Blumenfeld studied at the St Petersburg Conservatory where he was a composition pupil of Rimsky-Korsakov. He became a teacher there at the time of his graduation until 1918. He was a widely known conductor and gave the premi‚res of Rimsky-Korsakov's =Servilia= (1902) and =Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh= (1907) and the Russian premi‚re of =Tristan Isolde= (1899) as well as the Russian seasons in Paris in 1908. He was also a brilliant pianist, performing the debuts of many works by Glazunov, Lyadov and Arensky. As a composer, Blumenfeld was influenced by Chopin and near in style to the composers of the 'Belyayev Circle'. Although popular in his time, his music did not last and is seldom heard today.