The Professor and the Sea Princess: Letters of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Nadezhda Zabela-Vrubel

This introductory chapter examines the rich correspondence between Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and the soprano Nadezhda Zabela-Vrubel, who was his muse between 1898 and 1904. This particular correspondence stands apart from the rest because of the strong currents of emotion running just below the surface. It was selected for this volume for two purposes: it has much to tell about how Rimsky-Korsakov dealt with the performers and theater management involved in productions of his operas, but it also gives a unique insight into the composer's inner world which he kept hidden under the surface of his respectable professorial existence. Indeed, the correspondence between Rimsky-Korsakov and Zabela-Vrubel should do much to humanize Rimsky-Korsakov, softening his image.