Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Profile

Carolyn and I have appreciated the work of Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, who is best known for his emotionally expressive and richly orchestrated compositions, including some of the most iconic works in classical music — such as The Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, and Swan Lake.

Tchaikovsky composed renowned symphonies, operas, and concertos. His music blends Western European forms with Russian folk elements, making him one of music history’s most beloved and influential composers.

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was born in Votkinsk, which is in the Udmurt Republic of Russia, in 1840. He grew up in a loving, middle-class family. His father was an engineer who held a government position overseeing mining operations in various regions of Russia. His mother came from a family of French and Russian descent and was primarily a homemaker.

While neither parent was directly involved in music, both supported and recognized their son’s early talent, particularly his mother, who influenced his love for music by playing the piano at home. Tchaikovsky developed a deep attachment to his mother, whose influence profoundly shaped his emotional life.

From an early age, Tchaikovsky showed a strong emotional sensitivity and a rich imagination and was known to be shy and somewhat introverted. He was described as a thoughtful and intelligent child with a vivid inner world, and he had a deep connection to music. He began taking formal piano lessons when he was around four or five years old. Tchaikovsky displayed an extraordinary gift for music and quickly demonstrated exceptional skill.

In 1848, Tchaikovsky’s family moved to Moscow and then to St. Petersburg due to his father’s job. In 1850, when Tchaikovsky was ten, he was sent to the Imperial School of Jurisprudence in St. Petersburg, a prestigious school that trained boys for civil service. This period marked the beginning of his formal education away from home, which was emotionally difficult for him, especially due to his separation from his mother.

While Tchaikovsky continued his education, preparing for a civil service career, his passion for music persisted, though it was not his main focus. In 1854, his mother died of cholera, and this deeply affected him. Despite his grief, he completed his studies and graduated in 1859.

After graduating, Tchaikovsky briefly worked in the Ministry of Justice but soon realized his deep dissatisfaction with the legal profession. In 1862, he enrolled at the newly established St. Petersburg Conservatory, where he studied music under prominent composers. During this period, Tchaikovsky refined his musical skills, composing his earliest works, and by 1865, he graduated from the conservatory, marking the beginning of his full-time dedication to composing.

In 1866, Tchaikovsky moved to Moscow to become a professor at the Moscow Conservatory. During this time, he composed some of his first major works, including his First Symphony and Romeo and Juliet, which started to gain him recognition. Tchaikovsky struggled with bouts of depression and personal turmoil, but his creativity thrived, culminating in the composition of his Opera The Oprichnik in 1870, and the successful premiere of his Second Symphony in 1872.

In 1874, Tchaikovsky’s opera Vakula the Smith premiered. A year later his Piano Concerto No. 1 was first performed, and this became one of his most famous works. During this period, Tchaikovsky composed some of his greatest works, including his Fourth Symphony in 1877, and the opera Eugene Onegin two years later.

This period in Tchaikovsky’s life was also marked by personal turmoil, due to an emotionally painful, short-lived marriage that led to an emotional breakdown. Tchaikovsky found solace in a relationship with his benefactor, Nadezhda von Meck, who supported him financially and emotionally, allowing him to focus entirely on composing.

During this tumultuous period, when Tchaikovsky was deeply unhappy and overwhelmed by the emotional strain, he reportedly walked into the icy waters of the Moscow River in an attempt to catch a life-threatening illness, hoping to escape his troubles. However, he quickly abandoned the idea, returning home soaked but unharmed. This episode reflects the intense emotional struggles Tchaikovsky faced during his life, especially around the time of his ill-fated marriage, which contributed to his creative output, including the composition of his Fourth Symphony.

Tchaikovsky had a complex and often conflicted spiritual perspective. Although raised in the Russian Orthodox Church, his relationship with religion was marked by doubt and inner turmoil. He struggled with feelings of guilt and existential questions, particularly regarding his sexuality and the nature of human suffering, which often influenced the emotional depth of his music.

