Letter 2649
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Russian text (original)
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English translation
Copyright © 2010 by Luis Sundkvist
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| Москва, 26 янв[аря] 1885 г. |
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Moscow, 26
January 1885 |
| Дорогая, милая Эмилия Карловна! |
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Dear, sweet Emiliia
Karlovna! |
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Спасибо Вам за хорошие известия. Радуюсь сочувствию
Государя к моей музыке и не менее того радуюсь его вниманию к
благодетельнице. Какая Вы добрая и хорошая, что не поленились написать мне. Если бы я мог
сердиться на Вас, то, пожалуй, слегка рассердился бы на ту часть Вашего письма, где Вы советуете мне ухаживать за разгневанным Мазепой и искать свидания с
Корсовым. Я умею быть благодарным, но никогда в жизни ни в ком не заискивал и заискивать не буду. Если
Корсов будет хорошо исполнять роль
Мазепы, то буду питать к нему в душе благодарность,
— а не будет, так Господь с ним.
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Thank you for the good news. I am glad at the Sovereign's sympathy for my music, and I am no less glad at the attention which he
showed to my benefactress [1]. How kind and good of you not to have been too lazy to write to me. If I were capable of being
angry with you, then I might perhaps get slightly angry about that part of your letter in which you advise me to make up to the infuriated Mazepa and to seek a meeting with
Korsov [2]. I
know how to be grateful, but never in my life have I sought to ingratiate myself with anyone, nor will I ever do so in future. If
Korsov performs the role of
Mazepa well, then I shall inwardly be grateful to him, but if he doesn't, good luck to him.
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| У меня идут деятельные переговоры с
Шпажинским насчёт либретто. Сейчас еду к нему для подробной беседы о будущей опере. Что Вы скажете насчёт
Чародейки? Я её не видел, но прочёл и нахожу, что для Вас там чудесная роль. |
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I am conducting some lively negotiations with Shpazhinskii regarding a libretto. I'm going off to see him now for a detailed discussion about a future opera. What would you say about
The Enchantress? I haven't seen the play, but I have read it and I think there is a wonderful role for you in it. |
| Кажется, я на днях кончу дело о найме или даже
покупке небольшого дома, в коём намерен провести остаток дней своих. Весьма может статься, что на время, пока мне будут его устраивать, я поеду в Крым. Если вздумаете, добрейшая моя благодетельница, написать мне,
адресуйте: Москва, музык[альный] магаз[ин]
Юргенсона.
А может быть, я скоро Вас увижу. |
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I think that very soon I shall have settled the matter of renting or even
buying a small house in which I intend to spend the rest of my
life [3]. It is very likely that while this house is being fixed up for me, I shall go to the Crimea. If you should wish to write to me, my most kind benefactress, please
use this address: Moscow,
Jurgenson's music shop.
But maybe I shall see you soon anyway. |
| Целую крепко, крепко Вашу ручку. Милому Серг[ею] Евгр[афовичу] мой дружеский привет. |
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I kiss your hand very warmly. Give my friendly greetings to dear
Sergei Evgrafovich [4]. |
| Ваш П. Чайковский |
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Yours, P. Tchaikovsky |
| [На 1-й стр.] Забыл № дома и адресую в театр. |
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[On p. 1:] I forgot your house number, so I am addressing this to the theatre. |
Notes:
- In a letter dated 9/21 January 1885 Emiliia Pavlovskaia had written to Tchaikovsky that
Alexander III had attended the previous evening's performance of
Evgenii Onegin at the
Saint Petersburg Bol'shoi
(Kamennyi) Theatre. She recounted how the tsar had invited her to his box after the end of Act I and had spoken to her in glowing terms about her performance as Tat'iana, as well as describing Tchaikovsky's music as "enchanting". Upon conclusion of the whole performance
Alexander had also asked the conductor,
Eduard Nápravník, to come up to his box.
Pavlovskaia's letter has been published in:
Чайковский на московской сцене (1940), p.
319–321. Tchaikovsky frequently refers to Pavlovskaia as "my benefactress" in his letters to her, partly because he was grateful to her for her enthusiastic attitude to
Mazepa, in which she had created the role of Mariia at the opera's premiere in
Moscow the previous year [back]
- In her letter of 9/21 January 1885 Pavlovskaia had mentioned that the bass
Bogomir Korsov (who had created the title-role in
Mazepa at the opera's premiere) had come to
Saint Petersburg and asked her to sing in
Mazepa with him. She had explained that another soprano, Mariia Andriianovna Sionitskaia (b. 1863), was due to sing in the next performance of the opera at the
Saint Petersburg Bol'shoi
(Kamennyi) Theatre, but suggested that Korsov ask the conductor,
Nápravník, who might be able to use his influence to change the cast
[back]
- For a while Tchaikovsky was considering buying a house near
Zvenigorod, just outside Moscow, but after inspecting the premises he changed his mind and decided instead to rent a house in the village of
Maidanovo, near Klin. He moved to this new house in February 1885
[back]
- Emiliia
Pavlovskaia's husband, Sergei Evgrafovich Pavlovskii
(1846–1915), was also a singer and a member of the Saint Petersburg Mariinskii Theatre's
troupe [back]
This page was last updated on
14 February 2011 |