Egor Rodygin, also known as Yevgeny Pavlovich Rodygin, was a prominent Russian composer born on February 16, 1925, in Chusovoy, Perm Krai. He passed away on July 19, 2020, at the age of 95. Rodygin was renowned for his contributions to Soviet and Russian music, particularly folk music. He was the composer of many popular songs, including the famous "Ural Rowan Tree," which became widely popular in China under the name "Hawthorn Tree."

In his youth, Rodygin learned to play the button accordion and was deeply involved in music from an early age. He served as a front-line soldier during World War II, where he was awarded the "Medal of Courage" in 1944 and was seriously wounded in 1945. After the war, he studied at the Ural State Conservatory and later became the head of the musical part of the Ural Folk Choir, promoting Russian folk music.

Rodygin's works gained significant popularity in the 1950s, and he became a member of the Union of Composers of the USSR in 1957. Throughout his career, he toured extensively across the Soviet Union and internationally, visiting countries such as Poland, Czechoslovakia, and the German Democratic Republic. His compositions were frequently broadcast on radio and television, and he was recognized with numerous awards, including the title of People's Artist of Russia in 1999.

In 2020, the Sverdlovsk region declared the year in his honor, celebrating his enduring legacy in Russian music. Rodygin continued to engage in musical creativity until the end of his life.