Editing Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (section)

==Career==
[[File:Youngtchaik.jpg|thumb|alt=A clean-shaven man in his teens wearing a dress shirt, tie and dark jacket.|Tchaikovsky as a student at the [[St. Petersburg Conservatory]] in 1863]]

On 10 June 1859, the 19-year-old Tchaikovsky graduated as a titular counselor, a low rung on the civil service ladder. Appointed to the Ministry of Justice, he became a junior assistant within six months and a senior assistant two months after that. He remained a senior assistant for the rest of his three-year civil service career.<ref>Brown, ''Man and Music'', 14.</ref>

Meanwhile, the [[Russian Musical Society]] (RMS) was founded in 1859 by the [[Princess Charlotte of Württemberg|Grand Duchess Elena Pavlovna]] (a German-born aunt of [[Tsar]] [[Alexander II of Russia|Alexander II]]) and her protégé, pianist and composer [[Anton Rubinstein]]. Previous tsars and the aristocracy had focused almost exclusively on importing European talent.<ref>Maes, 31.</ref> The aim of the RMS was to fulfill Alexander II's wish to foster native talent.<ref>Maes, 35.</ref> It hosted a regular season of public concerts (previously held only during the six weeks of [[Lent]] when the Imperial Theaters were closed)<ref>Volkov, 71.</ref> and provided basic professional training in music.<ref>Maes, 35; Warrack, ''Tchaikovsky'', 36.</ref> In 1861, Tchaikovsky attended RMS classes in [[music theory]] taught by [[Nikolai Zaremba]] at the [[Mikhailovsky Palace]] (now the [[Russian Museum]]).<ref>Brown, ''The Early Years'', 60.</ref> These classes were a precursor to the [[Saint Petersburg Conservatory]], which opened in 1862. Tchaikovsky enrolled at the Conservatory as part of its premiere class. He studied [[harmony]] and [[counterpoint]] with Zaremba and instrumentation and composition with Rubinstein.<ref>Brown, ''Man and Music'', 20; Holden, 38–39; Warrack, ''Tchaikovsky'', 36–38.</ref> He was awarded a silver medal for his thesis, a cantata on Schiller's "[[Ode to Joy]]".<ref name=EB1911/>

The Conservatory benefited Tchaikovsky in two ways. It transformed him into a musical professional, with tools to help him thrive as a composer, and the in-depth exposure to European principles and musical forms gave him a sense that his art was not exclusively Russian or Western.<ref name="taruskin_go4663">Taruskin, ''Grove Opera'', 4:663–664.</ref> This mindset became important in Tchaikovsky's reconciliation of Russian and European influences in his compositional style. He believed and attempted to show that both these aspects were "intertwined and mutually dependent".<ref>Figes, xxxii; Volkov, 111–112.</ref> His efforts became both an inspiration and a starting point for other Russian composers to build their own individual styles.<ref>Hosking, 347.</ref>

Rubinstein was impressed by Tchaikovsky's musical talent on the whole and cited him as "a composer of genius" in his autobiography.<ref>Poznansky, ''Eyes'', 47–48; Rubinstein, 110.</ref> He was less pleased with the more progressive tendencies of some of Tchaikovsky's student work.<ref>Brown, ''The Early Years'', 76; Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', 35.</ref> Nor did he change his opinion as Tchaikovsky's reputation grew.{{refn|Tchaikovsky ascribed Rubinstein's coolness to a difference in musical temperaments. Rubinstein could have been jealous professionally of Tchaikovsky's greater impact as a composer. [[Homophobia]] might have been another factor (Poznansky, ''Eyes'', 29).|group=n}}{{refn|An exception to Rubinstein's antipathy was the ''[[Serenade for Strings (Tchaikovsky)|Serenade for Strings]]'', which he declared "Tchaikovsky's best piece" when he heard it in rehearsal. "At last this St. Petersburg pundit, who had growled with such consistent disapproval at Tchaikovsky's successive compositions, had found a work by his former pupil which he could endorse", according to Tchaikovsky biographer [[David Brown (musicologist)|David Brown]] (Brown, ''The Years of Wandering'', 121).|group=n}} He and Zaremba clashed with Tchaikovsky when he submitted his [[Symphony No. 1 (Tchaikovsky)|First Symphony]] for performance by the [[Russian Musical Society]] in Saint Petersburg. Rubinstein and Zaremba refused to consider the work unless substantial changes were made. Tchaikovsky complied but they still refused to perform the symphony.<ref>Brown, ''The Early Years'', 100–101.</ref> Tchaikovsky, distressed that he had been treated as though he were still their student, withdrew the symphony. It was given its first complete performance, minus the changes Rubinstein and Zaremba had requested, in Moscow in February 1868.<ref>Brown, ''New Grove'' vol. 18, p. 608.</ref>

