Read complete books and articles on: Peter Tchaikovsky

Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilyich - ĭlyēchˈ chīkôfˈskē, 1840–93, Russian composer, b. Kamsko-Votkinsk. Variant transliterations of his name include Tschaikovsky and Chaikovsky. He is a towering figure in Russian music and one of the most popular composers in history.

The son of a mining inspector, Tchaikovsky studied music as a child. At 19 he became

The son of a mining inspector, Tchaikovsky studied music as a child. At 19 he became a government clerk and at 21 entered the St. Petersburg Conservatory, where he studied composition with Anton Rubinstein. He graduated in 1865 and taught theory and composition at Nicholas Rubinstein's Moscow Conservatory from 1865 to 1878. An annuity from his wealthy patroness, Mme von Meck (whom he never met though he corresponded with her for 14 years and dedicated his Fourth Symphony to her in 1878), made it possible for him to devote himself entirely to composition. Tchaikovsky wrote 11 operas, four concertos, six symphonies, a great number of songs and short piano pieces, three ballets, three string quartets, suites and symphonic poems, and numerous other works.

His compositions sustained him throughout his continuous battle with his own nature. In 1877 Tchaikovsky made a disastrous marriage in order to defeat the torment of his homosexuality and to deny the spreading rumors of it. His work was again his consolation when Mme van Meck terminated her friendship and support without apparent reason. Tchaikovsky was opposed to the aims of the Russian nationalist composers and used Western European forms and idioms, although his work instinctively reflects the Russian temperament. His orchestration is rich, and his music is melodious, intensely emotional, and often melancholy.

The most successful of his compositions are his orchestral works, notably his last three symphonies; the fantasies Romeo and Juliet (1869, rev. 1870 and 1879) and Francesca da Rimini (1876); Marche slave (1876); the Manfred Symphony (1886); the ballets Swan Lake (1877), The Sleeping Beauty (1890), and The Nutcracker (1892; also arranged as a suite for orchestra); and the Piano Concerto in B Flat Minor (1875) and the Violin Concerto in D (1881). Of his operas, notable are Vakula, the Smith (1876); Eugene Onegin (1879) and The Queen of Spades (1890), both from stories by Pushkin; and The Maid of Orleans (1881). None of the operas, however, achieved the popularity of his symphonies, ballets, and concertos.

Tchaikovsky toured Europe as a conductor, performing his Marche solennelle at the opening concert in Carnegie Hall, New York City, in 1891. A few days after he conducted the première of his Sixth Symphony, or Symphonie pathétique, he died, reportedly of cholera. Some experts believe that the cause was really suicide, possibly precipitated by the threatened revelation of a homosexual relationship. Tchaikovsky's most gifted followers in Russia were Rachmaninov and Arenski; his influence has been great, particularly in England and the United States.

Bibliography

See his life and letters by his brother Modeste, ed. by R. Newmarch (2 vol., 1905, repr. 1970); diaries, ed. by W. Lakond (tr. 1945); biographies by H. Weinstock (1943) and L. and E. Hanson (1966); studies by G. E. H. Abraham, ed. (1946, repr. 1969), J. H. Warrack (1969), E. Garden (1973), and D. Brown (1978).

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12 of the Best Books and Articles on: Peter Tchaikovsky

as selected by Questia librarians

1.

Tchaikovsky and His Contemporaries: A Centennial Symposium » Read Now
by Alexandar Mihailovic. 420 pgs.

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Commemorating the centenary of Tchaikovsky's death, these essays reassess the life and work of the composer from a variety of perspectives, ranging from the musicological and biographical to broader ones addressing his place in the development of the arts in Europe and America. As they make clear...
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Commemorating the centenary of Tchaikovsky's death, these essays reassess the life and work of the composer from a variety of perspectives, ranging from the musicological and biographical to broader ones addressing his place in the development of the arts in Europe and America. As they make clear, there is much about Tchailkovsky's achievement that has been taken for granted, and the essays included in this collection represent as much acts of reevaluation as of celebration.
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2.

Tchaikovsky's Last Days: A Documentary Study » Read Now
by Alexander Poznansky. 236 pgs.

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Tchaikovsky's death in October 1893 in St. Petersburg, shortly after the first performance of his masterpiece, the Pathetique symphony, is one of the most thoroughly documented deaths of a prominent cultural figure in modern times. He was treated by no fewer than four physicians and surrounded by a...
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Tchaikovsky's death in October 1893 in St. Petersburg, shortly after the first performance of his masterpiece, the Pathetique symphony, is one of the most thoroughly documented deaths of a prominent cultural figure in modern times. He was treated by no fewer than four physicians and surrounded by a group of relatives and friends. The official account of his death was that he died from cholera. But almost since the day of his passing there have been rumors that it was not accidental. It is alleged that Tchaikovsky was forced to commit suicide in order to avoid the scandal and disgrace of being unmasked as a homosexual. Alexander Poznansky is the first Western scholar to have access to the Tchaikovsky archives in Klin, Russia. In this fascinating new book, the product of five years' research, he provides a definitive account of the circumstances preceding the composer's death. On the basis of much previously unknown material, including diaries, letters, memoirs, and newspaper reports, he traces in minute detail the composer's activities during the last weeks of his life and finds no evidence to support the notion that Tchaikovsky's death was brought about by nything other than cholera.
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3.

Tchaikovsky » Read Now
by Edwin Evans. 236 pgs.

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4.

An Introduction to Tchaikovsky's Operas » Read Now
by Henry Zajaczkowski. 136 pgs.

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5.

Russian Symphony: Thoughts about Tchaikovsky » Read Now
by Dmitri Shostakovich. 274 pgs.

