Letter 2762a
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Russian text (original)
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English translation
Copyright © 2010 by
Luis Sundkvist
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9 сент[ября]
Клин, с. Майданово |
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9 September
Klin, village of Maidanovo
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| Дорогая Эмилия Карловна! |
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Dear Emiliia
Karlovna! |
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Узнав недавно, что Вы ни разу ещё не пели, я обеспокоился и вообразил, что Вы нездоровы, но
Корсов, с которым я на днях в
Москве встретился, сказал мне, что ему известно, что Вы больны не были. Однакож мне очень бы хотелось узнать, что Вы поделываете и почему до сих пор ещё не выступали на сцене. Из газет вижу, что в
«Кармен» поёт одна Славина. В чём дело? Соскучился без известий о Вас и прошу вкратце сообщить мне сведения о Вашем житье-бытье.
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On finding out recently that you have not sung in any performance so far I got worried and started to think you must be unwell, but
Korsov, whom I met in Moscow the other day, told me that he knew for certain that you hadn't been ill. Nevertheless, I would very much like to know how you are getting on and why you haven't appeared on the stage as yet. From the newspapers I have seen that only
Slavina is singing in Carmen. What's going on? Not having had any news from you, I am missing you and therefore kindly ask you to inform me in brief about your life.
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| Я теперь переехал в новое помещение, нанятое мной на долгий
срок*. Все мои разъехались, и одиночество моё полное. Симфонию свою я кончил и, не медля ни единого часа, принялся за оперу. Ах, какой молодец этот
Шпажинский и какого хорошего сотрудника послала мне в нём судьба! Первое действие, которое я покамест одно только имею, написано великолепно; жизни, движения бездна. Если никаких особенных препятствий не будет, я надеюсь к весне окончить все эскизы, посвятить будущий год инструментовке и отделке, так что к сезону
87–88-го года опера будет готова. Если очень торопиться и из кожи лезть, то даже к будущему сезону я мог бы приготовить, но мне не хочется слишком напрягать себя. А Вас, дорогая
Эмилия Карловна, прошу при всяком удобном случае замолвливать словечко о
«Черевичках» в репертуаре будущего сезона. На днях (т. е. 20 числа) я уезжаю в
Киевскую гувернию на серебряную свадьбу сестры моей и вернусь около 10-го ноября. Засим буду ожидать в
Майданове постановку в
Москве «Черевичек» и побываю непременно в
Петербурге, хотя бы для того, чтобы увидать Вас и на сцене и дома. Кланяйтесь от меня очень, очень Сергею Евграфовичу, а также милейшему
Эдуарду Францевичу и
Кондратьеву. |
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I have now moved into new lodgings[1] which I am renting for a long period*. All my relatives have left, and I am living in complete solitude. I have finished my symphony
[Manfred], and, without tarrying a single hour, I set about composing the opera
[The Enchantress]. Oh, what a fine fellow this
Shpazhinskii is, and what a splendid colleague Fate has accorded to me in his person! The first act, which is the only one I have so far, is written magnificently: it is teeming with life and action. As long as no particular obstacles crop up, I hope to have finished all the sketches by spring and I shall devote next year to the orchestration and polishing of the score, so that the opera should be ready for the 1887-88 season. If I were to make great haste and go all out, I might even be able to get it ready for next season, but I don't want to strain myself too much. As for you, dear
Emiliia Karlovna, I would like to ask you to put in a word for
Cherevichki at every convenient opportunity, with a view to getting this opera included in next season's repertoire. I will soon (that is, on the 20th) be going away to
Kiev province to attend my sister's silver wedding, and shall return around the 10th of
November [2]. After that I shall await at
Maidanovo the staging of Cherevichki in
Moscow and will definitely make a trip to
Petersburg, even if it is just for the sake of seeing you both on the stage and at home. Give my very, very warm regards to Sergei
Evgrafovich [3], as well as to dearest
Eduard Frantsevich
and to Kondrat'ev. |
| Целую Ваши ручки, Благодетельница. |
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I kiss your hands, Benefactress [4]. |
| Ваш П. Чайковский |
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Yours, P. Tchaikovsky |
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| *) Тут же, в Майданове. |
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*) Right here in Maidanovo. |
Notes:
- In September 1885 Tchaikovsky moved into the house of the proprietress of
Maidanovo, Mrs Novikova. The removal arrangements were taken care of by Tchaikovsky's servant
Aleksei Sofronov during his master's brief stay in
Moscow from 15/27 September to 19 September/1 October. Tchaikovsky would live in this new house until April 1888—note by Vasilii Kiselev in:
Чайковский на московской сцене (1940), p. 358
[back]
- Tchaikovsky set off from Maidanovo on 19/31 October 1885 and went to
Moscow, where he spent six days before travelling, via
Kharkov, to Kamenka in order to attend the celebrations for the silver wedding of
Aleksandra and Lev
Davydov, which took place on 6/18 November. He stayed on at Kamenka for a few more days, then on the way back stopped over in
Moscow for six days again and arrived back in
Maidanovo on 18/30 November 1885—note by Vasilii Kiselev in:
Чайковский на московской сцене (1940), p. 359
[back]
- Emiliia
Pavlovskaia's husband, Sergei Evgrafovich Pavlovskii (1846–1915), was also a singer (a baritone) and a member of the
Saint Petersburg Mariinskii Theatre's troupe
[back]
- From his earliest letters to Pavlovskaia Tchaikovsky had called her his "benefactress", thereby emphasizing how grateful he was to her for her enthusiastic attitude towards
Mazepa (in which she created the role of Mariia at the opera's première), as well as towards
Evgenii Onegin, in which she sang Tat'iana many times
[back]
This page was last updated on
16 February 2011 |