Russian composer Mikhail Gnesin (1883-1957). Chairman of the Society for Jewish Music. In the 1920s Gnesin considerably influenced the work of the Society, and in the last few years of its existence fought courageously for its survival. At the start of the 1930s Gnesin even risked his life by entering into a dispute with the all-powerful Association of Proletarian Musicians (RAPM).