Despite these conflicts, Tchaikovsky found solace in the beauty of nature, art, and music, which he sometimes saw as expressions of the divine. His compositions, filled with emotional intensity, reflect his spiritual quest, capturing both the anguish and transcendence of the human experience.

In 1880, Tchaikovsky composed the 1812 Overture, one of his most popular and enduring works, as well as the Serenade for Strings. By this time, Tchaikovsky was an internationally recognized composer, and in 1884, he received the Order of St. Vladimir from Tsar Alexander III, which elevated his social status. During this period, Tchaikovsky continued composing major works, including his Manfred Symphony in 1885, while also conducting his music in Russia and abroad.

In 1887, Tchaikovsky began conducting his works across Europe, further elevating his reputation. During this period, he composed some of his most acclaimed operas and ballets, including The Queen of Spades and The Sleeping Beauty in 1890. In 1891, Tchaikovsky embarked on a successful tour of the United States, conducting at the opening of Carnegie Hall. His productivity remained high, and he continued to receive widespread acclaim.

In the last year of his life, Tchaikovsky composed one of his most famous and deeply emotional works, the Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Pathétique.” The symphony premiered just nine days before his sudden death. Though initially met with mixed reviews, it later became one of his most celebrated compositions. Tchaikovsky died in 1893, at the age of 53, in Saint Petersburg, under mysterious circumstances — officially from cholera, though some speculate it may have been suicide.

Tchaikovsky’s legacy is one of profound influence and emotional depth in classical music. He is celebrated for his ability to blend Western European musical traditions with Russian folk elements, creating works that are both technically masterful and deeply expressive. His ballets, symphonies, concertos, and operas remain some of the most beloved and frequently performed pieces in the classical repertoire. Tchaikovsky’s music has resonated with audiences for its emotional power, vivid orchestration, and universal appeal, securing his place as one of the greatest composers in history.

Some of the quotes that Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky is known for include:

Truly there would be reason to go mad were it not for music.

Don’t think that I imagine I’ll become a great artist. It’s simply that I want to do that to which I am drawn. Whether I shall be a famous composer or an impoverished teacher, I shall still think I have done the right thing, and I shall have no painful right to grumble at Fate or at people.

Inspiration is a guest that does not willingly visit the lazy.

Do not believe those who try to persuade you that composition is only a cold exercise of the intellect. The only music capable of moving and touching us is that which flows from the depths of a composer’s soul when he is stirred by inspiration.

Life is beautiful in spite of everything! There are many thorns, but the roses are there too.

Music is indeed the most beautiful of all Heaven’s gifts to humanity wandering in the darkness. Alone it calms, enlightens, and stills our souls. It is not the straw to which the drowning man clings; but a true friend, refuge, and comforter, for whose sake life is worth living.

The creative process is like music which takes root with extraordinary force and rapidity.

It is already a great thing if the main ideas and general outline of a work come without any racking of brains, as the result of that supernatural and inexplicable force we call inspiration.

by David Jay Brown

Carolyn and I have appreciated the work of singer, songwriter, and guitarist Roy Orbison, best known for his distinctive, operatic voice and emotionally evocative ballads, which include such hit songs as Oh, Pretty Woman and Blue Bayou. Orbison received many honors for his exceptional work, including multiple Grammy Awards, and an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Roy Kelton Orbison was born in 1936 in Vernon, Texas. He was the second of three sons. Orbison’s father was an oil-field driller and auto mechanic, who also worked in defense building B-24 Liberator bombers during WWII. His mother enjoyed painting and writing poetry. As a child, Orbison had eyesight problems and he started wearing thick glasses at four years old.

In 1942, on Orbison’s sixth birthday, his parents gave him a guitar, and his father and older brother taught him how to play it. Orbison’s father showed him the chords to “You Are My Sunshine,” and he learned these first songs by the time he was seven. Within a year, music became the focus of Orbison’s life, and he won a local talent show when he was eight years old. At the age of 9, Orbison won a contest on radio station KVWC, which further led to his own radio show where he sang every week.

