This is an alphabetical list of significant composers who were born or raised in Russia or the Russian Empire.
A
edit- Els Aarne (1917–1995), born in present-day Estonia
- Evald Aav (1900–1939), born in present-day Estonia
- Juhan Aavik (1884–1982), born in present-day Estonia
- Arkady Abaza (1843–1915)
- Lev Abeliovich (1912–1985), born in present-day Lithuania
- Alexander Abramsky (1898–1985), born in present-day Ukraine
- Joseph Achron (1886–1943), born in present-day Lithuania
- Ella Adayevskaya (1846–1926)
- Nikolay Afanasyev (1820/1–1898)
- Vasily Agapkin (1884–1964)
- Alexander Alexandrov (1883–1946)
- Anatoly Alexandrov (1888–1982)
- Boris Alexandrov (1905–1994), son of Alexander
- Achilles Alferaki (1846–1919)
- Alexander Alyabyev (1787–1851)
- Anatoliy Andreyev (1941–2004)
- Iosif Andriasov (1933–2000)
- Boris Arapov (1905–1992)
- Anton Arensky (1861–1906)
- Sasha Argov (1914–1995)
- Mykola Arkas (1853–1909), born in present-day Ukraine
- Alexander Arkhangelsky (1846–1924)
- Eduard Artemyev (1937–2023)
- Nikolai Artsybushev (1858–1937)
- Vyacheslav Artyomov (born 1940)
- Boris Asafyev (1884–1949)
- Mukhtar Ashrafi (1912–1975), born in present-day Uzbekistan
- Sergei Aslamazyan (1897–1978), born in present-day Armenia
- Lera Auerbach (born 1973)
- Arseny Avraamov (1886–1944)
- Artemi Ayvazyan (1902–1975), born in present-day Armenia
- Mikhail Azanchevsky (1839–1881)
B
edit- Vytautas Bacevičius (1905–1970), born in present-day Lithuania
- Afrasiyab Badalbeyli (1907–1976), born in present-day Azerbaijan
- Vladimir Bakaleinikov (1885–1953)
- Mily Balakirev (1837–1910)
- Sergey Balasanian (1902–1982), born in present-day Turkmenistan
- Sargis Barkhudaryan (1887–1973), born in present-day Georgia
- Veniamin Basner (1925–1996)
- Kārlis Baumanis (1835–1905), born in present-day Latvia
- Sonya Belousova (born 1990)
- Maxim Berezovsky (c. 1745 – 1777)
- Anastasiya Bespalova
- Timofiy Bilohradsky (c. 1710 – c. 1782)
- Matvey Blanter (1903–1990)
- Felix Blumenfeld (1863–1931)
- Leonid Bobylev (born 1949)
- Anatoly Bogatyrev (1913–2003), born in present-day Belarus
- Nikita Bogoslovsky (1913–2004)
- Alexander Borodin (1833–1887)
- Sergei Bortkiewicz (1877–1952), born in present-day Ukraine
- Dmitry Bortniansky (1751–1825), born in present-day Ukraine
- Rostislav Grigor'yevich Boyko (1931–2002)
- Yevgeny Brusilovsky (1905–1981)
- Vitaly Bujanovsky (1928–1993)
- Pavel Bulakhov (1824–1875), brother of Pyotr
- Pyotr Bulakhov (1822–1885), brother of Pavel
- Revol Bunin (1924–1976)
- Mutal Burhonov (1916–2002), born in present-day Uzbekistan
C
edit- Georgy Catoire (1861–1926)
- Catterino Cavos (1775–1840)
- Nektarios Chargeishvili (1937–1971)
- Gayane Chebotaryan (1918–1998)
- Yekaterina Chemberdzhi (born 1960)
- Yury Chernavsky (born 1947)
- Peter Chernobrivets (born 1965)
- Pavel Chesnokov (1877–1944)
- Tatyana Chudova (1944–2007)
- Alexander Chuhaldin (1892–1951)
