In 1893, the great Russian composer Petr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's completed his Symphony No.6 that is commonly known as 'Pathétique'. So why was it ‘pathetic’ anyway?
First of all, the symphony became composer’s last work. Petr Ilyich dies just 9 days after it was finally created. Luckily, within this short period of time, Saint Petersburg saw the premiere of the soon-to-become famous music work. This is another peculiarity, as a situation like this is a rare thing in the history of music. Too many outstanding composers never lived to the acclaim or even premier of their masterpieces. Moreover, Tchaikovsky not only saw it but took part in it – he led the first performance himself.
Another explanation of the ‘pathetic’ title for the symphony could lie in its music mood. It is well-known that Tchaikovsky frequently suffered from depression which could not but pour into some of his music compositions. The start of the work on the No.6 was not quite successful and the desperate composer tore up his draft manuscripts a few times.
The Symphony Pathétique as we know and love it today slightly differs from the one people listened to on the day of its premier. Right after the performance Tchaikovsky made a few more corrections in the score. Despite all the hardships on the way to creating that masterpiece, Tchaikovsky realized that it was to become one of his most decent works in a lifetime, he even mentioned in the letter to his brother.
The Russian title of the piece does not put any accent on the depressive mood of the work, however, musicologists agree on No. 6 being composer’s sort of a ‘suicidal note’.
Loved the video of the symphony performed in a 360-degree mode. How lovely it feels to ‘be part’ of the performance of such an important work!
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| Petr Ilyich Tchaikovsky |
Another explanation of the ‘pathetic’ title for the symphony could lie in its music mood. It is well-known that Tchaikovsky frequently suffered from depression which could not but pour into some of his music compositions. The start of the work on the No.6 was not quite successful and the desperate composer tore up his draft manuscripts a few times.
The Symphony Pathétique as we know and love it today slightly differs from the one people listened to on the day of its premier. Right after the performance Tchaikovsky made a few more corrections in the score. Despite all the hardships on the way to creating that masterpiece, Tchaikovsky realized that it was to become one of his most decent works in a lifetime, he even mentioned in the letter to his brother.
The Russian title of the piece does not put any accent on the depressive mood of the work, however, musicologists agree on No. 6 being composer’s sort of a ‘suicidal note’.
Loved the video of the symphony performed in a 360-degree mode. How lovely it feels to ‘be part’ of the performance of such an important work!
