Born:
May 7, 1840, his parents were Ilya Tchaikovsky and Alexandra Assier. He was the second child of a brood of six.
Birthplace:
Votkinsk, Russia
Died:
November 6, 1893 in St. Petersburg due to cholera.
Also Known As:
Chaikovsky, Chaikovskii, or Tschaikowsky, Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky, the greatest Russian composer of his time
Type of Compositions:
He wrote
ballets,
operas,
symphonies,
concertos,
suites,
overtures, string
quartet and
sextet,
cantatas, choral works,
songs and pieces for the piano.
Influence:
Tchaikovsky showed interest in music early in his life. He used to play on a small keyboard, called an orchestrina, in his home. Later on he began piano lessons with a local tutor, then during his teenage years was taught by Rudolph Kündinger, a professional teacher. He was also influenced by a singing teacher named Luigi Piccioli, an Italian. He was also a student at the Russian Musical Society and St. Petersburg Conservatory. Among his teachers there are Nikolay Zaremba and Anton Rubinstein.
Notable Works:
Among his most famous work are his musical scores for ballet -
Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, and Sleeping Beauty, his fantasy overture
Romeo and Juliet,
Piano Concerto No. 1 in B Flat Minor, Opus 23, and
Symphony No. 6 in B Minor.
Interesting Fact:
Before he became a full-fledged composer, he was a clerk at the Ministry of Justice. His engagement with Désirée Artôt was a failure and his marriage to Antonina Milyukova was shortlived. A widow named Nadezhda von Meck became his patroness but they only corresponded through letters.
Music Sheet:
Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy
