Tchaikovsky
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Six Pieces
Шесть пьес
For piano solo, Op. 19 (1873).
No. 1. Rêverie du soir (Вчерние греэы)
| Catalogue References | TH 133 ; ČW 117 (as "Evening Reverie") |
|---|---|
| Date | September–October 1873 |
| Key | G minor |
| Tempo/Section Listing | Andante espressivo (G minor, 82 bars) |
| Instrumentation | Piano (solo) |
| Autograph Location | Moscow: Glinka State Central Museum of Musical Culture (ф. 88, No. 111) |
| First Publication | Moscow: P. Jurgenson, 1874 |
| Average Duration | 4 minutes |
| Dedication | Nikolai Dmitrievich Kondrat'ev (1832–1887) |
| External Links | Internet Music Score Library
Project
 (downloadable score) |
No. 2. Scherzo humoristique (Юмористическое скерцо)
| Catalogue References | TH 133 ; ČW 118 (as "Humorous Scherzo") |
|---|---|
| Date | September–October 1873 |
| Key | D major |
| Tempo/Section Listing | Allegro vivacissimo (D major, 316 bars) |
| Instrumentation | Piano (solo) |
| Autograph Location | Moscow: Glinka State Central Museum of Musical Culture (ф. 88, No. 111) |
| First Publication | Moscow: P. Jurgenson, 1874 |
| Average Duration | 4 minutes |
| Dedication | Vera Viktorovna Timanova (1855–1942) |
| External Links | Internet Music Score Library
Project
(downloadable score) |
No. 3. Feuillet d'album (Листок из альбом)
| Catalogue References | TH 133 ; ČW 119 |
|---|---|
| Date | September–October 1873 |
| Key | D major |
| Tempo/Section Listing | Allegretto semplice (D major, 66 bars) |
| Instrumentation | Piano (solo) |
| Autograph Location | Moscow: Glinka State Central Museum of Musical Culture (ф. 88, No. 111) |
| First Publication | Moscow: P. Jurgenson, 1874 |
| Average Duration | 2 minutes |
| Dedication | Anna Konstantinovna Avramova (1848–1918) |
| External Links | Internet Music Score Library
Project
(downloadable score) |
No. 4. Nocturne (Ноктюрн)
| Catalogue References | TH 133 ; ČW 120 |
|---|---|
| Date | September–October 1873 |
| Key | C♯ minor |
| Tempo/Section Listing | Andante sentimentale (C♯ minor, 66 bars) |
| Instrumentation | Piano (solo) |
| Autograph Location | Moscow: Glinka State Central Museum of Musical Culture (ф. 88, No. 111) |
| First Publication | Moscow: P. Jurgenson, 1874 |
| Average Duration | 4 minutes |
| Dedication | Monika Terminskaia |
| Note | Also arranged for cello with orchestra by Tchaikovsky in 1888 (see TH 64) |
| External Links | Internet Music Score Library
Project
(downloadable score) |
No. 5. Capriccioso (Каприччиозо)
| Catalogue References | TH 133 ; ČW 121 |
|---|---|
| Date | September–October 1873 |
| Key | B♭ major |
| Tempo/Section Listing | Allegretto semplice (B♭ major, 150 bars) |
| Instrumentation | Piano (solo) |
| Autograph Location | Moscow: Glinka State Central Museum of Musical Culture (ф. 88, No. 111) |
| First Publication | Moscow: P. Jurgenson, 1874 |
| Average Duration | 4 minutes |
| Dedication | Eduard Langer (1835–1905) |
| External Links | Internet Music Score Library
Project
(downloadable score) |
No. 6. Thème original et variations (Тема и вариации)
| Catalogue References | TH 133 ; ČW 122 (as "Theme and Variations") |
|---|---|
| Date | September–October 1873 |
| Key | F major |
| Tempo/Section Listing | Andante con moro (F major, 341 bars) |
| Instrumentation | Piano (solo) |
| Autograph Location | Moscow: Glinka State Central Museum of Musical Culture (ф. 88, No. 111) |
| First Publication | Moscow: P. Jurgenson, 1874 |
| Average Duration | 11 minutes |
| Dedication | Herman Laroche (1845–1894) |
| External Links | Internet Music Score Library
Project
(downloadable score) |
History
Composed at the request of Petr Jurgenson [1], and completed 27 October/8 November 1873 in Moscow (according to the date on manuscript).
Rough sketches for two of the pieces—Nocturne (No. 4) and Capriccioso (No. 5)—are found in the same copybook as sketches for the opera Vakula the Smith (1874), the String Quartet No. 2 (1874), and the Six Pieces on a Single Theme (Op. 21) (autumn 1873). It is possible that some of the Op. 19 pieces were written during the summer of 1873 at Kamenka. In his diary entry for 11/23 July 1873 [2], Tchaikovsky noted down themes for a projected Symphony in B♭ major, which Tchaikovsky used in the Capriccioso (No. 5).
Some time later (around 1888), Tchaikovsky made an arrangement for cello with small orchestra of the Nocturne (No. 4) for Anatolii Brandukov, from a transcription for Wilhelm Fitzenhagen [3].
Each piece is dedicated to a different person: Evening Reverie (No. 1)—to Nikolai Kondat'ev; Scherzo humoristique (No. 2)—to Vera Timanova; Album Leaf (No. 3)— to Anna Avramova; Nocturne (No. 4)—to Monika Terminskaia; Capriccioso (No. 5)—to Eduard Langer; Thème original et variations (No. 6)—to Herman Laroche.
The piece Rêverie du soir was performed for the first time by Nikolai Rubinstein in the presence of the author on 22 February/6 March 1874, and the Thème original et variations by Hans von Bülow in early/mid April 1874 [4].
Published by Petr Jurgenson in January 1874 as separate numbers, and in May 1874 as a single volume.
From:
Музыкальное наследие Чайковского (1958), pp. 398–399
English text copyright © 2006 Brett Langston
Notes:
- See letter 326 to Vasilii Bessel, 28 November/10 December 1873 [back]
- Дневники П. И. Чайковского (1923), p. 3 [back]
- The autograph was discovered in Anatolii Brandukov's archives after his death, and transferred to the Klin House-Museum Archive. In the autograph the cello part is written in Brandukov’s hand [back]
- See letter from Hans von Bülow to Louise von Weltz, published in Marie von Bülow, Hans von Bülows Leben. dargestellt aus seinen Breifen. 2. Aufl. (Leipzig. 1921), p. 271 (letter from Kharkov to Louise von Weltz) [back]