"The Weekday Chemist: The Training of Aleksandr Borodin." by Michael Gordin, Princeton U., as part of History & Philosophy of Science Colloquium series

Aleksandr P. Borodin (1833-1887) is most widely known as one of the leading figures of nineteenth-century Russian musical composition, particularly as composer of the unfinished opera _Prince Igor_, and as an active member of the so-called Mighty Five. Less widely recognized outside of a small group of aficionados, is that Borodin was trained as a medical physician and organic chemist, and that he served until his death as professor of chemistry at the Medico-Surgical Academy in St. Petersburg. Over the years since his death, numerous studies have attempted to reconcile C.P. Snow's "Two Cultures" in this one individual, either arguing for synergy of the music and chemistry, or for the competing demands both placed on his time -- as demonstrated in his meager productivity in both realms. Instead of taking this confrontational approach, this talk presents Borodin's career(s) as pedagogical journeys, expanding on the process by which he was _trained_ as both a chemist and a composer. Viewing his biography through the lens of training removes the illusion of a conflicted soul and highlights the centrality of pedagogy in his own views about the relations between art, science, and his other principal interest: women's education.