Around this time, Orbison’s family moved to Fort Worth, Texas. Orbison said that a formative experience in his childhood was the regular singing sessions that he attended at the nearby military base in Fort Worth where, as a young boy, Orbison would perform for the soldiers stationed there. These soldiers, who were intensely emotional because they were about to be sent to the front lines of World War II, were deeply moved by Orbison’s music. This experience profoundly influenced Orbison’s understanding of the emotional power of music and shaped his future songwriting and performing style.

As a youth Orbison’s primary musical influence came from listening to country and western swing music. In 1949, when Orbison was thirteen years old, he began singing in a rockabilly band called The Wink Westerners. Rockabilly is an early style of rock and roll music, that blends the sound of Western musical styles such as country with that of rhythm and blues.

In 1954, after graduating from high school, Orbison enrolled at North Texas State College in Denton. Orbison planned to study geology there to secure work in the oil fields if his music didn’t pay well enough. However, Orbison became bored with the coursework during his first year and preferred to play music with his fellow students, so he dropped out of college to pursue a music career.

Around this time, Orbison began performing at a local radio show called The Louisiana Hayride, which served as a platform for many aspiring musicians. It was here that Orbison met singer Johnny Cash, as they were both performing on the show. Cash liked Orbison’s music, and he arranged for a meeting between Orbison and Sun Records label founder Sam Phillips.

In 1956, Orbison signed a recording contract with Sun Records, after impressing Phillips with his songwriting talent and unique voice. This was a pivotal moment in Orbison’s life, as it was where he met and began working with other legendary figures in rock music, like Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis Presley. This experience not only exposed Orbison to the burgeoning rockabilly scene but also helped him refine his unique style, ultimately leading to his breakthrough hits and lasting influence on the music industry.

In 1960, Orbison moved to Nashville, Tennessee, to pursue his music career more intensely and to be closer to the heart of the country’s music industry. In 1962, Orbison first met Bob Dylan and they formed a lifelong bond. Orbison switched his recording contract to Monument Records, and between 1960 and 1966, twenty-two of Orbison’s single songs reached the Billboard Top 40. Orbison wrote or co-wrote almost all of his own top 10 hits, including Only the Lonely (Know the Way I Feel), Crying, and Running Scared. These songs were primarily about themes of love, heartache, and longing, characterized by his powerful, emotive vocals and dramatic, orchestral arrangements.

For a song to reach the Billboard Top 40 means that it has achieved significant popularity and sales, ranking within the top 40 positions on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart. This chart is a widely recognized industry standard for measuring the success of singles in the United States, based on factors such as radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. Reaching the Top 40 is a notable accomplishment, indicating that the song is among the most popular and frequently played tracks in the country at that time.

At the height of his success, Orbison faced several personal tragedies that profoundly affected his life and career. In 1966, Orbison’s wife died in a motorcycle accident, and in 1968, a house fire claimed the lives of his two eldest sons. After these losses, Orbison experienced a quieter period in his career, although he continued touring and recording.

Despite these hardships, Orbison maintained a loyal fanbase and collaborated with various artists. He also made several television appearances and released albums that kept his distinctive voice and style in the public eye. Despite these devastating losses, Orbison persevered in his career, channeling his grief into his music and ultimately achieving a remarkable comeback years later.

In 1987, Orbison was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.

In 1988, Orbison co-founded The Traveling Wilburys, a band with George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, and Jeff Lynne. Often referred to as a “supergroup,” due to its mega-star members, The Traveling Wilburys achieved significant commercial success and critical acclaim with their blend of rock and folk music, which was characterized by its collaborative spirit and hit songs like Handle with Care and End of the Line. Their debut album in 1988 placed Orbison in the Billboard Top Ten for the first time since 1964.

Orbison also recorded a new solo album, “Mystery Girl,” around this time, which is often considered to be his finest work in decades. Tragically, Orbison died of a heart attack that year in Hendersonville, Tennessee, at the age of 52. This was just a few weeks after the release of The Traveling Wilburys debut album. Mystery Girl was released posthumously in 1989, and it featured the hit single You Got It, which remained in the Billboard Top Ten for 18 weeks.

