Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 1

Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 1 Program Notes

Tchaikovsky  waited  until  his  twenties  before  devoting  himself  to  composition,  quitting  his  Civil  Service  law  job  to  study  music  at  the  St.  Petersburg  Conservatory.  In  1860s  St.  Petersburg,  he  would  have  heard  the  concerts  given  by  Hector  Berlioz,  and  the  French  composer’s  innovations  in  orchestral  color  seem  to  have  influenced  the  young  Tchaikovsky.    Aged  26,  he  accepted  a  faculty  position  at  the  new  Moscow  Conservatory,  spending  most  of  his  spare  time  writing  this  symphony.    This  led  to  very  long  nights  –  he  developed  a  severe  case  of  insomnia.  His  brother,  the  writer  Modest  Tchaikovsky,  later  said  the  First  Symphony  was  the  hardest  for  the  composer  to  write.  Mostly,  the  Symphony  seems  to  celebrate  the  romance  of  Winter  –  the  briskness  of  a  sled  over  fresh  snow,  the  crispness  of  a  cold  morning,  and  even  the  warmth  of  a  good  fireplace.    The  first  movement  is  titled  Dreams  of  a  Winter’s  Journey,dz  and  after  the  second  movement’s  muted  string  opening,  Gloomy  Land,  Misty  Land, Spring  is  hinted  at  by  the  flute’s  birdcalls  over  a  melancholic  woodwind  melody.    The  third  movement,  a  lively  scherzo,  is  filled  with  energy  and  fine  little  details,  and  includes  a  tremendously  romantic  waltz.    The  Finale,  also  untitled,  emerges  from  its  mysterious  beginnings  to  a  rollicking  and  energetic  finale.

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Born: May 7, 1840, Votkinsk, Russia
Died: November 6, 1893, Saint Petersburg, Russia