- Näcip Cihanov (1911–1988)
- Jānis Cimze (1814–1881), born in present-day Latvia
- Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis (1875–1911), born in present-day Lithuania
- Georgi Conus (1862–1933), brother of Julius and Lev
- Julius Conus (1869–1942), brother of Georgi and Lev
- Lev Conus (1871–1944), brother of Georgi and Julius
- Serge Conus (1902–1988), son of Julius
- César Cui (1835–1918)
D
edit- Alexandre Danilevski (born 1957)
- Kostiantyn Dankevych (1905–1984), born in present-day Ukraine
- Alexander Dargomyzhsky (1813–1869)
- Emīls Dārziņš (1875–1910), born in present-day Latvia
- Volfgangs Dārziņš (1906–1962), son of Emils, born in present-day Latvia
- Karl Davydov (1838–1889)
- Stepan Davydov (1777–1825), born in present-day Ukraine
- Stepan Degtyarev (1766–1813)
- Edison Denisov (1929–1996)
- Leonid Desyatnikov (born 1955)
- Nikolay Diletsky (c. 1630 – after 1680)
- Issay Dobrowen (1891–1953)
- Vyacheslav Dobrynin (b.1946)
- Victor Dolidze (1890–1933), born in present-day Georgia
- Viktor Drobysh (born 1966)
- Sandra Droucker (1875–1944)
- Fyodor Druzhinin (1932–2007)
- Alexandre Dubuque (1812–1897/8)
- Vernon Duke (1903–1969)
- Isaak Dunayevsky (1900–1955), born in present-day Ukraine
- Maksim Dunayevsky (b.1945)
- Balys Dvarionas (1904–1972), born in present-day Lithuania
- Ivan Dzerzhinsky (1909–1978)
E
edit- Sophie-Carmen Eckhardt-Gramatté (1898–1974)
- Konstantin Eiges (1875–1950)
- Irina Elcheva (1926–2013)
- Boris Elkis (born 1973)
- Heino Eller (1887–1970), born in present-day Estonia
- Abdalla El-Masri (born 1962)
- Irina Emeliantseva (born 1973)
- Gustav Ernesaks (1908–1993), born in present-day Estonia
- Andrei Eshpai (1925–2015)
- Victor Ewald (1860–1935)
F
edit- Maxim Fadeev (b.1968)
- Samuil Feinberg (1890–1962)
- Boris Feoktistov (born 1941)
- Vladimir Fere (1902–1971)
- Alissa Firsova (born 1986), daughter of Dmitri Smirnov and Elena Firsova
- Elena Firsova (born 1950)
- Boris Fitinhof-Schell (1829–1901)
- Veniamin Fleishman (1913–1941)
- Yevstigney Fomin (1761–1800)
- Isadore Freed (1900–1960)
- Grigory Frid (1915–2012)
- Alexander Fridlender (1906–1980)
- Arthur Friedheim (1859–1932)
G
edit- Ossip Gabrilowitsch (1878–1936)
- Varvara Gaigerova (1903–1944)
- German Galynin (1922–1966)
- Lūcija Garūta (1902–1977), born in present-day Latvia
- Aleksandr Gauk (1893–1963)
- Valery Gavrilin (1939–1999)
- Misha Geller (1937–2007)
- Gennady Gladkov (1935–2023)
- Alexander Glazunov (1865–1936)
- Reinhold Glière (1875–1956), born in modern-day Ukraine
- Mikhail Glinka (1804–1857)
- Elena Gnesina (1874–1967), sister of Mikhail Gnessin
- Mikhail Gnessin (1883–1957), brother of Elena Gnesina
- Alexander Goedicke (1877–1957)
- Alexander Goldenweiser (1875–1961)
- Alexander Goldstein (born 1948)
- Nikolai Golovanov (1891–1951)
- Boris Goltz (1913–1942)
- Evgeny Golubev (1910–1988)
- Alexander Gradsky (1949–2021)
- Alexander Gretchaninov (1864–1956)
