Mark Fradkin
Mark Fradkin was a Soviet composer and film composer, born in Vitebsk on May 4, 1914. He studied at the Central Theater School from 1934 to 1937, where he began experimenting with composition and studied music theory with A. P. Gladkovsky and L. A. Entelis. He later studied composition with Nikolai Aladov at the Belarusian Conservatory.
Before pursuing a career in music, Fradkin worked as a safety engineer at a garment factory and joined the Belarusian Drama Theater in Minsk as an actor. After graduating from the theater school, he worked at the Minsk Theater for Young Spectators as an actor, director, and head of music. He moved to Moscow in 1944 and joined the Union of Soviet Composers.
Fradkin became known for songs including “The Road to Berlin,” “Random Waltz,” “The Volga Flows,” “Birches,” and “Ages Fly.” He worked with lyricists including Yevgeny Dolmatovsky and Robert Rozhdestvensky. His song “For That Guy,” written with Rozhdestvensky, won first prize at the International Song Festival in Sopot. His songs were performed by artists including Leonid Utyosov, Konstantin Shulzhenko, and Valentina Tolkunova.
He composed music for more than 50 films and also wrote music for dramatic theater. He gave concerts featuring his own works and served on the jury of the television competition “Hello, We’re Looking for Talent!” He received the USSR State Prize in 1979 and was named People's Artist of the USSR in 1985. Fradkin died in Moscow on April 4, 1990, and was buried at Novodevichy Cemetery. His autobiography, My Biography, was published in 1974.