This is a biography which gives due space both to Tchaikovsky's unhappy, restless life and also to the prodigious talent, his methods of working and the gradual genesis of his greatest large-scale works. It includes a comprehensive list of his works.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
A Fascinating Read for Music History Buffs,
A Kid's Review
This review is from: Tchaikovsky (Paperback)
Pyotr Illich Tchaikovsky was born on May 7, 1840, in Votkinsk, Russia, as the second son of Ilya Petrovich Tchaikovsky and Alexandra Andreyevna Assier. His childhood was rocky, and he was often called a "porcelain child" by his governess, Fanny Durbach, who feared she would cause him to break down into tears with her stern lessons. His hypersensitivity was worrisome to Fanny, who regarded his desire for music as morbid. He would often sneak off to the sitting room to play his beloved piano, to Fanny's dismay. The family moved to St. Petersburg in 1848, and he was boarded at the Schmelling School with his brother Nikolay. They relocated yet again in June 1849 to Alapayevsk, and Pyotr was sent with Nikolay to the School of Jurisprudence in St. Petersburg in October 1850. Later, his new guardian, Modest Alexeyevich Vakar took him to see Don Giovanni, which he would forever consider a turning point in his life. His school gave him chance to develop his love of music, and he did so readily. Then in June 1854, his mother contracted cholera and shortly died. The effect of her death was so great on Pyotr that it has been considered as the main source of his homosexuality. But at that time, these tendencies were kept so silent that he could be hung if the government was to discover his secret. His fear of exposure followed him throughout his life, and haunted him further in middle-age, in his failed marriage to Antonina Milyukova in 1877. He finally realized that the relationship could never work, but not soon enough to save Antonina driving herself mad with efforts of trying to satisfy him. He divorced her, and sent her to an insane asylum, where she died in 1914. From 1855 to 1877, He continued his studies, and composed 23 orchestral and solo with orchestra pieces. He completed 4 operas, including The Oprichnik and was at work on Eugene Onegin at the time of his marriage. He also composed Swan Lake (finished 1876), The Barber of Seville (finished 1872), Le Nozze di Figaro (finished 1875), 13 Chamber pieces, and three choral pieces. Prior to his marriage, he was commissioned by Nadezhda von Meck to be her personal composer. Their friendship lasted until October 1889, when she asked him to cease correspondence with her. While he stayed her composer for thirteen years, he had a life of his own. He traveled across Russia, to Germany, Italy, France, and stayed, for several months, in England, though he detested the language and all English books, save Dickens. In 1889, he finished The Sleeping Beauty, and then The Nutcracker in 1892. He completed his arrangements of Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet in 1891 and 1893, respectively. Pyotr enjoyed three definite years of true fame, from 1890 to 1893. Shortly after his completion of Symphony No. 6 "Pathetic," he felt very and old and longed for death. Some interpret his death as suicide, because he knew the risks of drinking unboiled water in a cholera epidemic, and rightly so. But, according to accounts from friends, he had been blackmailed by a woman angry over his relationship with her son earlier in the day, and was thrown into deep depression, obviously resulting in his death at the age of 53. Tchaikovsky by John Warrack was a fascinating look into the life of Russian composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky.
The biography, however obviously predictable, offered a deeper look into his life and death, as author John Warrack compared his current pieces to his feelings and emotions of the same time, and showed a deeper meaning to his music. At first glance, his music, especially his March Slav, seem generally depressing, as many of them are written in minor keys, such as E flat minor and his seemingly favorite key, B flat minor, in which many orchestral and choral works were written. Warrack's take on Tchaikovsky's life was insightful, and offered a bit of room for inference in some places, whereas many biographies will merely explain why the person did what they did, instead of letting your imagination take hold. I have found that many nonfiction and biographical books don't let you think for yourself, they tell you what you're supposed to think of a certain action or emotion. Warrack would describe something Tchaikovsky had done, and then let me pass judgment on him as I preferred. Tchaikovsky is a great read, and will certainly keep anyone wanting to know more. Although I wouldn't recommend this for someone uninterested in music history, it could certainly be used as a biographical model for future writers, or anyone interested in nonfiction that isn't afraid to read summaries of operas and dramas, or possibly have to reach for the musical dictionary every once in a while. -C. Edwards
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