Once Tchaikovsky graduated in 1865, Rubinstein's brother [[Nikolai Rubinstein|Nikolai]] offered him the post of Professor of Music Theory at the soon-to-open [[Moscow Conservatory]]. While the salary for his professorship was only 50 [[Russian ruble|rubles]] a month, the offer itself boosted Tchaikovsky's morale and he accepted the post eagerly. He was further heartened by news of the first public performance of one of his works, his ''Characteristic Dances'', conducted by [[Johann Strauss II]] at a concert in [[Pavlovsk Park]] on 11 September 1865 (Tchaikovsky later included this work, re-titled ''Dances of the Hay Maidens'', in his opera ''[[The Voyevoda (opera)|The Voyevoda]]'').<ref>Brown, ''The Early Years'', 82–83.</ref>

From 1867 to 1878, Tchaikovsky combined his professorial duties with [[Music journalism|music criticism]] while continuing to compose.<ref>Holden, 83; Warrack, ''Tchaikovsky'', 61.</ref> This activity exposed him to a range of contemporary music and afforded him the opportunity to travel abroad.<ref>Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', 87.</ref> In his reviews, he praised [[Beethoven]], considered [[Brahms]] overrated and, despite his admiration, took [[Schumann]] to task for poor orchestration.<ref>Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', 79.</ref>{{refn|His critique led Tchaikovsky to consider rescoring Schumann's symphonies, a project he never realized (Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', 79).|group=n}} He appreciated the staging of [[Wagner's]] ''[[Der Ring des Nibelungen]]'' at its inaugural performance in [[Bayreuth]] (Germany), but not the music, calling ''[[Das Rheingold]]'' "unlikely nonsense, through which, from time to time, sparkle unusually beautiful and astonishing details".<ref>As quoted in Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', 95.</ref> A recurring theme he addressed was the poor state of [[Russian opera]].<ref>Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', 77.</ref>

===Relationship with The Five===
{{Further|Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and The Five|The Five (composers)}}
[[File:Balakirev from 1914 Windsor Magazine.png|thumb|alt=A man in his late 20s or early 30s with dark hair and a bushy beard, wearing a dark coat, dress shirt and tie.|A young [[Mily Balakirev]], one of [[The Five (composers)|The Five]], {{circa|1866}}]]
In 1856, while Tchaikovsky was still at the School of Jurisprudence and Anton Rubinstein lobbied aristocrats to form the [[Russian Musical Society]], critic [[Vladimir Stasov]] and an 18-year-old pianist, [[Mily Balakirev]], met and agreed upon a [[musical nationalism|nationalist]] agenda for Russian music, one that would take the operas of [[Mikhail Glinka]] as a model and incorporate elements from folk music, reject traditional Western practices and use non-Western harmonic devices such as the [[whole-tone scale|whole tone]] and [[octatonic scale]]s.<ref>Figes, 178–181</ref> They saw Western-style conservatories as unnecessary and antipathetic to fostering native talent.<ref>Maes, 8–9; Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', 27.</ref>

