1Tess_W
Since May is Tchaikovsky's birthdate, I thought he would be a good composer of the month. He is probably one of my all-time favorites, especially since I attend the ballet yearly and often his music is featured.
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popular concert and theatrical music in the current classical repertoire, including the ballets Swan Lake and The Nutcracker, the 1812 Overture, his First Piano Concerto, Violin Concerto, the Romeo and Juliet Overture-Fantasy, several symphonies, and the opera Eugene Onegin. (from ludwig van beethoven.com)
Tchaikovsky was not trained as a musician, but prepared to be a civil servant. In the 19th century in Russia there was no formal music education or few preparatory music school(s). In 1865, the St. Petersburg Conservatory opened and Tchaikovsky was one of the first students to graduate. This education gave Tchaikovsky a more western bent than most of his Russian contemporaries. Tchaikovsky spent his life trying to reconcile his native Russian music experience and the "western" music that he had learned at the conservatory. I have read on several sites that Tchaikovsky was more popular with western listeners than with true native Russian listeners who claimed his music was too "western."
Although successful in his musical career, his life seemed to be one of manic-depression episodes. Tchaikovsky died at age 53, officially from cholera, but there is a debate as to whether his death was from something else, accidental or intentional.
picture from Wordpress.com color by KimBim
Tchaikovsky's best-known works include his First Piano Concerto, the ballets Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker, the 1812 Overture (the one with the cannons), the Violin Concerto, and his Sixth “Pathétique” Symphony. (The Guardian, Oct. 1, 2020)
Links to his best-known works
First Piano Concerto: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNfpMRSCFPE
Swan Lake: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JG5tXNhyczc
1812 Overature: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbxgYlcNxE8
Violin Concerto: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCKL95HAdQ8 Played by Itzhak Perlman!
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popular concert and theatrical music in the current classical repertoire, including the ballets Swan Lake and The Nutcracker, the 1812 Overture, his First Piano Concerto, Violin Concerto, the Romeo and Juliet Overture-Fantasy, several symphonies, and the opera Eugene Onegin. (from ludwig van beethoven.com)
Tchaikovsky was not trained as a musician, but prepared to be a civil servant. In the 19th century in Russia there was no formal music education or few preparatory music school(s). In 1865, the St. Petersburg Conservatory opened and Tchaikovsky was one of the first students to graduate. This education gave Tchaikovsky a more western bent than most of his Russian contemporaries. Tchaikovsky spent his life trying to reconcile his native Russian music experience and the "western" music that he had learned at the conservatory. I have read on several sites that Tchaikovsky was more popular with western listeners than with true native Russian listeners who claimed his music was too "western."
Although successful in his musical career, his life seemed to be one of manic-depression episodes. Tchaikovsky died at age 53, officially from cholera, but there is a debate as to whether his death was from something else, accidental or intentional.
picture from Wordpress.com color by KimBim
Tchaikovsky's best-known works include his First Piano Concerto, the ballets Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker, the 1812 Overture (the one with the cannons), the Violin Concerto, and his Sixth “Pathétique” Symphony. (The Guardian, Oct. 1, 2020)
Links to his best-known works
First Piano Concerto: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNfpMRSCFPE
Swan Lake: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JG5tXNhyczc
1812 Overature: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbxgYlcNxE8
Violin Concerto: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCKL95HAdQ8 Played by Itzhak Perlman!
