MASTERPIECE OF PIOTR ILICH

TCHAIKOWSKY

(1840-1893)

Tchaikovsky was one of the most complex men of a very complex age. Outwardly he was a quiet and cultured man of middle-class respectability and regular habits. He took a two-hour walk every afternoon after his dinner, no matter what the weather, and did most of his creative thinking during these daily exercises. He traveled extensively, read a lot and played cards with his nephews. Beneath this cloak of ordinariness was a deeply unhappy man. He was able to withdraw from teaching when a rich widow, Nadezhda von Meck, offered him financial support which continued for much of his life, although, according to the original conditions of the pension, they never met. He was terrified of solitude (although people upset him), electrical storms and his own repressed homosexuality. When he conducted an orchestra he held his head with his left hand because he was convinced that it would go flying off his shoulders. He suffered several nervous breakdowns and, at least once, attempted suicide, although he was convinced that he was destined to die of cholera as his mother had. He did. His music is thoroughly Russian in character, but, although he was influenced by Balakirev and the ideals of the Five Russian nationalist composers, he may be seen as belonging rather to the more international school of composition fostered by the Conservatories that Balakirev so much deplored.

Nutcracker Suite - Chinese dance  1:03

Nutcracker Suite - Russian dance (Trepak)  1:04

Nutcracker Suite - Dance of the sugar plum fairy  2:03

Piano concerto no.1 in Bd - 1. Allegro con fuoco  6:34

Piano concerto no.1 in Bd - 2. Allegro non troppo e molto maestoso  19:05

Piano concerto no.1 in Bd - 3. Andantino semplice  6:33