Balakirev, [[César Cui]], [[Modest Mussorgsky]], [[Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov]] and [[Alexander Borodin]] became known as the ''moguchaya kuchka'', translated into English as the "Mighty Handful" or [[The Five (composers)|"The Five"]].<ref>Garden, ''New Grove'' (2001), 8:913.</ref> Rubinstein criticized their emphasis on amateur efforts in musical composition; Balakirev and later Mussorgsky attacked Rubinstein for his musical conservatism and his belief in professional music training.<ref>Maes, 39.</ref> Tchaikovsky and his fellow conservatory students were caught in the middle.<ref>Maes, 42.</ref>

While ambivalent about much of The Five's music, Tchaikovsky remained on friendly terms with most of its members.<ref>Maes, 49.</ref> In 1869, he and Balakirev worked together on what became Tchaikovsky's first recognized masterpiece, the fantasy-overture ''[[Romeo and Juliet (Tchaikovsky)|Romeo and Juliet]]'', a work which The Five wholeheartedly embraced.<ref>Brown, ''Man and Music'', 49.</ref> The group also welcomed his [[Symphony No. 2 (Tchaikovsky)|Second Symphony]], later nicknamed the ''[[Little Russia]]n''.<ref>Brown, ''The Early Years'', 255.</ref>{{refn|group=n|According to historian [[Harlow Robinson]], it was [[Nikolay Kashkin]] who first "suggested the moniker [Little Russian] in his 1896 book ''Memories of Tchaikovsky''."<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.bso.org/works/symphony-no-2-little-russian | title = Symphony No. 2, Little Russian | author = Robinson, Harlow | website = bso.org | access-date = 14 June 2024}}</ref>}} Despite their support, Tchaikovsky made considerable efforts to ensure his musical independence from the group as well as from the conservative faction at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory.<ref>Holden, 51–52.</ref>

===Opera composer===
[[File:Von Meck.jpg|thumb|alt=A middle-aged woman wearing her hair up on her head, wearing a dark dress with a large white collar|[[Nadezhda von Meck]], Tchaikovsky's patroness and confidante from 1877 to 1890]]
{{Listen|type=music|image=none|help=no
| filename      = Tchaikovsky, Concerto No.1 in B-flat minor Op.23, I. Allegro.ogg
| title         = Piano Concerto No.1 in B-flat minor Op.23 – I. Allegro
| description = ''Allegro non-troppo e molto maestoso – Allegro con spirito'' from Tchaikovsky's [[Piano Concerto No. 1 (Tchaikovsky)|First Piano Concerto]]}}
The infrequency of Tchaikovsky's musical successes, won with tremendous effort, exacerbated his lifelong sensitivity to criticism. Nikolai Rubinstein's private fits of rage critiquing his music, such as attacking the [[Piano Concerto No. 1 (Tchaikovsky)|First Piano Concerto]], did not help matters.<ref name="wiley25147"/> His popularity grew, however, as several first-rate artists became willing to perform his compositions. [[Hans von Bülow]] premiered the First Piano Concerto and championed other Tchaikovsky works both as pianist and conductor.<ref>Steinberg, ''Concerto'', 474–476; Wiley, ''New Grove'' (2001), 25:161.</ref> Other artists included [[Adele aus der Ohe]], [[Max Erdmannsdörfer]], [[Eduard Nápravník]] and [[Sergei Taneyev]].

Another factor that helped Tchaikovsky's music become popular was a shift in attitude among Russian audiences. Whereas they had previously been satisfied with flashy virtuoso performances of technically demanding but musically lightweight works, they gradually began listening with increasing appreciation of the composition itself. Tchaikovsky's works were performed frequently, with few delays between their composition and first performances; the publication from 1867 onward of his songs and great piano music for the home market also helped boost the composer's popularity.<ref>Wiley, ''New Grove'' (2001), 25:153–154.</ref>

During the late 1860s, Tchaikovsky began to compose operas. His first, ''[[The Voyevoda (opera)|The Voyevoda]]'', based on a play by [[Alexander Ostrovsky]], premiered in 1869. The composer became dissatisfied with it, however, and, having re-used parts of it in later works, destroyed the manuscript. ''[[Undina (Tchaikovsky)|Undina]]'' followed in 1870. Only excerpts were performed and it, too, was destroyed.<ref name="Taruskin 665">Taruskin, 665.</ref> Between these projects, Tchaikovsky started to compose an opera called ''Mandragora'', to a libretto by Sergei Rachinskii; the only music he completed was a short chorus of Flowers and Insects.<ref>Holden, 75–76; Warrack, ''Tchaikovsky'', 58–59.</ref>