Orbison is remembered for his distinctive style, incredible vocal range, and carefully crafted ballads of loneliness, heartache, romantic yearning, and despair.

In 1989, Orbison was inducted into The National Academy of Popular Music Songwriters Hall of Fame, and the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2014. He received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and five other Grammy Awards. Rolling Stone magazine placed Orbison at number 37 on its list of the Greatest Artists of All Time, and number 13 on its list of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time. In 2002, Billboard magazine listed him at number 74 on its list of the Top 600 Recording Artists.

Some of the quotes that Roy Orbison is known for include:

I close my eyes, then I drift away, into the magic night I softly say. A silent prayer, like dreamers do, then I fall asleep to dream my dreams of you.”

If you have faith, then your whole life is put in a new perspective. You get to work but enjoy the work at the same time. If you grow spiritually, you do what’s in front of you and let the results speak for themselves.

To be a songwriter-singer means the songs come from deep within, and you treat them as an artist, with that much respect. I couldn’t hardly cheat myself.

You wiggle to the left, you wiggle to the right, you do the Ooby Dooby with all your might.

My voice is a gift. My talent is a gift. The life process is a gift. The opportunity for the journey is a gift.

You set out to whip the world, and then when you get beat up a little bit… You turn your will over to God.

I’ve really learned a lot, really learned a lot, love is like a stove, burns you when it’s hot.

I may be a living legend, but that sure don’t help when I’ve got to change a flat tire.

by David Jay Brown

Carolyn and I have appreciated the work of British musician George Harrison, who achieved international fame as a singer, songwriter, and lead guitarist for the Beatles. Harrison helped to widen the scope of popular music by embracing Indian culture and incorporating their instrumentation and spirituality.

George Harrison was born in Liverpool, England in 1943. He was the youngest of four children (and years later, he was the youngest of the four Beatles). His father was a bus conductor and a steward in the merchant navy. Harrison’s mother was a grocery shop assistant, and an enthusiastic music fan, who was known among her friends for her loud singing voice.

While Harrison was still in his mother’s womb, his mom used to listen to Indian music. Harrison’s biographer Joshua Greene wrote, “Every Sunday she tuned in to mystical sounds evoked by sitars and tablas, hoping that the exotic music would bring peace and calm to the baby in the womb.” This seemed to have a profound effect, as Harrison sought to incorporate this type of music into his own years later.

In 1948, at age five, Harrison attended primary school in Liverpool, and from 1954 to 1959 he attended high school there. Harrison began playing the guitar in high school, where he first met Paul McCartney, they became good friends because of their shared interest in music. Harrison extremely disliked his experience in school and dropped out at the age of 16.

Around this time, Paul McCartney invited Harrison to join his rock band the Quarrymen, which he had recently formed with his friend John Lennon. The group underwent several name and member changes before becoming The Beatles and settling on Harrison as the lead guitarist, Lennon as vocalist and rhythm guitarist, McCartney as vocalist and bass guitarist, and Ringo Star as the drummer.

The Beatles, of course, became one of the most influential and successful bands in popular music, achieving countless accolades, including 20 number-one singles, 19 number-one albums, and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. They revolutionized music with innovative sound, lyrics, and cultural impact, leaving a legacy that inspires generations of music lovers. Some popular songs that Harrison contributed as one of the Beatles include While My Guitar Gently Weeps, Here Comes the Sun, and Something.

In 1965, Harrison studied the sitar, a stringed instrument from India, with musician Ravi Shankar, and he incorporated this new skill into his music with the song Norwegian Wood. Harrison’s interest in Indian culture grew, and in 1968, he and the other Beatles traveled to India to study transcendental meditation with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Although this trip to India influenced dozens of subsequent Beatles songs, Harrison was the only member of the group to adopt these spiritual practices as a part of his life.

