Юрий Визбор (Yuri Vizbor) was born in Moscow where he lived for most of his life. He worked as a teacher, soldier, sailor, radio and press correspondent, ski instructor, and actor in many famous Russian films and plays. He participated in and documented expeditions to remote areas of the Soviet Union. His compositions included songs, poetic prose, plays, screenplays, and short stories. Vizbor is often compared with his contemporaries Vladimir Vysotsky and Bulat Okudzhava.