History of Music, Mr. Robert L. Johnston
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
Aim:
Who was Tchaikovsky, and what were the dark elements
of his personal life?
Instructional Objectives:
At the conclusion of this unit, students will:
I.
II.
Have met Tchaikovsky and gained an understanding of
the trials of his personal life.
Have heard a strong representation of his music,
ranging from orchestral, to ballet.
Motivation:
"How can one express the indefinable sensations that one
experiences while writing an instrumental composition that
has no definite subject? It is a purely lyrical process. It
is a musical confession of the soul, which unburdens itself
through sounds just as a lyric poet expresses himself
through poetry... As the poet Heine said, 'Where words
leave off, music begins.' "
- P.I. Tchaikovsky
“What I have set down in a moment of ardour I must then
critically examine. Sometimes I must do myself violence
before I can mercilessly erase things thought out with
love.”
- P.I. Tchaikovsky
“Truly there would be reason to go mad were it not for
music.”
- P.I. Tchaikovsky
What I need is to believe in myself again— for my faith has
been greatly undermined; it seems to me my role is over.
- P.I. Tchaikovsky
“Tchaikovsky thought of committing suicide for fear of
being discovered as a homosexual, but today, if you are a
composer and not homosexual, you might as well put a bullet
through your head.”
- Sergei Diaghilev
Development/Procedures:
I.
Life
a. His talent as a pianist manifested itself at an
early age
b. His parents sent him to the School of
Jurisprudence, an all-boys boarding school) in
St. Petersburg at 10
i. This was emotionally brutal, given how close
he was to his mother
1. His mother died two years later
a. This trauma sparked his
compositional life
ii. His training was structured to provide him a
career in the Russian civil service
1. Was in civil service until 1861
2. Tchaikovsky as bureaucrat
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Youngtchaik.jpg
c. Never having given up his musical interest, he
became a student at the newly founded St.
Petersburg Conservatory
i. Greatly influenced by western culture
1. This was in great contrast to the group
of Russian nationalistic composers
called “The Five”
d. Took a position at Moscow Conservatory upon
graduation
e. Struggled with his sexuality
i. Married to give himself an air of
respectability
1. His wife was his total opposite
a. She did not know or appreciate his
music
b. He turned to drinking
c. Ultimately fled the marriage,
settling in St. Petersburg
d. Tchaikovsky with his wife Antonina
Miliukova
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Tchaikovsky_with_wife_An
tonina_Miliukova.jpg
f. Patronage of Nadezhda von Meck
i. The two met through correspondence in 1877
1. They never met in person
ii. Wrote over 1,200 letters to each other
1. Shared intimate emotional details,
although Tchaikovsky never confessed
his sexuality to her
iii. She gave him a yearly stipend of 6,000
rubles
1. This is currently equivalent to
150,000USD
2. A condition of the stipend was to never
meet
iv. Cut off relationship in 1890
1. Perhaps because she found out about his
sexuality
2. Perhaps because her health did not
allow correspondence
a. Dictating to a third party would
have been to revealing
v. Many of the von Meck letters were donated to
Columbia University
vi. Nadezhda von Meck, Tchaikovsky's patroness
and confidante from 1877 to 1890
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:MmevonMeck3.jpg
g. Reaction to his music was mixed
i. Essentials of Music writes, “As a member of
the musical elite of Russia, he found that
his music pleased few. It was too advanced
and modern for his Western-trained peers,
and at the same time too Western in its
outlook to please the growing and
influential champions of a Russian national
style.”
ii. Alexandre Benois, the Russian critic wrote
in his memoirs, "it was considered
obligatory [in progressive musical circles]
to treat Tchaikovsky as a renegade, a master
overly dependent on the West."
iii. In 1885, Tchaikovsky was Knighted by Tsar
Alexander III
iv. In 1893, Cambridge awarded Tchaikovsky and
Honorary Doctor of Music Degree
1. Tchaikovsky at Cambridge, 1893
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Tchai_Cambridge.jpg
http://www.naxos.com/composerinfo/bio23876.htm
h. Enjoyed a career as a conductor
i. Conducted at the inaugural concert of
Carnegie Hall
II.
Output
a. 8 operas, including:
i. Eugene Onegin (1879)
ii. Pique Dame (The Queen of Spades, 1890)
b. 3 ballets
i. Swan Lake (1877)
ii. The Sleeping Beauty (1890)
iii. The Nutcracker (1892)
c. Orchestral music including:
i. 7 symphonies
1. No.1, 1866
2. No.2, 1872
3. No.3, 1875
4. No.4, 1878
5. No.5, 1888
6. No.6 "Pathétique", 1893
7. Manfred, 1885
ii. Symphonic poems and overtures
1. Romeo and Juliet, 1870
d. 3 piano concertos, 1 violin concerto
e. Chamber and keyboard music, choral music and
songs
III. Mysterious Death
a. Some believe Tchaikovsky died of cholera
b. Others believe the Russian government forced his
suicide, given the embarrassment he could cause
due to his sexuality
c. Others believe that his former schoolmates from
the School of Jurisprudence compelled his suicide
IV.
Musical Example
a. As I’m sure you all know the Nutcracker, I have
decided to play the Romeo and Juliet Fantasy
Overture after Shakespeare
Materials of Instruction:
Smart Board
Various Recordings
Summary:
Tchaikovsky’s life was one of conflicts; his
orientation vs. the feelings of the time, his music vs. the
nationalistic tenor of “The Five.”
His music is undeniably broad and wandering in form,
as he was well aware of himself. His music is also hyperromantic and evocative, as you heard and discussed
following your hearing of the fifth symphony.
Assignment:
Listen to some of Tchaikovsky’s ballet music on your
own as well as read both the Tchaikovsky and The Five
chapters in Baker.
Bibliography:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyotr_Ilyich_Tchaikovsky
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nadezhda_von_Meck
http://www.essentialsofmusic.com/
http://www.naxos.com/composerinfo/bio23876.htm
Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 5 and Romeo & Juliet, New York
Philharmonic and Leonard Bernstein, (p) 1990 Deutsche
Grammophon
Suggested Reference:
History of Music, Hugh H. Miller, Barnes & Noble
Books, New York. 1972
Robert L. Johnston