The first Tchaikovsky opera to survive intact, ''[[The Oprichnik]]'', premiered in 1874. During its composition, he lost Ostrovsky's part-finished libretto. Tchaikovsky, too embarrassed to ask for another copy, decided to write the libretto himself, modeling his dramatic technique on that of [[Eugène Scribe]]. Cui wrote a "characteristically savage press attack" on the opera. Mussorgsky, writing to [[Vladimir Stasov]], disapproved of the opera as pandering to the public. Nevertheless, ''The Oprichnik'' continues to be performed from time to time in Russia.<ref name="Taruskin 665"/>

The last of the early operas, ''[[Vakula the Smith]]'' (Op. 14), was composed in the second half of 1874. The libretto, based on [[Gogol]]'s ''[[Christmas Eve (Gogol)|Christmas Eve]]'', was to have been set to music by [[Alexander Serov]]. With Serov's death, the libretto was opened to a competition with a guarantee that the winning entry would be premiered by the [[Imperial Mariinsky Theatre]]. Tchaikovsky was declared the winner, but at the 1876 premiere, the opera enjoyed only a lukewarm reception.<ref>Brown, ''Viking Opera Guide'', 1086.</ref> After Tchaikovsky's death, Rimsky-Korsakov wrote the opera ''[[Christmas Eve (opera)|Christmas Eve]]'', based on the same story.<ref>Maes, 171.</ref>

Other works of this period include the ''[[Variations on a Rococo Theme]]'' for cello and orchestra, the [[Symphony No. 3 (Tchaikovsky)|Third]] and [[Symphony No. 4 (Tchaikovsky)|Fourth Symphonies]], the ballet ''[[Swan Lake]]'', and the opera ''[[Eugene Onegin (opera)|Eugene Onegin]]''.

Tchaikovsky remained abroad for a year after the disintegration of his marriage. During this time, he completed ''Eugene Onegin'', orchestrated his Fourth Symphony, and composed the [[Violin Concerto (Tchaikovsky)|Violin Concerto]].<ref>Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', 159, 170, 193.</ref> He returned briefly to the Moscow Conservatory in the autumn of 1879.<ref>Brown, ''The Crisis Years'', 297.</ref>{{refn|Rubinstein had actually been operating under the assumption that Tchaikovsky might leave from the onset of the composer's marital crisis and was prepared for it (Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', 189–190). However, his meddling in the Tchaikovsky–von Meck relationship might have contributed to the composer's actual departure. Rubinstein's actions, which soured his relations with both Tchaikovsky and von Meck, included imploring von Meck in person to end Tchaikovsky's subsidy for the composer's own good (Brown, ''The Crisis Years'', 250; Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', 188–189). Rubinstein's actions, in turn, had been spurred by Tchaikovsky's withdrawal from the Russian delegation for the [[Exposition Universelle (1878)|1878 Paris World's Fair]], a position for which Rubinstein had lobbied on the composer's behalf (Brown, ''The Crisis Years'', 249–250; Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', 180, 188–189). Rubinstein had been scheduled to conduct four concerts there; the first featured Tchaikovsky's First Piano Concerto (Wiley, ''Tchaikovsky'', 190).|group=n}} For the next few years, assured of a regular income from von Meck, he traveled incessantly throughout Europe and rural Russia, mainly alone, and avoided social contact whenever possible.<ref name="brmm219">Brown, ''Man and Music'', 219.</ref>

During this time, Tchaikovsky's foreign reputation grew and a positive reassessment of his music also took place in Russia, thanks in part to Russian novelist [[Fyodor Dostoevsky]]'s call for "universal unity" with the West at the unveiling of the Pushkin Monument in Moscow in 1880. Before Dostoevsky's speech, Tchaikovsky's music had been considered "overly dependent on the West". As Dostoevsky's message spread throughout Russia, this stigma toward Tchaikovsky's music evaporated.<ref name="volkovsp126">Volkov, 126.</ref> The unprecedented acclaim for him even drew a cult following among the young intelligentsia of Saint Petersburg, including [[Alexandre Benois]], [[Léon Bakst]] and [[Sergei Diaghilev]].<ref>Volkov, 122–123.</ref>

