Plog Number 399
Pytor Ilich Tchaikovsky
Hello Ploggers, how are you? How are you weathering this rash of violent and turbulent weather💨 we have had across much of the country recently. It is amazing how the very earth we live on, can try to destroy us on a whim. One minute we are living a care free life and the next we are in fear of our life, homes and earthly possessions. It is an amazing turn around. Head spinning, for sure. But I have been learning a lot about music and composers recently. So let’s get into it.
Last year I learned to play the Sleeping Beauty Waltz for a🎹 piano recital. That was my first Tchaikovsky song. It had a Disney connection and I❤️ loved it. Later I learned March Slav. It was a dignified march and a war memorial. Most recently I learned to play Swan Lake. This is the one that really got me interested in the man himself.
I learned that Potry Iliach Tchaikovsky was a Russian man who lived from May 7, 1840 to November 6, 1893. Like many composers, he started playing at age 4. He was a sensitive child and loved his mother who died when he was age 14. He only lived for 53 years. He died of Cholera from drinking “non boiled” water at a restaurant. There were rumors about his death being purposeful. His short life was very interesting indeed. He lived in 19th Century Russia and was 6’2” tall. He spoke French and German as well as Russian. He married and later divorced but had no children. His wife was named Antonina Miliukova. She was 28 years old and a student at his school. Sadly there are no direct descendants of his that are alive today. He referred to his Ex-wife as🐊 “the reptile”. He was known to become quite upset with the mere mention of her name or the receipt of a letter from her. His marriage lasted only 3 months, from July to September 1877. He reportedly was later involved in a gay relationship with his nephew Vladimir Lvovich Davidov who’s nickname was Bob. When he died Bob inherited all of Tchaikovsky’s💰 royalties and copyrights. He suffered from debilitating stage fright, neurosis and depression. He survived a suicide attempt and a near mental collapse.He attended Law School in St. Petersburg, Russia. He lived a modest life and worked as a public servant in what we would call a court. He became a professor at a music college, the Saint Petersburg Conservatory.
His music was influenced by the Rubenstein Brothers. Anton and Nikolai Rubenstein were Jewish pianists and composers in the 19th Century. Tchaikovsky was best known for his ballets, including Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet and the Nutcracker. He also wrote a 4th, 5th and 6th Symphony and the 1812 Overture. Some of his compositions are melancholy, moving and emotional. Swan Lake has beautiful chords and has a Climactic quality. He wrote Operas and Ballets. His🎶 music was criticized for being openly emotional. He had money💵 troubles and took jobs that he hated. Later in life he was supported by Nadezhda von Meck. She supported Tchaikovsky financially for years and this allowed him to quit jobs that he hated and concentrate on his musical passion. The two never met. He had an immensely successful tour in the United States in 1891 just two years before his death.
This Plog is dedicated to the life and story of a brilliant yet troubled, working man, piano composer, player genius. He had personal issues, money troubles, emotional burdens, yet he still managed to influence generations beyond his own. He was not born an aristocrat. He was prolific with music still relevant today. He spoke multiple languages, with piano being its own language. Thank you for your addition to the history piano music and RIP Mr. T Privet RECLAIM
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