Tchaikovsky
Oct. 17, 2023
Between December 1875 and November 1876, Tchaikovsky had a short piano piece published each month accompanied by a short poem. These became “The Seasons,” a collection of works that takes the listener throughout a year, including a cozy fireside scene in January, music evoking a May evening, and the October harvest season, just to name a few. His entry for April is accompanied by a beautiful poem by Russian poet Apollon Maykov, which reads:
“The blue, pure snowdrop-flower,
and near it the last snowdrops.
The last tears over past griefs,
and first dreams of another happiness.”
We’ll hear Katheryn Chen’s performance of Tchaikovsky’s “April – Snowdrop,” on an All-Tchaikovsky Arizona Encore. The program also features a performance of the Serenade for Strings with the Arizona Musicfest Festival Orchestra, a work which Tchaikovsky felt “came from the heart,” and piano music inspired by an Eastern Slavic folk style.
Featured in this episode:
I. Pezzo in forma di sonatina: Andante non troppo – Allegro moderato
II. Valse: Moderato – Tempo di valse
III. I gie: Larghetto elegiac
IV. Finale (Tema russo): Andante – Allegro con spirito
Tchaikovsky - Dumka in C Minor, Op. 59 - Christie Solomon, piano
Tchaikovsky – The Seasons, Op.37 – Katheryn Chan, piano
IV. April: Snowdrop
Tchaikovsky - Waltz of the Flowers - Nathan Lam and Rachel Dai, piano