- Alexander Griboyedov (1795–1829)
- Juozas Gruodis (1884–1948), born in present-day Lithuania
- Sofia Gubaidulina (born 1931)
- Tofig Guliyev (1917–2000), born in present-day Azerbaijan
- Yevgeny Gunst (1877–1950)
- Aleksander Gurilyov (1803–1858), son of Lev
- Lev Gurilyov (1770–1844)
H
edit- Niyazi Hajibeyov (1912–1984), son of Zulfugar
- Uzeyir Hajibeyov (1885–1948), born in present-day Azerbaijan
- Zulfugar Hajibeyov (1884–1950), born in present-day Azerbaijan
- Jovdat Hajiyev (1917–2002), born in present-day Azerbaijan
- Miina Härma (1864–1941), born in present-day Estonia
- Vladimir Horowitz (1903–1989)
- André Hossein (1905–1983), born in present-day Uzbekistan
- Semen Hulak-Artemovsky (1813–1873), born in present-day Ukraine
I
edit- Alexander Ilyinsky (1859–1919)
- Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov (1859–1935)
- Timur Ismagilov (born 1982)
- Julius Isserlis (1888–1968)
- Ivan the Terrible (1530–1584)
- Mikhail Ivanov (1859–1920)
- Jānis Ivanovs (1906–1983), born in present-day Latvia
- Airat Ichmouratov (born 1973)
J
edit- Paul Juon (1872–1940)
- Andrejs Jurjāns (1856–1922), born in present-day Latvia
K
edit- Dmitry Kabalevsky (1904–1987)
- Murad Kajlayev (born 1931)
- Vasily Kalafati (1869–1942)
- Vasily Kalinnikov (1866–1901)
- Sandor Kalloś (born 1935)
- Alfrēds Kalniņš (1879–1951), born in present-day Latvia
- Jānis Kalniņš (1904–2000), son of Alfrēds, born in present-day Latvia
- Artur Kapp (1878–1952), born in present-day Estonia
- Eugen Kapp (1908–1996), son of Artur, born in present-day Estonia
- Villem Kapp (1913–1964), nephew of Artur, born in present-day Estonia
- Nikolai Kapustin (1937–2020)
- Nikolai Karetnikov (1930–1994)
- Daniil Kashin (1769–1841)
- Leokadiya Kashperova (1872–1940)
- Yuri Kasparov (born 1955)
- Alexander Kastalsky (1856–1926)
- Yakov Kazyansky (born 1948)
- Nikolay Kedrov Jr. (1905–1981), son of Nikolay Kedrov Sr.
- Nikolay Kedrov Sr. (1871–1940)
- Ivan Kerzelli (fl. 18th century)
- Aram Khachaturian (1903–1978), born in Georgia to an Armenian family
- Karen Khachaturian (1920–2011), nephew of Aram
- Ivan Khandoshkin (1747–1804)
- Yuri Khanon (born 1965)
- Tikhon Khrennikov (1913–2007)
- Igor Khudolei (1940–2001)
- Victor Kissine (born 1953)
- Dmitri Klebanov (1907–1987), born in present-day Ukraine
- Alexander Knaifel (1943–2024)
- Lev Knipper (1898–1974), born in present-day Georgia
- Vladimir Kobekin (born 1947)
- Mikhail Kollontay (born 1952)
- Lev Konov (born 1952)
- Yelena Konshina (born 1950)
- Alexander Kopylov (1854–1911)
- Grigoriy Korchmar (born 1947)
- Arseny Koreshchenko (1870–1921)
- Nikolai Korndorf (1947–2001)
- Viktor Kosenko (1896–1938)
- Alexander Koshetz (1875–1944), born in present-day Ukraine
- Nikita Koshkin (born 1956)
- Serge Koussevitzky (1874–1951)
- Osip Kozlovsky (1757–1831)
- Pylyp Kozytskiy (1893–1960), born in present-day Ukraine
