Tchaikovsky

Tchaikovsky

Peter Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) was born in Kamsko-Votkinsk, Russia on May 7, 1840. His family was wealthy and his parents decided that his best career choice was to be a lawyer. Tchaikovsky studied law for several years when he realized that music was his true calling. He enrolled in the St. Petersburg Conservatory of Music and after graduating was immediately appointed as professor of music at the Moscow Conservatory. Although his teaching position guaranteed him a certain income, most of his financial support came from a wealthy widow who was an important patron of the arts and sent him large sums of money on a regular basis. As a result, Tchaikovsky was always financially secure and was able to compose whatever he wished, and he was also able to travel extensively through Europe.

Tchaikovsky's greatest contribution to the music world is in his large-scale orchestral pieces. He composed symphonies, overtures, symphonic poems, music for ballet, and piano concertos that are still a standard part of the classical repertoire. Many of his compositions are program pieces -- music that represents a story, thing, or idea. He wrote three symphonic poems that give musical depictions of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, The Tempest, and Hamlet.

Some of Tchaikovsky's melodies have remained popular since the time he composed them. His Nutcracker Suite is still a favorite during the holiday season. In the 1970s Barry Manilow borrowed a few of Tchaikovsky's tunes and turned them into pop music hits.

Although Tchaikovsky was extremely popular and successful in his time, he lived a very tragic personal life. As a manic-depressive he experienced extreme emotional highs and lows and these tremendous mood swings are often reflected in his music. He died of cholera in 1893.

Restored text, unchanged, from the Wayback Machine capture of May 3, 2004.