College as a composer. He undertook postgraduate studies as a musicologist in Leningrad, where he in 1973 completed his candidate of science dissertation on the Symphonies of Gustav Mahler.
Zhurbin’s first big success came in 1975 with his rock-opera “Orpheus and Eurydice”. This work represented a pioneering achievement in the Soviet Union and received widespread acclaim. It achieved over two thousand consecutive performances, with more than two million copies of the associated record sold. Zhurbin was honored with numerous international awards for “Orpheus and Eurydice”, notably receiving the “Star of the Year” accolade in Great Britain. The musical enjoyed widespread popularity across the Soviet Union, with more than 3,000 concurrent performances. It was recognized by the Guinness Book of Records as the longest-running musical featuring the original cast.
He has composed scores for over 50 feature films, including “Dead Man’s Letters” and “Perestroika”. His extensive oeuvre includes eight operas and three ballets, which have been performed in premier Russian venues, including the Leningrad National Opera and the Moscow Chamber Opera. His prolific contribution to musical theatre has included more than forty musicals, all of which continue to be staged across the former Soviet Union. Some have exceeded 2,000 performances.
Zhurbin and his family have lived in New York City since 1990. He served as a composer-in-residence at the 92nd Street “Y” and a professor at Touro college. In 1992 he founded the Russian-American Theater “Wandering Stars”, which became an important cultural force in the Russian-speaking community and produced nine large-scale theatrical productions, six of them with his music. His musical How It Was Done in Odessa was a critical success at the Walnut Street Theatre, Philadelphia, in 1991 and had an eight-week sold-out run with good reviews.
Among his compositions written in the USA were Cello Concerto, Violin Concerto, Symphony # 3 and 8, an opera “Good Health, Your Majesty”, and a cantata “A Part of Speech”, with lyrics by Joseph Brodsky, as well as songs, jingles and commercials. In 1996, an evening of Zhurbin’s music was presented in Carnegie Hall (Weill Recital Hall), performed by Kristjan Järvi and the Absolute Ensemble.
Zhurbin’s latest theater works are the musicals “Shalom, America” (after Sholom Asch), “Camera Obscura” (after Vladimir Nabokov), “Wandering Stars” (after Sholom Aleikhem). He has written several major theatrical works, including “Mousetrap” (a musical after Agatha Christie); Humiliated and Insulted (opera after Dostoevsky); and “The Seagull”– operetta after Anton Chekhov. All were produced in Moscow, St Petersburg and another cities. He scored the mini-series “Moscow Saga”, based on the novel by Vasily Aksyonov.
In June of 2013, he was one of the founders of the Russian independent music companies, Gala Records Group, which was transformed into Warner Music Russia later on.
In 2015, an extended, two-and-a-half month festival of his works was presented, covering opera, musical, symphony, rock, film, and performances of his first four symphonies. It included the premiere of his Fifth Symphony “Speak, Memory!”, and the premiere of his opera “Melkiy Bes” (Petty Demon), based on Sologub. A new opera by Zhurbin, “Love’s Metamorphosis”, was premiered in May 2017 at the Moscow Musical Theater, Nemirovich-Danchenko.
In the 2020-2021 season, a festival “Serious and Light”, commemorating Zhurbin’s 75th birthday, ran from September 2020 to February 2021. Works performed included the premieres of operas “Anna K.” and “Happy Day”, the premiere of his Sixth Symphony (“Con Programma Letterale”), and vocal and chamber music works.
In 2023, his musical “Dybbuk: Between Two Worlds” received a world premiere in Moscow at the “Estrada” Theatre to critical acclaim.
In 2024, he had secured a contract with Warner Chappell Music, and received the Silver Medal from the Global Music Awards for his Symphony No. 5.
Alexander Zhurbin is married to the poet, translator and writer Irena Ginzburg. His son, Lev Zhurbin (‘Ljova’), is a composer and performer living in New York.
🎼 Career Highlights
- Orpheus and Eurydice (1975): The Soviet Union’s first rock-opera. It achieved over 2,000 consecutive performances, sold over 2 million records, and holds a Guinness World Record for the longest-running musical with its original cast.
- Prolific Output: Composed scores for over 50 feature films (including Dead Man’s Letters), 40+ musicals, 8 operas, 3 ballets, and 6 symphonies.
- Global Collaborations: His music has been performed by icons like Alla Pugacheva and showcased at premier venues, including Carnegie Hall.
- Industry Leadership: Co-founded Gala Records Group in 2013 (later Warner Music Russia) and signed with Warner Chappell Music in 2024.
⏳ Chronological Timeline
- 1963–1973: Education & Early Work Graduated from the Tashkent Conservatory (Cello) and Gnessin Music College (Composition). Completed his PhD dissertation on Gustav Mahler in Leningrad.
- 1975: Breakthrough Achieved massive international acclaim with Orpheus and Eurydice, earning the “Star of the Year” award in Great Britain.
- 1990–2001: The American Period Moved to New York City. Served as a professor at Touro College, founded the Russian-American Theater “Wandering Stars,” and composed concertos, symphonies, and the hit musical How It Was Done in Odessa.
- 2002–2019: Major Theatrical Adaptations Composed major works based on classic literature, including Mousetrap (Christie), The Seagull (Chekhov), and Camera Obscura (Nabokov), alongside scoring the mini-series Moscow Saga.
- 2020–2021: 75th Birthday Festival Celebrated with the “Serious and Light” festival, featuring the premieres of his Sixth Symphony and the operas Anna K. and Happy Day.
- 2023–2024: Recent Success Premiered the acclaimed musical Dybbuk: Between Two Worlds in Moscow and won a Global Music Awards Silver Medal for his Symphony No. 5.
👥 Personal Life
- Family: Married to poet and writer Irina Ginzburg. His son, Lev Zhurbin, is also a composer and performer based in New York.
- Affiliations: Despite public speculation, Zhurbin clarified in a 2023 Radio Liberty interview that he has never been a member of any political party.