Alemdar Karamanov

Alemdar Sabitovich Karamanov (Ukrainian: Алемда́р Сабі́тович Карама́нов, Russian: Алемда́р Сабитович Карама́нов; 10 September 1934 – 3 May 2007) was a Ukrainian composer.

Karamanov was born on September 10, 1934, in Simferopol.

His father, Sabit Temel Kağırman, of Turkish origin, left Turkey and emigrated to Crimea.

Karamanov's mother, Paulina Sergeyevna was a Russian singer and librarian and taught him music.

Karamanov would begin writing music when he was six years old, and would enroll into the musical elementary school and eventually the college at Simferopol.

After World War II, his father, due to his non-Russian background, was exiled to Kemerovo and never came back.

In 1958 Karamanov graduated from the Moscow Conservatory, where he studied with Semyon Bogatyrev (composition), Vladimir A. Natanson (piano).

In graduate school (1958–1963), he was listed with D. B. Kabalevsky, but actually studied with Tikhon Khrennikov, who highly appreciated Karamanov's talent.

He continued his graduate studies with Tikhon Khrennikov and Dmitry Kabalevsky.

Karamanov is above all a composer of symphonies.

During his student days, he wrote 10 symphonies, which were later to be followed by 14 (or 15) more.

However, he did not find any success in Russia for a long time, his compositions were rarely performed and never mentioned in the media due to its unconventional style being found unpopular.

In 1992, he composed the anthem of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea.

Karamanov died on the night of May 2–3, 2007 in Simferopol.

The minor planet 4274 Karamanov, discovered in 1980 by Nikolai Chernykh, is named in his honour.