Tchaikovsky
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TH 71

Chorus of Flowers and Insects

Хор цветов и насекомых

For children's voices & mixed chorus with orchestra, D major (1869–70).

• Composed December 1869 to January 1870. Originally intended as a scene for a projected opera Mandragora (TH 207)
• Text by Sergei Rachinskii.
• Scored for SATB Chorus; Boys' Chorus; 2 Flutes; 2 Oboes; 2 Clarinets (A); 2 Bassoons; 4 Horns (F); Timpani; Harp; Violins I; Violins II; Violas; Violoncellos; Double Basses.
• Also arranged for voices with piano by Tchaikovsky, December 1869.
• First performed in Moscow, 18/30 December 1870, conducted by Nikolai Rubinstein.
• Average duration: 8m.

History

The Chorus of Flowers and Insects was written at the end of 1869 in Moscow, and was conceived as a fragment from Tchaikovsky's projected opera Mandragora [1].

No information survives concerning work on the chorus. The manuscript of the piano score has the autograph note: "27 December 1869 [O.S.]. Moscow". It is not possible to establish when the orchestration was made, except that in 1870 the chorus was performed. The first reference to this chorus occurs in a letter to Modest Tchaikovsky of 13/25 January 1870: "... I have written a chorus of insects for the opera Mandragora, the subject of which I think is familiar to you; it was written by Rachinskii" [2].

The chorus was performed at the sixth symphony concert given by the Moscow branch of the Russian Musical Society on 18/30 December 1870, as Chorus of Elves [Хор эльфов], and later at the second concert of the Free Music School in Saint Petersburg, conducted by Milii Balakirev, on 18/30 December 1871. After the first performance, Tchaikovsky was prevailed upon by Karl Albrecht to revise the middle section, but subsequently it was left unchanged [3].

The chorus was published for the first time by Petr Jurgenson in June 1902—in the form of a choral score with piano accompaniment, and parts [4]. Since the full score was believed to be lost, the chorus was orchestrated by Aleksandr Glazunov in 1898 (according to the date on the manuscript) [5]. It was published in this version by Petr Jurgenson in April 1904 (full score) and November 1904 (parts) [6]. The original full score was later found, and published for the first time in 1950.

From: Музыкальное наследие Чайковского (1958), pp. 351–352
English text copyright © 2006 Brett Langston

References:

1. On the manuscript of the piano score, Tchaikovsky wrote "Chorus of Insects", and on the full score: "Chorus of Flowers and Insects from a fantastic opera Mandragora" [back]
2. Letter 178 to Modest Tchaikovsky, 13/25 January 1870 [back]
3. See letters 194 and 242 to Milii Balakirev, 1/13 June and 22 October/3 November 1871, and Balakirev’s reply to Tchaikovsky, October 1871 — Klin House-Museum Archive [back]
4. Passed by the censor on 28 May 1902. See also letters from Petr Jurgenson to Modest Tchaikovsky, 10/23 May 1902 and 11/24 December 1903 — Klin House-Museum Archive [back]
5. Glazunov’s manuscript is preserved in the Klin House-Museum Archive [back]
6. See letter from P. I. Jurgenson to M. I. Tchaikovsky, 27 May/8 June 1898 — Klin House-Museum Archive [back]