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Vasily Ilyich Safonov (February 6, 1852 - February 27, 1918); Russian composer.
Safonov was never a particularly successful composer in his own right, but was a master music educator, becoming Director of the Moscow Conservatory in 1889, teaching some of the best Russian composers, notably Alexander Nikolayevich Scriabin and Nikolai Medtner. He resigned from the school in 1905 to direct orchestras across the world and perform as a pianist.
