Obituary: Rodion Shchedrin - Anna Karenina composer and Maya Plisetskaya's husband

Russian composer Rodion Shchedrin, known for composing Anna Karenina, has passed away, his publisher, Schott Music Group, announced in a press release.

Shchedrin passed away in Munich, Germany, on 29th August 2025. He was 92 years old.

Shchedrin was born in Moscow, Russia in December 1932. Regarding his composition of ballet music, the press release said;

"He was also enchanted by a woman he came to know while working on his first ballet composition. In 1958, Rodion Shchedrin married the legendary prima ballerina of the Moscow Bolshoi Theatre, Maya Plisetskaya, for whom he composed altogether five ballets. Carmen-Suite (1967), Anna Karenina (1985) and Lady with the Dog (1985) attest to the alliance between these two exceptional artists. Shchedrin continued to movingly express his love for Maya into old age."

Plisetskaya passed away in 2015 also in Munich.