- Cyrillus Kreek (1889–1962), born in present-day Estonia
- Alexander Krein (1883–1951)
- Vyacheslav Kruglik
- Yevgeny Krylatov (1934–2019)
- Andrei Krylov (born 1961)
L
edit- Ivan Larionov (1830–1889)
- Boris Ledkovsky (1894–1975)
- Albert Leman (1915–1998)
- Artur Lemba (1885–1963), born in present-day Estonia
- Mykola Leontovych (1877–1921), born in present-day Ukraine
- Zara Levina (1906–1976)
- Alexander Levine (born 1955)
- Yuri Levitin (1912–1993)
- Mischa Levitzki (1898–1941)
- Ekaterina Likoshin (fl. 1800–1810)
- Vasily Lobanov (born 1947)
- Aleksandr Lokshin (1920–1987)
- Arthur Lourié (1892–1966)
- Mihkel Lüdig (1880–1958), born in present-day Estonia
- Oleg Lundstrem (1916–2005)
- Alexei Lvov (1799–1870)
- Anatoly Lyadov (1855–1914)
- Lyudmila Lyadova (1925–2021)
- Sergei Lyapunov (1859–1924)
- Boris Lyatoshinsky (1895–1968), born in present-day Ukraine
- Mykola Lysenko (1842–1912), born in present-day Ukraine
M
edit- Muslim Magomayev (1885–1937), born in present-day Azerbaijan
- Heorhiy Maiboroda (1913–1992), born in present-day Ukraine
- Katerina Maier (fl. c. 1800)
- Nina Makarova (1908–1976)
- Leonid Malashkin (1842–1902)
- Dmitry Malikov (born 1970)
- Witold Maliszewski (1873–1939), born in present-day Ukraine
- Igor Markevitch (1912–1983), born in present-day Ukraine
- Mykola Markevych (1804–1860), born in present-day Ukraine
- Vladimir Martynov (born 1946)
- Vladimir Matetsky (born 1952)
- Mikhail Matinsky (1750 – c. 1820)
- Igor Matvienko (b.1960)
- Mikhail Matyushin (1861–1934)
- Samuel Maykapar (1867–1938)
- Jānis Mediņš (1890–1966), born in present-day Latvia
- Nikolai Medtner (1880–1951)
- Yuliy Meitus (1903–1997), born in present-day Ukraine
- Romanos Melikian (1883–1935), born in present-day Armenia
- Emilis Melngailis (1874–1954), born in present-day Latvia
- Ion Melnik (1935–2018)
- Zhanneta Metallidi (1934–2019)
- Moses Milner (1886–1953)
- Emil Młynarski (1870–1835), born in present-day Lithuania
- Boris Mokrousov (1909–1968)
- Kirill Molchanov (1922–1982)
- Fred Momotenko (born 1970)
- Alexander Mordukhovich (born 1946)
- Alexander Mosolov (1900–1973)
- Veli Mukhatov (1916–2005), born in present-day Turkmenistan
- Vano Muradeli (1908–1970), born in present-day Georgia
- Modest Mussorgsky (1839–1881)
- Mansur Muzafarov (1902–1966)
- Nikolai Myaskovsky (1881–1950)
N
edit- Nicolas Nabokov (1903–1978)
- Vyacheslav Nagovitsin (born 1939)
- Aleksey Nasedkin (1942–2014)
- Lev Naumov (1925–2005)
- Svetlana Nesterova
- Igor Nikolayev (b.1960)
- Leonid Nikolayev (1868–1942)
- Tatiana Nikolayeva (1924–1993)
- Petro Nishchynsky (1832–1896), born in present-day Ukraine
- Mikhaïl Nosyrev (1924–1981)
- Anatoly Novikov (1896–1984)
- David Nowakowsky (1848–1921)
O
edit- Nikolai Obukhov (1892–1954)
- Eduard Oja (1909–1950), born in present-day Estonia
- German Okunev (1931–1973)
- Leo Ornstein (1895–2002), born in present-day Ukraine
- Vyacheslav Ovchinnikov (1936–2019)
