Letter 73 - Revision history

Tony: Text replacement - "soiree" to "soirée" for consistency / Omitted "to" for clarity of meaning

2024-01-22T11:55:57Z

Text replacement - "soiree" to "soirée" for consistency / Omitted "to" for clarity of meaning

← Older revision		Revision as of 13:55, 22 January 2024
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	{{letterhead		{{letterhead
	\|Date=early/mid October 1865		\|Date=early/mid-October 1865
	\|To=[[Aleksandra Davydova]]		\|To=[[Aleksandra Davydova]]
	\|Place=[[Saint Petersburg]]		\|Place=[[Saint Petersburg]]
	\|Language=Russian		\|Language=Russian
	\|Autograph=[[Saint Petersburg]] (Russia): {{RUS-SPsc}} (ф. 834, ед. хр. 16, л. 24–25)		\|Autograph=[[Saint Petersburg]] (Russia): {{RUS-SPsc}} (ф. 834, ед. хр. 16, л. 24–25)
	\|Publication={{bib\|1940/210\|П. И. Чайковский. Письма к родным ; том 1}} (1940), p. 68–69 <br/>{{bib\|1955/37\|П. И. Чайковский. Письма к близким}} (1955), p. 19 (abridged)<br/>{{bib\|1959/50\|П. И. Чайковский. Полное собрание сочинений ; том V}} (1959), p. 85–86 <br/>{{bib\|1981/81\|Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Letters to his family. An autobiography}} (1981), p. 17–18 (English translation). }}		\|Publication={{bib\|1940/210\|П. И. Чайковский. Письма к родным ; том 1}} (1940), p. 68–69 <br/>{{bib\|1955/37\|П. И. Чайковский. Письма к близким}} (1955), p. 19 (abridged)<br/>{{bib\|1959/50\|П. И. Чайковский. Полное собрание сочинений ; том V}} (1959), p. 85–86 <br/>{{bib\|1981/81\|Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Letters to his family. An autobiography}} (1981), p. 17–18 (English translation) }}
	==Text and Translation==		==Text and Translation==
	{{Lettertext		{{Lettertext
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	{{right\|П. Чайковский}}		{{right\|П. Чайковский}}

	\|Translated text=My dear [[Sasha]]! I shall give you a brief summary of everything that has happened to me since I wrote to you last. First of all, although the disease of my eyes is not going in ''crescendo'', still I am quite a long way yet from a full recovery, and this is all because I just cannot bring myself to go and see a doctor. However, I have decided that on Monday I shall without fail go and see ''Blessich'' <ref name="note1"/>. I found my apartment so detestable that I finally decided to move to [[Aunt Liza]]'s place, where I have rented a very decent and cheap room, though it is unfortunately also very far from the Conservatory<ref name="note2"/>. Still, at the present moment that is beneficial for me, because, as you know, I suffer from haemorrhoids. The twins are going to sleep at my place; at least [[Aunt Liza]] has promised to arrange that. As you are already aware, your folks <ref name="note3"/> arrived here on ''Thursday and Sunday'', and I am in fact writing this letter to you from their place (I'm sitting in Alyosha's <ref name="note4"/> room, waiting for dinner). I am now working far less than was the case last year on account of my eyes, which in the evenings refuse to look at notes, letters, and other such work. On weekdays I dine most often at the ''Picciolis''{{'}} <ref name="note5"/>, as well as at [[Aunt Katya]]'s, [[Aunt Liza]]'s, and at [[Lizaveta Mikhaylovna]]'s, who continues to be incredibly attentive and obliging towards us <ref name="note6"/>. I don't know what I would do without her: she takes care of my linen, mends my greatcoats and overcoats, drags me from one set of lodgings to another, visits the twins etc. [[Modest]], poor fellow, was recently punished with detention lasting a whole Sunday, and very unfairly too. [[Anatoly]] has started having violin lessons, and I feel terribly ashamed, dear [[Sasha]], because this is causing you additional expenses. I will make both of them to write to you from the School. With regard to what you wrote to me about the memories left behind at [[Kamenka]], I refuse to believe this — it just won't go into my head — and if it were true, that is, something serious, then this would have a very unpleasant effect on me <ref name="note7"/>.		\|Translated text=My dear [[Sasha]]! I shall give you a brief summary of everything that has happened to me since I wrote to you last. First of all, although the disease of my eyes is not going in ''crescendo'', still I am quite a long way yet from a full recovery, and this is all because I just cannot bring myself to go and see a doctor. However, I have decided that on Monday I shall without fail go and see ''Blessich'' <ref name="note1"/>. I found my apartment so detestable that I finally decided to move to [[Aunt Liza]]'s place, where I have rented a very decent and cheap room, though it is unfortunately also very far from the Conservatory<ref name="note2"/>. Still, at the present moment that is beneficial for me, because, as you know, I suffer from haemorrhoids. The twins are going to sleep at my place; at least [[Aunt Liza]] has promised to arrange that. As you are already aware, your folks <ref name="note3"/> arrived here on ''Thursday and Sunday'', and I am in fact writing this letter to you from their place (I'm sitting in Alyosha's <ref name="note4"/> room, waiting for dinner). I am now working far less than was the case last year on account of my eyes, which in the evenings refuse to look at notes, letters and other such work. On weekdays I dine most often at the ''Picciolis''{{'}} <ref name="note5"/>, as well as at [[Aunt Katya]]'s, [[Aunt Liza]]'s and at [[Lizaveta Mikhaylovna]]'s, who continues to be incredibly attentive and obliging towards us <ref name="note6"/>. I don't know what I would do without her: she takes care of my linen, mends my greatcoats and overcoats, drags me from one set of lodgings to another, visits the twins, etc. [[Modest]], poor fellow, was recently punished with detention lasting a whole Sunday, and very unfairly too. [[Anatoly]] has started having violin lessons, and I feel terribly ashamed, dear [[Sasha]], because this is causing you additional expenses. I will make both of them write to you from the School. With regard to what you wrote to me about the memories left behind at [[Kamenka]], I refuse to believe this — it just won't go into my head — and if it were true, that is, something serious, then this would have a very unpleasant effect on me <ref name="note7"/>.

