Stanislav Binički (, ; 27 July 1872 – 15 February 1942) was a Serbian composer, conductor, and pedagogue. A student of German composer Josef Rheinberger, he became the first director of the Opera Sector of the National Theatre in Belgrade in 1889 and began working with the Belgrade Military Orchestra a decade later. He composed the first Serbian opera, At Dawn (), in 1903. In 1911, Binički established the second Serbian Music School. He joined the Serbian Army following the outbreak of World War I and composed one of his most famous works, March on the Drina, following the Serbian victory at the Battle of Cer. He retired as head of the Opera Sector of the National Theatre in 1920 and died in Belgrade in 1942. He is considered one of the leading Serbian composers of the Generation of the 1870s. Life and career Stanislav Binički was born on 27 July 1872 in the village of Jasika, near Kruševac, Principality of Serbia. He studied in Belgrade and Munich with German composer Josef Rheinberger. Binički became the first director of the Opera Sector of the National Theatre in Belgrade in 1889. In 1899, he began collaborating with the Belgrade Military Orchestra. He enriched the orchestra's musical repertoire with pieces such as Franz Schubert's 8th Symphony, Richard Wagner's overture to Rienzi, Antonín Dvořák's Slavonic Dances, and Felix Mendelssohn's Italian Symphony. The first Serbian opera, At Dawn (), was written by Binički and premiered in 1903. Music critics John Warrack and Ewan West describe the opera as a pioneering work and praise Binički's ingenious use of contrasting musical styles to depict the struggle between Serbs and Turks. In 1911, Binički established the second Serbian Music School from within the Singing Society Stanković. He went on to conduct the first Serbian performances of Ludwig van Beethoven's 9th Symphony and Joseph Haydn's Creation. He composed a piece titled Memorial Service in 1912. Binički's instrumental and stage music generally mixed Serbian, Middle Eastern and European—mostly Italian—elements. His choral works are mostly representative of Serbian folk music. Encouraged by Binički, the National Theatre performed operas such as Il trovatore, Djamileh, Der Freischütz, Werther and Mignon during the 1913–14 operatic season. The National Theatre's work was interrupted by the outbreak of World War I in the summer of 1914. Binički joined the Serbian Army after war was declared. He composed what became known as March on the Drina