- Dangatar Ovezov (1911–1966), born in present-day Turkmenistan
- Valdemārs Ozoliņš (1896–1973), born in present-day Latvia
P
edit- Aleksandra Pakhmutova (born 1929)
- Zacharia Paliashvili (1871–1933), born in present-day Georgia
- Boris Parsadanian (1925–1997)
- Vasily Pashkevich (c. 1742 – 1797)
- Boris Pasternak (1890–1960)
- Alla Pavlova (born 1952)
- Andrey Petrov (1930–2006)
- Ernest Pingoud (1887–1942)
- Mikhail Pletnev (born 1957)
- Daniil Pokrass (1905–1954), brother of Samuel and Dmitry
- Dmitry Pokrass (1899–1978), brother of Samuel and Daniil
- Samuel Pokrass (1894–1939), brother of Dmitry and Daniil
- Gavriil Popov (1904–1972)
- Sergei Prokofiev (1891–1953), born in present-day Ukraine
- Sergei Protopopov (1893–1954)
Q
edit- Abai Qunanbaiuly (1845–1904), born in present-day Kazakhstan
R
edit- Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873–1943)
- Alexander Radvilovich (born 1955)
- Nikolai Rakov (1908–1990)
- Eda Rapoport (1890–1968), born in present-day Latvia
- Alexander Raskatov (born 1953)
- Vladimir Rebikov (1866–1920)
- Levko Revutsky (1889–1977), born in present-day Ukraine
- Nadezhda Rimskaya-Korsakova (1848–1919)
- Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844–1908)
- Alexander Rosenblatt (born 1956)
- Nikolai Roslavets (1881–1944)
- Baruch Rosowsky (1841–1919), born in present-day Latvia
- Solomon Rosowsky (1878–1962), son of Baruch, born in present-day Latvia
- Olesya Rostovskaya (born 1975)
- Anton Rubinstein (1829–1894), brother of Nikolai
- Nikolai Rubinstein (1835–1881), brother of Anton
- Joseph Rumshinsky (1881–1956), born in present-day Lithuania
- Said Rustamov (1907–1983), born in present-day Armenia
- Alexey Rybnikov (b.1945)
S
edit- Mart Saar (1882–1963), born in present-day Estonia
- Leonid Sabaneyev (1881–1968)
- Martha von Sabinin (1831–1892)
- Tolibjon Sadikov (1907–1957), born in present-day Uzbekistan
- Vasily Safonov (1852–1918)
- Niescier Sakałoŭski (1902–1950), born in present-day Belarus
- Vadim Salmanov (1912–1978)
- Lazare Saminsky (1882–1959)
- Huseyngulu Sarabski (1879–1945), born in present-day Azerbaijan
- Joseph Schillinger (1895–1943)
- Alfred Schnittke (1934–1998)
- Eduard Schütt (1856–1933)
- Alexander Scriabin (1872–1915)
- Julian Scriabin (1908–1919), son of Alexander
- Tatyana Sergeyeva (born 1951)
- Alexander Serov (1820–1871)
- Valentina Serova (1846–1924)
- Vladimir Shainsky (1925–2017)
- Masguda Shamsutdinova (born 1955)
- Yuri Shaporin (1887–1966), born in present-day Ukraine
- Adrian Shaposhnikov (1888–1967)
- Rodion Shchedrin (born 1932)
- Nikolai Shcherbachov (1853–1922)
- Vladimir Shcherbachov (1889–1952)
- Vissarion Shebalin (1902–1963)
- Boris Sheremetev (1822–1906)
- Baluan Sholak (1864–1919), born in present-day Kazakhstan
- Dmitri Shostakovich (1906–1975)
- Andriy Shtoharenko (1902–1992), born in present-day Ukraine.
- Jean Sibelius (1965–1957), born in present-day Finland.