	In general, though, despite certain adversities, my mood is quite rosy — I think this is actually because the pride which is consuming me (this is my principal defect) has lately been flattered by some musical successes, and I can foresee other such successes in the near future <ref name="note8"/>. I kiss you very warmly, [[Sasha]], and likewise dear [[Levushka]] and the children.		In general, though, despite certain adversities, my mood is quite rosy — I think this is actually because the pride which is consuming me (this is my principal defect) has lately been flattered by some musical successes, and I can foresee other such successes in the near future <ref name="note8"/>. I kiss you very warmly, [[Sasha]], and likewise dear [[Levushka]] and the children.
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	<references>		<references>
	<ref name="note1">Tchaikovsky was suffering from a disease of the eyes which had apparently started while he was still at [[Kamenka]] that summer, and which made it difficult for him to read in the evenings. See [[Letter 71]] to his sister.</ref>		<ref name="note1">Tchaikovsky was suffering from a disease of the eyes which had apparently started while he was still at [[Kamenka]] that summer, and which made it difficult for him to read in the evenings. See [[Letter 71]] to his sister.</ref>
	<ref name="note2">Shortly after his arrival in [[Saint Petersburg]] from [[Kamenka]] in early/mid September 1865 Tchaikovsky began renting an apartment in Prince Aleksey Golitsyn's House on the Moika River Embankment. His landlady was a kind elderly German woman (see [[Letter 71]]), but he was very unhappy with the small size of the room. After about a month, therefore, he moved into one of the furnished rooms in the boarding house opened a few years earlier by his aunt [[Yelizaveta Schobert]] on 11 Panteleymonovskaya Street. Addresses provided in {{bib\|1997/94\|Жизнь Петра Ильича Чайковского ; том 1}} (1997), p. 182.</ref>		<ref name="note2">Shortly after his arrival in [[Saint Petersburg]] from [[Kamenka]] in early/mid-September 1865, Tchaikovsky began renting an apartment in Prince Aleksey Golitsyn's House on the Moika River Embankment. His landlady was a kind elderly German woman (see [[Letter 71]]), but he was very unhappy with the small size of the room. After about a month, therefore, he moved into one of the furnished rooms in the boarding house opened a few years earlier by his aunt [[Yelizaveta Schobert]] on 11 Panteleymonovskaya Street. Addresses provided in {{bib\|1997/94\|Жизнь Петра Ильича Чайковского ; том 1}} (1997), p. 182.</ref>
	<ref name="note3">i.e. [[Aleksandra Davydova\|Aleksandra]]'s in-laws, the Davydovs. Among those members of the Davydov family who were now living in [[Saint Petersburg]] (though they still spent the summer months at [[Kamenka]]) were Aleksandra Ivanova Davydova (née Potapova; 1802-1895), her daughters Yelizaveta (1823-1904), Aleksandra (1827-1917), Sofya (1832-1903), ~~and~~ [[Vera]] (1843-1923), and her son Aleksey (1846-1909). Tchaikovsky got on very well with the whole family.</ref>		<ref name="note3">i.e. [[Aleksandra Davydova\|Aleksandra]]'s in-laws, the Davydovs. Among those members of the Davydov family who were now living in [[Saint Petersburg]] (though they still spent the summer months at [[Kamenka]]) were Aleksandra Ivanova Davydova (née Potapova; 1802-1895), her daughters Yelizaveta (1823-1904), Aleksandra (1827-1917), Sofya (1832-1903), [[Vera]] (1843-1923) and her son Aleksey (1846-1909). Tchaikovsky got on very well with the whole family.</ref>
	<ref name="note4">Aleksey Vasilyevich Davydov (1846-1909), the younger brother of [[Lev Davydov]].</ref>		<ref name="note4">Aleksey Vasilyevich Davydov (1846-1909), the younger brother of [[Lev Davydov]].</ref>
