Alexander Alexandrov
A small radio station opened in Urus-Martan in 1924, and young Umar started playing in local radio broadcasts. Five years later, in 1929, Umar gave a solo performance with the orchestra of the National Theater, to underline his growing popularity in Chechnya. He eventually became the soloist at Gronzy's Chechen-Ingush Dramatic Theatre.[2] He would then work alongside the renowned Russian composer Alexander Alexandrov, who would teach Umar music composition. Several of Umar's compositions during this early period of his career are still played in Chechnya, such as "The Chechen Waltz" of the stage production "The Red Citadel," and a song based on "Bela", a frame story of Mikhail Lermontov's "A Hero of Our Time".[3]