Vladimir Stasov
After briefly considering Lev Mei's "The Tsar's Bride" as a subject (later taken up in 1898 by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, his 9th opera), Borodin began looking for a new project for his first opera. Vladimir Stasov, critic and advisor to The Mighty Handful, suggested "The Lay of Igor's Host", a 12th century epic prose poem, and sent Borodin a scenario for a three-act opera on 30 April 1869. Initially, Borodin found the proposition intriguing, but daunting: