Borodin - Allegro Moderato from String Quartet No. 2 in D Major

Alexander Borodin (1833-1887) was the illegitimate son of an elderly Russian prince and was brought up by his mother. He had parallel careers in music and chemistry, and founded a School of Medicine for Women. Borodin's Second String Quartet was dedicated to his wife, and is a work with a fresh melodic quality and a simple structural poise that makes it one of his most finished pieces of music.