- Nikolaï Sidelnikov (1930–1992)
- Alexander Siloti (1863–1945)
- Juhan Simm (1885–1959), born in present-day Estonia
- Yekaterina Sinyavina (died 1784)
- Gregory Skovoroda (1722–1794)
- Ādolfs Skulte (1909–2000), born in present-day Latvia
- Nicolas Slonimsky (1894–1995)
- Sergei Slonimsky (1932–2020), nephew of Nicolas
- Dmitri Smirnov (1948–2020)
- Vladimir Sokalsky (1863–1919)
- Ivan Sokolov (born 1960)
- Nikolay Sokolov (1859–1922)
- Mikhail Sokolovsky (1756 – after 1795)
- Nicolai Soloviev (1846–1916)
- Vasily Solovyov-Sedoi (1907–1979)
- Antonio Spadavecchia (1907–1977)
- Alexander Spendiaryan (1871–1928)
- Alexei Stanchinsky (1888–1914)
- Maximilian Steinberg (1883–1946), born in present-day Lithuania
- Yakiv Stepovy (1883–1921), born in present-day Ukraine
- Kyrylo Stetsenko (1882–1922), born in present-day Ukraine
- Igor Stravinsky (1882–1971)
- Peeter Süda (1883–1920), born in present-day Estonia
- Grikor Suni (1876–1939), born in present-day Armenia
- Viktor Suslin (1942–2012)
- Yevgeny Svetlanov (1928–2002)
- Georgy Sviridov (1915–1998)
T
edit- Alexander Taneyev (1850–1918)
- Sergei Taneyev (1856–1915)
- Vladimir Tarnopolsky (born 1955)
- Boris Tchaikovsky (1925–1996)
- Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840–1893)
- Alexander Tcherepnin (1899–1977), son of Nikolai
- Nikolai Tcherepnin (1873–1945)
- Grigory Teplov (1717–1779)
- Armen Tigranian (1879–1950), born in present-day Armenia
- Nikoghayos Tigranian (1856–1951), born in present-day Armenia
- Dimitri Tiomkin (1894–1979), born in present-day Ukraine
- Boris Tishchenko (1939–2010)
- Alexey Titov (1769–1827)
- Nikolai Titov (1800–1875), son of Alexey
- Vasily Titov (c. 1650 – c. 1715)
- Rudolf Tobias (1873–1918), born in present-day Estonia
- Eduard Tubin (1905–1982), born in present-day Estonia
- Serafim Tulikov (1914–2004)
U
edit- Vladimir Ussachevsky (1911–1990)
- Galina Ustvolskaya (1919–2006)
V
edit- Raimond Valgre (1913–1949), born in present-day Estonia
- Alexander Varlamov (1801–1848)
- Sergei Vasilenko (1872–1956)
- Vladimir Vavilov (1925–1973)
- Artemy Vedel (c. 1767 – 1808), born in present-day Ukraine
- Alexander Veprik (1889–1958)
- Alexey Verstovsky (1799–1862)
- Yuliya Veysberg (1880–1942)
- Mikhail Vielgorsky (1788–1856)
- Ernests Vīgners (1850–1933), born in present-day Latvia
- Tony Vilgotsky (born 1980)
- Mykola Vilinsky (1888–1956), born in present-day Ukraine
- Jāzeps Vītols (1863–1948), born in present-day Latvia
- Vladimir Vlasov (1902/3–1986)
- Andrei Volkonsky (1933–2008)
- Alexander Vustin (1943–2020)
W
edit- Jacob Weinberg (1879–1956)
- Kazimierz Wiłkomirski (1900–1995)
- Alexander Winkler (1865–1935)
- Ivan Wyschnegradsky (1893–1979)
Y
edit- Grigor Yeghiazaryan (1908–1988), born in present-day Turkey
- Makar Yekmalyan (1856–1905), born in present-day Armenia
- Mikhail Youdin (1893–1948)
- Yuri Yukechev (born 1947)
- Aleksandr Yurasovsky (1890–1922)
Z
edit- Vsevolod Zaderatsky (1881–1953)
- Nikolai Zaremba (1821–1879)
- Marģeris Zariņš (1910–1993), born in present-day Latvia
- Aleksandr Zatsepin (born 1926)
- Leo Zeitlin (1884–1930)
- Asaf Zeynally (1909–1932)
- Valery Zhelobinsky (1913–1946)
- Aleksey Zhivotov (1904–1964)
- Mikhail Zhukov (1901–1960)
- Alexander Zhurbin (born 1945)
- Efrem Zimbalist (1889–1985)
- Vasily Zolotarev (1872–1964)
- Vladislav Zolotaryov (1942–1975)
- Mariya Zubova (1749–1799)