BORODIN, ALEXANDER PORFYRIEVICH (1$34 1887), Russian musical composer, natural son of a Russian prince, was born in St. Petersburg on Nov. 12, 1834. He was brought up to the medical profession, and in 1862 was appointed assistant professor of chemistry at the St. Petersburg academy of medicine. He wrote several works on chemistry, and took a leading part in advocating women's education, helping to found the school of medicine for women, and lecturing there from 1872 till his death. But he is best known as a musician. His interest in music was stimulated from 1862 onwards by his friendship with Balakirev, and from 1863 by his marriage with a lady who was an accom plished pianist. He owed very much to the influence of Liszt at Weimar. His first symphony was written in 1862-1867; his opera Prince Igor, begun in 1869 was left unfinished at his death, but was completed by Rimsky-Korsakov and Glazunov and attained wide popularity in Russia while its brilliant Polov tsienne Dances became famous throughout Europe as a conse quence of the performances of the Diaghilev Ballet. In the way of orchestral music his symphonic sketch "In the Steppes of Cen tral Asia" is characteristically picturesque and not less note worthy is his splendid second symphony in B minor, a work of the finest quality. He also wrote part of a third symphony (or chestrated after his death by Glazunov), a couple of admirable quartets and some delightful songs, but his total output was not very large, though sufficient even so to secure him a place among the most gifted and distinguished Russian masters of his period. He died suddenly at St. Petersburg on Feb. 28, 1887.