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Nikolai Ivanovich Beloborodov
About museum
Nikolai Ivanovich Beloborodov – a Russian garmon player, the creator of the two-row chromatic hand garmon, and the founder and leader of a harmonica orchestra. He was born on 15 (27) February 1828 in Tula. His father worked as a steward for landowners, and his mother came from a family of gunsmiths. Nikolai lost his mother early. At the age of eleven he became interested in playing the garmon, taught himself musical notation, and reached a high level of mastery. In 1875 he commissioned the Tula master Chulkov to create a fundamentally new garmon with a chromatic tuning. This instrument, one of the first in Russia, was made in 1878 (or 1871).
Beloborodov created a family ensemble – the first trio of chromatic garmons in Russia, which included his daughters Maria and Sofia. In 1885–1886 he organized a circle of harmonica-playing enthusiasts from workers of Tula factories. This circle eventually became the world's first orchestra of chromatic garmons. Beloborodov not only arranged well-known works but also composed music himself, including the polka "Fantasia", the quadrille "The Hunt" and a waltz. In 1907 Nikolai Ivanovich was elected an honorary member of the All-Russian Society of Lovers of Playing Chromatic Garmons. Nikolai Ivanovich Beloborodov died on 28 December 1912 in Tula and was buried in the All Saints Cemetery.
Date of birth
15 February 1828
Date of death
28 December 1912
Occupation
Musician