The expression "mighty handful" (, Moguchaya kuchka, "Mighty Bunch") was mocked by enemies of Balakirev and Stasov: Aleksandr Serov, academic circles of the conservatory, the Russian Musical Society, and their press supporters. The group ignored critics and continued operating under the moniker. This loose collection of composers gathered around Balakirev now included Cui, Mussorgsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, and Borodin — the five who have come to be associated with the name "Mighty Handful", or sometimes "The Five". Gerald Abraham stated flatly in the Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians that "they never called themselves, nor were they ever called in Russia, 'The Five'"Abraham, Gerald, The New Grove: Russian Masters 1: Balakirev, New York: W. W. Norton & Co., 1986, pg. 86 (although today the Russian equivalent "Пятёрка" ("Pyatyorka") is occasionally used to refer to this group).Krugosvet, "Balakirev Mily Alekseevich". In his memoirs, Rimsky-Korsakov routinely refers to the group as "Balakirev's circle", and occasionally uses "The Mighty Handful", usually with an ironic tone. He also makes the following reference to "The Five":
