February 27, 1887: Russian Romantic composer Alexander Borodin died suddenly at age fifty-three in St. Petersburg. He is best known for for his symphonies, his two string quartets, the tone poem ‘In the Steppes of Central Asia’ and his opera ‘Prince Igor’. In addition to his music, he was a physician and chemist as well as women’s rights advocate, promoting education in Russia and founding the School of Medicine for Women in Saint Petersburg.