Rostropovich, who died on Friday aged 80, was laid to rest at the Novodevichye cemetery. Among about 1,000 mourners were his widow, soprano Galina Vishnyevskaya, Yeltsin’s wife, the Queen of Spain and the wife of French President Jacques Chirac.

A plain wooden Orthodox cross was erected at the grave and lush wreaths placed around it before mourners applauded the musician for the last time. Some kissed his picture at the foot of the grave.

“He was ... a guiding light both as a citizen and as a musician,” said pensioner Yelena Zubkovskaya who came to Rostropovich’s funeral service at Moscow’s Christ the Saviour Cathedral earlier on Sunday. “We will miss him.”

Zubkovskaya added she had attended every concert by Rostropovich she could, including the last one before his departure from the Soviet Union in 1974 which, she said, earned him a 10-minute standing ovation.

“Despite his great fame, he was always approachable for people,” a Russian Orthodox priest said at the burial. A choir sang softly after he spoke.

Soldiers in smart uniforms marched slowly along the cemetery’s central alley strewn with red roses before the coffin was brought in. The sun came out in cold, damp Moscow as he was buried.

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