Tchaikovsky
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TH 70

At Bedtime

На сон грядущий

For mixed chorus, C minor (?1863/64).

• Composed in 1863 or 1864.
• Text by Nikolai Ogarev, from his poem of the same name (?early 1840s).
• Originally scored for unaccompanied SATB chorus.
• Later revised for SATB chorus; 2 Flutes; 2 Oboes; 2 Clarinets (C); 2 Bassoons; 2 Horns (C); 2 Trumpets (G); Timpani; Violins I; Violins II; Violas; Violoncellos; Double Basses.
• Average duration: 5m (a cappella); 7m  (with orchestra).

History

One of Tchaikovsky’s student works from the conservatory. It exists in two versions — for mixed chorus a cappella, and for the same forces with orchestra. There is no information about the origins of this work. The same text was used by Tchaikovsky for his Op. 27 romance At Bedtime.

The chorus was not published during Tchaikovsky's lifetime.

From: Музыкальное наследие Чайковского (1958), p. 351
English text copyright © 2006 Brett Langston