Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky
1840-1893

Perhaps the best Russian composer of all time, Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky was a genius for creating melodies, mastering musical structure, and highly developing the sense of musical drama. Born in Votkinsk, in the Ural Mountains of European Russia, his father was a government inspector of mines. Even when Peter started the piano at the age of seven, through until he was nineteen, he never showed any signs of musical talent.

But when he was nineteen, Tchaikovsky realized that he really wanted to be a musician. Continuing his job as a clerk in the Ministry of Justice, he began to study theory and compose. When the great Nicholas Rubinstein founded the Moscow Conservatory, he realized that he needed talented musicians to teach as professor, therefore hiring Tchaikovsky. He was a very talented composer, no doubt, but most of the other professors believed he was too young to be an actual skilled professor. For twelve years Tchaikovsky held the position, and even wrote a book on harmony to prove he was a true professor of music.

Not all of Russia was convinced that Tchaikovsky, however. The critics and other composers such as Berlioz and Liszt saw him as a lucky wanna-be, and sniped at him and his works. Strenuous work and pressure as a composer, critic, and teacher brought Tchaikovsky brought him to a state of nervous collapse. Fortunately, a music lover and wealthy widow who singled out young, talented composers helped Tchaikovsky out, paid him for thirteen, feeling pity and sorrow for the young man.

As the life of Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky went on, he fell through some dark social pits which the money the widow gave him could not heal. Tchaikovsky, in 1877, had married a young music student many years younger than him. The marriage only lasted two days, then Tchaikovsky tried to jump into the Movska River to catch pneumonia, hoping his lover would feel sorrow for him. But all he caught was a common cold and a couple of fish. The two eventually separated for good, leaving Tchaikovsky in a state of disrepair and sorrow.

In addition to his sorrows of socialism, his works also did not please the world quite yet. Even the best of his works today were thought as noise in the days of Tchaikovsky. The famous Swan Lake was a total failure to critics and listeners at its premier. They believed it was too "symphonic" to be a ballet. Although his works were not very successful, his role as a conductor struck everybody as a true talent. He was invited to conduct at the dedication of Carnagie Hall in New York, where he played several of his symphonies. With the symphonies, he struck Americans with true brilliance. His experience in America was that like no other. Musical conductors grew very fond with Tchaikovsky, working with him on several concertos.

But after many years in the heavenly pool of American music appreciation, Tchaikovsky traveled back to Russia. He immediately plunged into two completely different compositions. His trip to America seemed to boost his confidence, both musically, and mentally, as he created the notorious Nutcracker ballet and the melancholy Sixth Symphony, the Symphonie Paththétique.

Unfortunately, not more than a week after the premier of the Sixth Symphony, Tchaikovsky died of a cholera epidemic. The people of America, and soon all of Europe saw Tchaikovsky as a very talented composer, as they went back to seek what other works of his were stunning to the ear. To their pleasant surprise, their answer was all of them. The most loved and famous of Tchaikovsky's works today, "The Nutcracker" and his violin concerto, are those of great beauty, encrypting a special memory with emotional feeling in the hearts of the listeners.

© 1999 H.Tsai

Some Famous Works:
Piano Concerto No.1, First Movement
Nutcracker-March
Nutcracker-Arabian Dance
The 1812 Overture

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