Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's compositions embraced the best of the Romantic era of classical music. The music is full of bristling emotion in such great works as Serenade for Strings, Eugene Onegin, the 1812 Overture, and his Fifth Symphony; and his scores for ballet set the tone and carry the story of such works as Swan Lake 1876, Sleeping Beauty 1889, and The Nutcracker 1892. Tchaikovsky was born in 1840 in Votkinsk, Russia. Though he studied piano from childhood, his family set him on a track in the civil service. He studied at the school of Jurisprudence in St. Petersburg, and in 1859 went to work at the Ministry of Justice. At the same time, he began composing music, and in 1863 he left his ministry job. He graduated from the St. Petersburg Conservatory in 1865. From 1866 to 1880, Tchaikovsky had a steady job teaching at the newly-created conservatory in Moscow, as well as a job as a music critic for the Moscow newspaper Russian Register. During the 1870s, his work became well known in Russian musical circles. Tchaikovsky suffered from a nervous disposition and had several breakdowns, including one in 1877 shortly after his ill-fated marriage to Antonia Miluikova. It is well established that he was homosexual, and attempts to subvert his sexuality may have exacerbated his inner turmoil. From a financial standpoint, his situation began to improve when he was taken on by Nadezhda von Meck, a wealthy art patron and widow. von Meck provided Tchaikovsky a stipend and remained an avid correspondent of his for several years, though they never met in person. In the late 1880s, Tchaikovsky toured Europe as a conductor, and then the United States in 1891. His last piece was the Sixth Symphony Pathétique, composed in 1893. Tchaikovsky died ten days after the first performance.