Two musical works from this period stand out. With the [[Cathedral of Christ the Saviour]] nearing completion in Moscow in 1880, the 25th anniversary of the coronation of [[Alexander II of Russia|Alexander II]] in 1881,{{refn|Celebration of this anniversary did not take place as [[Assassination of Alexander II|Alexander II was assassinated]] in March 1881.|group=n}} and the 1882 Moscow Arts and Industry Exhibition in the planning stage, [[Nikolai Rubinstein]] suggested that Tchaikovsky compose a grand commemorative piece. Tchaikovsky agreed and finished it within six weeks. He wrote to [[Nadezhda von Meck]] that this piece, the ''[[1812 Overture]]'', would be "very loud and noisy, but I wrote it with no warm feeling of love, and therefore there will probably be no artistic merits in it".<ref name="brwa119">As quoted in Brown, ''The Years of Wandering'', 119.</ref> He also warned conductor [[Eduard Nápravník]] that "I shan't be at all surprised and offended if you find that it is in a style unsuitable for symphony concerts".<ref name="brwa119" /> Nevertheless, the overture became, for many, "the piece by Tchaikovsky they know best",<ref name="brmm224">Brown, ''Man and Music'', 224.</ref> particularly well-known for the use of cannon in the scores.<ref>Aaron Green,[https://www.thoughtco.com/tchaikovskys-1812-overture-724401 "Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture"], thoughtco.com, 25 March 2017</ref>

On 23 March 1881, Nikolai Rubinstein died in Paris. That December, Tchaikovsky started work on his [[Piano Trio (Tchaikovsky)|Piano Trio in A&nbsp;minor]], "dedicated to the memory of a great artist".<ref>As quoted in Brown, ''The Years of Wandering'', 151.</ref> First performed privately at the Moscow Conservatory on the first anniversary of Rubinstein's death, the piece became extremely popular during the composer's lifetime; in November 1893, it would become Tchaikovsky's own elegy at memorial concerts in Moscow and St. Petersburg.<ref>Brown, ''The Years of Wandering'', 151–152.</ref>{{refn|The piece also fulfilled a long-standing request by von Meck for such a work, to be performed by her then-house pianist, [[Claude Debussy]] (Brown, ''New Grove'' vol. 18, p. 620).|group=n}}

===Return to Russia===
[[File:Pjotr Tšaikovskin kotimuseo.jpg|thumb|alt=A blue two-story house with white trim and many windows, surrounded by birch trees.|Tchaikovsky's last home, in [[Klin, Klinsky District, Moscow Oblast|Klin]], now the [[Tchaikovsky State House-Museum]]]]

In 1884, Tchaikovsky began to shed his unsociability and restlessness. That March, Emperor [[Alexander III of Russia|Alexander III]] conferred upon him the [[Order of Saint Vladimir]] (fourth class), which included a title of [[Russian nobility|hereditary nobility]]<ref name="browngrove18621"/> and a personal audience with the Tsar.<ref name="wiley162"/> This was seen as a seal of official approval which advanced Tchaikovsky's social standing<ref name="browngrove18621">Brown, ''New Grove'' vol. 18, p. 621; Holden, 233.</ref> and might have been cemented in the composer's mind by the success of his [[Orchestral Suite No. 3]] at its January 1885 premiere in Saint Petersburg.<ref name="brmm275">Brown, ''Man and Music'', 275.</ref>

