Tchaikovsky
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Overture-Fantasia

(Увертюра-фантазиа)

By Herman Laroche, orchestrated by Tchaikovsky (1888) [1].

History

Work on this orchestration was begun after the completion of the full score of the Fifth Symphony. i.e. after 14/26 August 1888 [2]. According to a note by on the manuscript by Herman Laroche, Tchaikovsky completed the instrumentation on 9/21 September 1888 at Frolovskoye.

"I don't know if I wrote to you...", Tchaikovsky informed Nadezhda von Meck on 14/26 September 1888, "that some time ago I promised to orchestrate an overture composed by my old friend Laroche, which he partly through inexperience and partly through ill-health, could not score himself. It is a product of exceptional talent, and demonstrates how much music has lost because this gifted genius man is suffering from a lack of confidence which effectively paralysis his creative ability" [3]. Further on in this same letter, Tchaikovsky reported that the overture was causing him a great deal of trouble.

On 5/17 November 1888 in Saint Petersburg, the first performance of the overture-fantasia took place in a concert of Tchaikovsky’s works [4]. It was not a success, in spite of Tchaikovsky’s ardent attempts to bring Herman Laroche’s works to public notice.

From: Музыкальное наследие Чайковского (1958), pp. 497–499
English text copyright © 2006 Brett Langston

Notes:

1. Some sources have confused the Overture-Fantasia with Laroche's earlier overture Karmozina (Carmosine), which was not orchestrated by Tchaikovsky [back]
2. See letter 3650 to Modest Tchaikovsky, and letter 3649 to Anatoly Tchaikovsky, both 22 August/3 September 1888, and letter 3651 to Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich, 26 August/7 September 1888 [back]
3. Letter 3669 to Nadezhda von Meck, 14/26 September 1888 [back]
4. See letter 3672 to Modest Tchaikovsky, 19 September/1 October 1888 [back]