Harrison deeply explored Hindu spirituality, particularly Krishna Consciousness, which significantly influenced his life and music. Krishna Consciousness, also known as Bhakti Yoga, is a spiritual movement and philosophy that emphasizes devotion, love, and service to Krishna, the Supreme Being, as a path to achieve spiritual growth, self-realization, and union with the divine. Harrison incorporated Eastern philosophical themes and spiritual sentiments into his songs, such as “My Sweet Lord” and “The Inner Light,” reflecting his quest for spiritual growth and self-realization.

Later in 1968, Harrison released his first solo work with the soundtrack to the British experimental film Wonderwall. Then he released several best-selling singles and albums as a solo performer. In 1970, the Beatles broke up, and Harrison released his highly successful album All Things Must Pass. In 1971, Harrison staged two concerts with Ravi Shankar at Madison Square Garden in New York City to raise money to help fight starvation in Bangladesh. The music from these two concerts was released on a triple album set that year called The Concert for Bangladesh, which was certified gold in 1972 with over five million copies sold.

In 1973, Harrison released his album Living in the Material World, which included his popular song Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth). In 1979, Harrison entered the world of film production as a founder of Handmade Films. The British production company created several notable films, such as Monty Python’s Life of Brian in 1979, The Long Good Friday in 1980, Time Bandits in 1981, and Mona Lisa in 1986.

In 1987, Harrison released his album Cloud Nine, which included his hit song Got My Mind Set on You. In the late 1980s, Harrison was a frequent collaborator, and he often appeared on the albums of other musicians and former bandmates. He recorded and performed with Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, Tom Petty, and others as part of the Traveling Wilburys, a platinum-selling band that he co-founded in 1988. Harrison was also featured as a guest guitarist on songs by Badfinger, Ronnie Wood, and Billy Preston, and he collaborated on songs and music with Eric Clapton.

Harrison was also an avid gardener and landscape designer. He created the beautiful gardens at his estate, Friar Park, which included a large lake, waterfalls, and a variety of plants and trees. Friar Park is a Victorian neo-Gothic mansion in Henley-on-Thames, England, that was built in 1895. The site covers about 30 acres and features caves, grottoes, underground passages, a multitude of garden gnomes, and an Alpine rock garden with a scale model of the Matterhorn, a majestic mountain in the Alps. In 1981, Harrison released a book called Friar Park: A Personal Tour showcasing his gardens and sharing his passion for gardening.

Harrison was known for his quiet and peaceful nature. Speaking about himself, he said, “I’m really quite simple. I don’t want to be in the business full-time, because I’m a gardener. I plant flowers and watch them grow. I don’t go out to clubs. I don’t party. I stay at home and watch the river flow.”

Then, in 1999, Harrison was attacked by an armed schizophrenic intruder in his home at 3:30 in the morning, who was breaking windows and screaming. “I wrestled hand to hand with the face of evil for fifteen minutes,” said Harrison. During the attack, Harrison began loudly chanting, “Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna…” and he survived with over 40 stab wounds. Harrison’s statement following the attack was, “He wasn’t a burglar, and he certainly wasn’t auditioning for the Traveling Wilburys.”

Harrison died of cancer in 2001 in Los Angeles at the age of 58. In 2023, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Harrison number 31 in their list of greatest guitarists of all time. He is a two-time Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee— as a member of The Beatles in 1988, and posthumously for his solo career in 2004.

Some of the quotes that George Harrison is known for include:

I fell in love, not with anything or anybody in particular but with everything.

The only thing we really have to work at in this life is how to manifest love.

Heaven and hell is right now, right at this moment. You make it heaven or you make it hell by your actions.

Silence often says much more than trying to say what’s been said before.

If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there.

Death is just where your suit falls off and now you’re in your other suit. You can’t see it on this level, but it’s all right. Don’t worry.

When you’ve seen beyond yourself, then you may find, peace of mind is waiting there.

Life flows on within you and without you.

by David Jay Brown