RUBINSTEIN, roo'bin-stin, Anton Gregor, Russian composer and pianist: b. Wechwotynez, 28 Nov. 1829; d. 20 Nov. 1894. His parents were Jewish and soon after his birth removed to Moscow. His mother, being a good musician was his first teacher ; he next studied with Vilioing, a Frenchman, and at nine played in a concert at Moscow. He ac companied his teacher to Paris, where in 1840 he played before the most distinguished mu sicians. He was advised by Liszt to study in Germany and after a concert tour in England, Holland and elsewhere, he settled in Berlin to study theory under Dehn. He returned to Russia in 1848, settling in Saint Petersburg. In 1855 he was enabled to visit Germany again for study; here also he succeeded in finding publishers for his compositions, and made concert tours that extended to London and Paris. In 1858 he was again in Saint Peters burg, where he was appointed court pianist; in 1859 he became director of the Russian Music Society and in 1862 founded the Saint Peters burg Conservatory, and was director until 1867.
He made concert tours in Europe in the follow ing years and appeared in America in 1872-73. As a piano player he occupied the front rank; inperfection of technique he had few peers and was excelled by none. As a composer he was prolific, brilliant; but showed a lack of self-discipline which prevented his compositions from attaining the highest merit. He wrote songs; his best-known works are the Ocean operas, pianoforte pieces, orchestral scores and Symphony and the pianoforte concertos in G major and D minor and the trio in B-flat. His operas, such as 'The Maccabees' (1875) ; 'Paradise Lost' (1875); 'Sulamith' (1883), had but a partial success.