Have you ever heard a song that sounds like a buzzing bee or crashing waves? Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov could make music tell stories like that!

When he can’t choose between his love for the ocean and music, Jimmy and Lola arrive just in time to show him that he doesn’t have to!

Say it like a maestro: (Nee-koh-lie Rim-ski Core-sah-kov)

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov was a Russian composer and music teacher, born into a noble family in a small city called Tikhvin. 

As a boy, he fell in love with the ocean, reading adventure books and hearing about his older brother’s exploits in the navy. He loved the sea so much that he joined the Russian Imperial Navy when he was only 12-years-old!

Even while sailing the seas, Rimsky-Korsakov dreamed of music. He wrote much of his early work while still in the navy, which is why so many of his compositions were inspired by the ocean. He also adored Russian folklore, weaving fairy tales and legends into his compositions, starting a whole new musical trend in Russia!

Rimsky-Korsakov’s love for learning was as strong as his love for stories. He taught himself musical theory and how to play many instruments.

At just 27-years-old, he was asked to become a professor at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory. Remarkably, he continued his own studies even while teaching others, showing his students that great teachers never stop learning. He became a master of composition and orchestration, passing on his knowledge to a new generation of Russian composers, including the legendary Igor Stravinsky (famous for The Firebird)!

Eventually, Rimsky-Korsakov left the navy to focus entirely on music. He wrote operas, choral music, chamber music and piano pieces. One of his most famous works is Flight of the Bumblebee, from his opera The Tale of Tsar Saltan. The piece is packed with lightning-fast notes that mimic the buzzing and darting of a bumblebee—so quick that it often sounds impossible to play!

Rimsky-Korsakov poured his love for the ocean, literature and music into everything he wrote. From roaring seas to bumblebees, he showed that curiosity, imagination and a love for learning can create magic that inspires for generations!

Test your knowledge of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and discover some fun facts!