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...indebted in some measure to Peter Tchaikovsky. The author of six symphonies...Waltz of the Fifth Symphony . Peter Tchaikovskys musical legacy is treasured...the whole-...
6.

To My Best Friend: Correspondence between Tchaikovsky and Nadezhda Von Meck, 1876-1878 » Read Now
by Filaretovna Von Meck, Edward Garden, Nigel Gotteri, Peter Tchaikovsky. 439 pgs.

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Tchaikovsky dedicated his original and emotionally vibrant Fourth Symphony to his newly found correspondent Nadezhda von Meck. This correspondence started at the end of 1876, when Tchaikovsky was in need of funds. On the recommendation of Nikoli Rubinstein, Director of the Moscow Conservatoire where...
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Tchaikovsky dedicated his original and emotionally vibrant Fourth Symphony to his newly found correspondent Nadezhda von Meck. This correspondence started at the end of 1876, when Tchaikovsky was in need of funds. On the recommendation of Nikoli Rubinstein, Director of the Moscow Conservatoire where Tchaikovsky was a professor, Nadezhda before the other, Nadezhda von Meck sincerely and increasingly gushingly, Tchaikovsky less sincerely to begin with, but much more so before the elapse of many months. Each was determined never to meet the other in the flesh for fear of destroying their very special relationship. The years covered by the present book are by far the most important in the correspondence. They cover the period of Tchaikovsky's tempestuously abortive marriage, about which he is surprisingly candid; in addition to the Fourth Symphony, the compositions of the period include his finest and most sensitive opera, Eugene Onegin, and the ever popular Violin Concerto, as well as numerous other smaller works. Their views on many musical, literary, philosophical, and other matters are stated frankly and, though they are often in accord, they are not afraid to agree to differ either. Not only giving a unique insight into Tchaikovsky the composer, these letters are perhaps as fascinating as any ever printed. Many are published in English for the first time. The translations, by a native-born Russian who lived the latter part of her life in England, and edited by a music scholar who reads Russian and a Slavist who is qualified in music, are as close to the letter and spirit of the original as it is possible to get. The correspondence will be of interest both to musicians and music lovers, and to all who are interested in the arts and culture of the nineteenth century.
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7.

Russians on Russian Music, 1880-1917: An Anthology (Chap. One "Tchaikovsky") » Read Now
by Stuart Campbell. 267 pgs.

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This anthology of Russian music criticism reveals the reactions of leading critics to new Russian music in the period 1880-1917. Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov and Borodin were in their prime, and several new generations emerged: Rachmaninoff and Skryabin, Stravinsky and Prokoviev. Works reviewed...
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This anthology of Russian music criticism reveals the reactions of leading critics to new Russian music in the period 1880-1917. Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov and Borodin were in their prime, and several new generations emerged: Rachmaninoff and Skryabin, Stravinsky and Prokoviev. Works reviewed range from In the Steppes of Central Asia and the Pathétique Symphony to The Golden Cockerel and The Rite of Spring.
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8.

Composers on Composers ("Peter Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)" begins on p. 147) » Read Now
by John L. Holmes. 192 pgs.

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This important compilation lends a new perspective to music criticism by gathering the comments of 85 well-known composers concerning the work of their peers. Encompassing all forms of commentary, from caustic attacks to perceptive criticism and praise, the book offers new insights into the...
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This important compilation lends a new perspective to music criticism by gathering the comments of 85 well-known composers concerning the work of their peers. Encompassing all forms of commentary, from caustic attacks to perceptive criticism and praise, the book offers new insights into the development of music and its most important creators by collecting under each composer's name the remarks made about him by other composers.
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9.

From Bach to Stravinsky: The History of Music by Its Foremost Critics (Chap. XV "Tchaikovsky") » Read Now
by David Ewen. 357 pgs.

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10.

The World of Great Composers ("Peter Ilitch Tchaikovsky, 1840-1893" begins on p. 373) » Read Now
by David Ewen. 578 pgs.

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...Vladimir Helfert 366 Dvorak Speaks 370 PETER ILITCH TCHAIKOVSKY 1840-93 373 The Man , Mme. Anatol Tchaikovsky 375 The Composer , Richard Anthony Leonard 377...
11.

"No Trace of Presence": Tchaikovsky and the Sixth in Forster's Maurice, in Mosaic (Winnipeg) » Read Now
by Bret L. Keeling. 17 pgs.

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12.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Opera ("Tchaikovsky, Pyotr" begins on p. 508) » Read Now
by John Warrack, Ewan West. 571 pgs.

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Derived from the full Oxford Dictionary of Opera, this is the most authoritative and up-to-date dictionary of opera available in paperback. Fully revised for this new edition, with over 3,500 entries, it is designed to be accessible to all those who enjoy opera, whether at the opera-house or at...
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Derived from the full Oxford Dictionary of Opera, this is the most authoritative and up-to-date dictionary of opera available in paperback. Fully revised for this new edition, with over 3,500 entries, it is designed to be accessible to all those who enjoy opera, whether at the opera-house or at home. Here opera buffs will have at their fingertips opera synopses and first performance details, bibliographies of works about opera, entries on singers (including their debuts and career highlights, with notes on voice type, style, and reputation), definitions and discussions of technical terms and operatic styles, and surveys of the history of opera worldwide. Included also are plot summaries and separate entries for well-know roles, arias, and choruses. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Opera provides a huge amount of information and learning packed conveniently in a single volume with helpful cross-references. It will be invaluable to all opera-goers, to those professionally concerned with opera, and to anyone needing reliable information on this fascinating subject.
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