We all know very well the most popular works of Tchaikovsky. This is the music for the ballet The Nutcracker, Swan Lake, the opera The Queen of Spades with its unique overture, and numerous plays from The Children's Album. This list can be continued indefinitely and, listening to each of its items, literally enjoy every note. However, now we offer to enjoy the most exquisite creations of this author. Among them will be both the most famous musical works of Tchaikovsky, and those that are far from everyone's hearing. Well, let's go!
"Swan Lake"
The music for this unique dance performance was written by a genius in 1877. The German legend about the beautiful girl Odette, who was turned by evil spells into a white swan, formed the basis. As the composer himself claimed, he was inspired to write ballet after visiting one of the alpine lakes, whose beauty he was simply struck by. This picture includes, one might say, the most famous works of Tchaikovsky. The list begins with The Dance of the Little Swans, and continues with the odes of Odette and Odile, a long and slightly sad Adagio, which has been heard throughout the production. Also here it is worth mentioning the most beautiful waltz, chardash, mazurka, the final “Dance of the Queen of Swans” and other musical motifs that we all seem to have heard from birth.
"Nutcracker"
Favorite ballet of every child who has been involved in music and art since childhood. As a rule, he is staged in theaters on New Year's Eve, because his script, the game of dancers and props are so bright and festive that an atmosphere of magic and mystery is really created. The ballet contains very simple, but nonetheless very beautiful pieces by Tchaikovsky. The children always like to start the list with “Waltz of the Flowers” ​​- this play is the most vivid of all and memorable. Next in popularity is the Pas de de Déžé Fairies. When the ballet was first staged, Pyotr Ilyich got a tool that was unthinkable for Russia at that time - celesta. Since then, this play is performed only on celesta. Of course, in the list of the most striking works that sound in The Nutcracker, one cannot miss the Chinese Dance, Spanish Dance, trepak, Shepherd's Dance, Arabic Dance, march and many other beautiful motifs.
"Sleeping Beauty"
Another ingenious ballet of Tchaikovsky, which was written by him on the basis of the fairy tale of the same name. According to the plot created by the Frenchman Charles Perrault, composer Ferdinan Gerold had already tried to stage ballet before Pyotr Ilyich. However, his version was unsuccessful. Some argue that the production simply did not have enough time to promote, since literally this year an analogue was written by our fellow countryman. He won success on the stages of all European and domestic theaters with his brightness, shocking and non-standard solutions. These included the works of P. I. Tchaikovsky, which are not as popular as the prologues and odes from Swan Lake or The Nutcracker. However, if you listen carefully to them and feel the whole atmosphere of ballet, you can feel the incredible atmosphere of a fairy tale and magic that the author put into every sound.
The Queen of Spades
In 1887, Tchaikovsky received an order to write an opera based on verses by Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin, The Queen of Spades. At first, the composer abandoned this venture, since he believed that this plot was not at all suitable for a big scene. However, after thinking for several years, he still changed his mind and began to work on this proposal. As a result, new works by Tchaikovsky were born, which were already not only instrumental in nature, but also supplemented by the main vocal part. Among the masterpieces that make up The Queen of Spades consists of Gremkin’s aria, Hermann’s soliloquy, the romance, “Cute Friends,” as well as a whole host of duets.
"Eugene Onegin"
Some events that occurred on the personal front of the composer in 1877 forced his creative nature to embody his experiences in music. So, in a very short period of time, a new opera was born, which was built on the basis of the novel "Eugene Onegin." Musical works by Tchaikovsky, which sound on behalf of the main characters of this story, are heard by every music lover. This is Lensky’s aria, and the scene of Tatyana’s letter, as well as Onegin himself. The opera contains the most beautiful waltzes and polonaises, plays and other motifs that most clearly reveal the essence of the entire work, which tells us about social inequalities and love.
"Children's album"
Under the author's subtitle “Twenty-Four Easy Pieces for Piano” in 1878, Pyotr Ilyich published “Children's Album”. Everyone who studied at a music school must have played at least something from the pages of this collection. We will not list absolutely all, but we will name only a few. This is “Winter morning”, “Doll’s disease”, “New doll”, “Neapolitan song”, “Old French song”, “Sweet daydream”, “Russian song”, waltz, polka, Mazurka, “Kamarinskaya” ... Actually each of the above plays is very simple and understandable both in the analysis, and in the game, the transfer of colors. But with this simplicity, the extraordinary beauty of sound is uniquely combined, and each melody can be enjoyed constantly. We also note that in the future, such composers as Grieg, Debussy, Bartok, Schumann, took as the basis for their new opuses the very plays written by Pyotr Tchaikovsky. The works also formed the basis of the ballet, which was staged in 1999 in Yugoslavia and received many awards.
"Seasons"
Around 1875, a longtime friend and partner of Tchaikovsky, Bernard invited him to write a series of works that would characterize exactly all the seasons. Without hesitating for a long time, the composer agreed to this proposal and began to work. Literally a month later, within the framework of this cycle, the first work of Tchaikovsky was released. The Four Seasons, as conceived by Bernard, should have consisted of 12 pieces, with which their author did a wonderful job. Also note that the name of each work was also not invented by the composer himself. Well, let’s name in order exactly which works of Tchaikovsky were included in this album:
- "January. At the stove ”.
- "February. Maslenitsa".
- "March. Song of the Lark. "
- "April. Snowdrop".
- "May. White Nights".
- "June. Barcarole. "
- "July. Song of the mowers. "
- "August. Harvest".
- "September. Hunting".
- "October. Autumn song "
- "November. At the top three. "
- "December. Christmas time. "
"Slavic march"
Listing all the most vivid and famous works of Tchaikovsky, it is simply impossible to lose sight of this amazing march. The composer wrote it in 1876 at the request of the Russian Musical Society. The work was composed as a sign of struggle and protest against the Ottoman yoke in Russia and other Slavic states. The creator of this musical masterpiece himself for a long time called it the Serbo-Russian March. It had many motifs characteristic of folk songs and dances of this people. This picture was supplemented by purely Russian tunes, in particular the anthem of the empire "God Save the Tsar."
As Tchaikovsky did. Analysis of works
A significant place in the work of composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky is occupied by piano small pieces. As a rule, they are a very accurate description of any side of life. It can be rural landscapes, certain evenings that the author remembered, or events. The most important thing is that any picture that the author undertook, as a result, with great accuracy conveyed its essence and corresponded to the name. It is also impossible not to notice that in all the works of Tchaikovsky, even those intended for an orchestra or chamber ensemble, a very lyrical, sentimental theme is traced. Any of his plays or overtures are filled with tenderness, lightness and a certain sadness, which makes listening to them so gratifying.