Ravinia 2026 Issue 3

wedding to Antonina Milyukova on July 6—a disastrous union that ended in September. The emotional turmoil drove the composer to his sister’s estate in Kamenka for six weeks to work primarily on the Fourth Symphony. Following the dissolution of his marriage, Tchaikovsky traveled to Clarens, Switzerland, where he began the orchestration. Relocating next to Italy, he finished composing Act Two in Venice on No- vember 16 and Act Three in San Remo on Janu- ary 2. Tchaikovsky reported the completion of Eugene Onegin to the pianist, composer, and conductor Nikolay Rubinstein on January 30. The unconventional nature of his score, called “lyrical scenes in three acts and seven tableaux,” prompted Tchaikovsky to reject a professional production, worried that “Pushkin’s charming picture will be debased when it is transferred onto the stage, with all its routine, with all its senseless traditions.” Instead, he offered the first performance to students at the Moscow Con- servatory, who staged the premiere on March 17, 1879. Rubinstein conducted and Ivan Samarin directed. The professional premiere at Moscow’s Bolshoy Theater followed on January 11, 1881. Set in St. Petersburg and rural parts of western Russian, Eugene Onegin opens in the garden at the country estate of the Larin family, whose two daughters are the vibrant Olga and pensive bookworm Tatyana. Olga dreams of dancing among the peasants. The poet Vladimir Lensky, who arrives from the city with his friend Eugene Onegin, expresses feelings for his fiancée Olga. Tatyana instantly falls in love with the dashing Onegin, pondering love and marriage with her nursemaid, Filippyevna. The smitten girl pens a secret confession of love for Onegin. He gently reproaches her and promises nothing more than brotherly love. Tatyana is devastated. Act Two opens with a ball held in honor of Tatya- na’s name day. The guests dance to a waltz and prattle amongst themselves. Onegin flirts and dances with Olga, which enrages Lensky. The two men exchange harsh words, and Lensky Evgeny Onegin by Elena Samokysh-Sudkovskaya (1918) challenges Onegin to a duel. The next morning, Lensky reflects on his happy life before his adver- sary and onetime friend arrives. No longer fueled by anger but by pride and obligation, the men face off near the wooded banks of a stream. Shots are fired, and Lensky falls to the ground dead. Five years have passed when Onegin returns to St. Petersburg in Act Three. To the strains of a polonaise, Onegin attempts to forget the murder of his friend. He encounters Tatyana at a ball and discovers that she has married Prince Gremin. Finally, Onegin confesses his love for Tatyana. Despite her enduring affection, Tatya- na decides to honor her marriage vows to the prince and bids Onegin farewell forever. Violin Concerto in D major, op. 35 Scored for two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, timpani, strings, and solo violin “I neither know, nor can I understand why, de- spite such favorable circumstances, I am not disposed to work. Am I played out? I have to squeeze out of myself weak and worthless ideas and ponder every bar. But I shall achieve my goal, and I hope inspiration will dawn upon me.” At his retreat in Clarens, Switzerland, Tchaikovsky initiated a new compositional proj- ect in 1878 that, he hoped, would revive his be- leaguered spirits. The disillusionment caused by his short-lived, disastrous marriage to Antonina Milyukova still clouded his thoughts and dulled his imagination. Josef Kotek, a graduate of the Moscow Conser- vatory, arrived in Clarens, bringing a welcome breath of fresh air. This young violinist was resi- dent musician to the wealthy and eccentric Na- dezhda von Meck. Two years earlier, Kotek had convinced her to commission several short Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s cabinet card by Émile Reutlinger (1888) works for violin and orchestra fromTchaikovsky. Thrilled by the results, she offered Tchaikovsky a substantial annual salary, freeing him from teaching responsibilities at the conservatory. As Tchaikovsky’s patron and friend, the influential Meck helped expedite his divorce proceedings. Plans for a violin concerto quickly came into focus. By March 28, 1878, Tchaikovsky had com- pleted three movements. Dissatisfied with the slowmovement, he excised it and wrote another. (The original movement later became the “Méd- itation” in his Souvenir d’un lieu cher , op. 42.) He finished the orchestration on April 11. Tchaikovsky praised Kotek for his devotion to the new work: “How lovingly he busies him- self with my concerto! It goes without saying that I would have been able to do nothing with- out him. He plays it marvelously!” In the end, however, Tchaikovsky dedicated the concerto to Leopold Auer, who refused to perform it, claim- ing that it was “unviolinistic”—a situation far too reminiscent of the Piano Concerto No. 1 debacle with Nikolay Rubinstein. Another vio- linist, Adolf Brodsky, played the premiere. The Violin Concerto in D major, op. 35, displays an uncommon Classical balance in its first few measures. Orchestral tension builds, the vio- lin enters, and, after a pause, the full-blooded Romantic first theme is proclaimed. The solo violin introduces a deeply felt second theme. Following the development, there is a sparkling cadenza and a restatement of the main themes. Inspiration for the Canzonetta probably came from Tchaikovsky’s recent trip to Italy. The woodwind opening is succeeded by an embel- lished Italianate violin melody. A second idea weaves a continuous line. The initial violin and wind themes return in reverse order. Without pause, the wildly exuberant finale follows. An infectious folk-like spontaneity characterizes the violin refrain. Rustic drones accompany a sensuous second theme. The refrain, never far in the background, finally propels the concerto to its conclusion. Josef Kotek with Tchaikovsky RAVINIAMAGAZINE • AUGUST 3 – AUGUST 16 , 2026 100