In 1885, Alexander III requested a new production of ''[[Eugene Onegin (opera)|Eugene Onegin]]'' at the [[Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre]] in Saint Petersburg.{{refn|Its only other production had been by students from the Conservatory.|group=n}} By having the opera staged there and not at the [[Mariinsky Theatre]], he served notice that Tchaikovsky's music was replacing [[Italian opera]] as the official imperial art. In addition, at the instigation of [[Ivan Vsevolozhsky]], Director of the Imperial Theaters and a patron of the composer, Tchaikovsky was awarded a lifetime annual pension of 3,000 rubles from the Tsar. This made him the premier court composer, in practice if not in the actual title.<ref>Maes, 140; Taruskin, ''Grove Opera'', 4:664.</ref>

Despite Tchaikovsky's disdain for public life, he now participated in it as part of his increasing celebrity and out of a duty he felt to promote Russian music. He helped support his former pupil [[Sergei Taneyev]], who was now director of Moscow Conservatory, by attending student examinations and negotiating the sometimes sensitive relations among various members of the staff. He served as director of the Moscow branch of the [[Russian Musical Society]] during the 1889–1890 season. In this post, he invited many international celebrities to conduct, including [[Johannes Brahms]], [[Antonín Dvořák]] and [[Jules Massenet]].<ref name="wiley162">Wiley, ''New Grove'' (2001), 25:162.</ref>

During this period, Tchaikovsky also began promoting Russian music as a conductor,<ref name="wiley162"/> In January 1887, he substituted, on short notice, at the [[Bolshoi Theater]] in Moscow for performances of his opera ''[[Cherevichki]]''.<ref>Holden, 261; Warrack, ''Tchaikovsky'', 197.</ref> Within a year, he was in considerable demand throughout Europe and Russia. These appearances helped him overcome life-long [[glossophobia|stage fright]] and boosted his self-assurance.<ref>Holden, 266; Warrack, ''Tchaikovsky'', 232.</ref> In 1888, Tchaikovsky led the premiere of his [[Symphony No. 5 (Tchaikovsky)|Fifth Symphony]] in Saint Petersburg, repeating the work a week later with the first performance of his tone poem ''[[Hamlet (Tchaikovsky)|Hamlet]]''. Although critics proved hostile, with [[César Cui]] calling the symphony "routine" and "meretricious", both works were received with extreme enthusiasm by audiences and Tchaikovsky, undeterred, continued to conduct the symphony in Russia and Europe.<ref>Holden, 272–273.</ref> Conducting brought him to the United States in 1891, where he led the [[New York Symphony Orchestra|New York Music Society's]] orchestra in his ''Festival Coronation March'' at the inaugural concert of [[Carnegie Hall]].<ref>Brown, ''The Final Years'', 319–320.</ref>

===Belyayev circle and growing reputation===
{{see also|Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and the Belyayev circle}}
In November 1887, Tchaikovsky arrived at Saint Petersburg in time to hear several of the [[Russian Symphony Concerts]], devoted exclusively to the music of Russian composers. One included the first complete performance of his revised First Symphony; another featured the final version of Third Symphony of [[Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov]], with whose circle Tchaikovsky was already in touch.<ref>Brown, ''The Final Years'', 90–91.</ref>

Rimsky-Korsakov, with [[Alexander Glazunov]], [[Anatoly Lyadov]] and several other nationalistically-minded composers and musicians, had formed a group known as the [[Belyayev circle]], named after a merchant and amateur musician who became an influential music patron and publisher.<ref>Maes, 173</ref> Tchaikovsky spent much time in this circle, becoming far more at ease with them than he had been with the 'Five' and increasingly confident in showcasing his music alongside theirs.<ref>Brown, ''The Final Years'', 92.</ref> This relationship lasted until Tchaikovsky's death.<ref name="poz564">Poznansky, ''Quest'', 564.</ref><ref>Rimsky-Korsakov, 308.</ref>

In 1892, Tchaikovsky was voted a member of the [[Académie des Beaux-Arts]] in France, only the second Russian subject to be so honored (the first was sculptor [[Mark Antokolsky]]).<ref>Poznansky, ''Quest'', 548–549.</ref> The following year, the [[University of Cambridge]] in England awarded Tchaikovsky an honorary [[Doctor of Music]] degree.<ref>Warrack, ''Tchaikovsky'', 264.</ref>