	<ref name="note5">Luigi Piccioli (1812-1868) was an Italian singing-teacher who had settled in [[Saint Petersburg]] in the 1840s. As his wife was a friend of [[Yelizaveta Schobert]], he made the acquaintance of the Tchaikovsky family and, in particular, had become friends with the future composer when the latter was sixteen. For some years Tchaikovsky had been strongly influenced in his musical tastes by Piccioli and the latter's exclusive veneration of Italian belcanto opera — see {{bib\|1997/94\|Жизнь Петра Ильича Чайковского ; том 1}} (1997), p. 116-117, and Tchaikovsky's brief ''[[Autobiography]]'' (1889). Even after he had become more independent in his musical views Tchaikovsky still liked to visit the Picciolis' house where he also had a chance to practice his Italian.</ref>		<ref name="note5">Luigi Piccioli (1812-1868) was an Italian singing-teacher who had settled in [[Saint Petersburg]] in the 1840s. As his wife was a friend of [[Yelizaveta Schobert]], he made the acquaintance of the Tchaikovsky family and, in particular, had become friends with the future composer when the latter was sixteen. For some years Tchaikovsky had been strongly influenced in his musical tastes by Piccioli and the latter's exclusive veneration of Italian belcanto opera — see {{bib\|1997/94\|Жизнь Петра Ильича Чайковского ; том 1}} (1997), p. 116-117, and Tchaikovsky's brief ''[[Autobiography]]'' (1889). Even after he had become more independent in his musical views, Tchaikovsky still liked to visit the Picciolis' house where he also had a chance to practice his Italian.</ref>
	<ref name="note6">For financial reasons, the recently retired [[Ilya Tchaikovsky]] had decided to leave [[Saint Petersburg]] in the spring of 1865 and went to live with his eldest daughter [[Zinayda]] in the Urals for a year. Shortly before leaving the capital he had married for a third time, to [[Yelizaveta Tchaikovskaya\|Yelizaveta Mikhaylovna Aleksandrova]] (née Lipport), herself a widow. [[Yelizaveta Tchaikovskaya\|Yelizaveta]] stayed behind in [[Saint Petersburg]] with some relatives, and, as the above letter shows, she was a very good stepmother to the composer and his younger brothers [[Anatoly]] and [[Modest]], who were attending the School of Jurisprudence.</ref>		<ref name="note6">For financial reasons, the recently retired [[Ilya Tchaikovsky]] had decided to leave [[Saint Petersburg]] in the spring of 1865 and went to live with his eldest daughter [[Zinayda]] in the Urals for a year. Shortly before leaving the capital he had married for a third time, to [[Yelizaveta Tchaikovskaya\|Yelizaveta Mikhaylovna Aleksandrova]] (née Lipport), herself a widow. [[Yelizaveta Tchaikovskaya\|Yelizaveta]] stayed behind in [[Saint Petersburg]] with some relatives, and, as the above letter shows, she was a very good stepmother to the composer and his younger brothers [[Anatoly]] and [[Modest]], who were attending the School of Jurisprudence.</ref>
	<ref name="note7">This refers to the romantic feelings which [[Aleksandra Davydova\|Aleksandra]]'s sister-in-law, [[Vera Butakova\|Vera Davydova]], had conceived for Tchaikovsky over the last two years, and which she had evidently now confided to [[Aleksandra Davydova\|Aleksandra]]. Although he did not requite her feelings beyond the extent of friendship (though one that was based on a shared love of music), [[Vera Butakova\|Vera]]'s infatuation with Tchaikovsky continued even after her marriage, in 1871, to a much older man, Vice-Admiral Ivan Butakov (1822-1882) — see {{bib\|1993/186\|Tchaikovsky. The quest for the inner man}} (1993), p. 102-105, 435.</ref>		<ref name="note7">This refers to the romantic feelings which [[Aleksandra Davydova\|Aleksandra]]'s sister-in-law, [[Vera Butakova\|Vera Davydova]], had conceived for Tchaikovsky over the last two years, and which she had evidently now confided to [[Aleksandra Davydova\|Aleksandra]]. Although he did not requite her feelings beyond the extent of friendship (though one that was based on a shared love of music), [[Vera Butakova\|Vera]]'s infatuation with Tchaikovsky continued even after her marriage, in 1871, to a much older man, Vice-Admiral Ivan Butakov (1822-1882) — see {{bib\|1993/186\|Tchaikovsky. The quest for the inner man}} (1993), p. 102-105, 435.</ref>
	<ref name="note8">By the time of writing this letter Tchaikovsky had composed a [[String Quartet in B-flat major]], which would receive its first performance at a musical ~~soiree~~ for students at the [[Saint Petersburg]] Conservatory on 30 October/11 November 1865, and also an [[Overture in F major]], which would be performed for the first time by a conservatory orchestra conducted by Tchaikovsky himself, in a concert on 27 November/9 December 1865 in the hall of the Mikhaylovsky Palace in [[Saint Petersburg]]. Of the quartet, only one movement has survived (an Allegro), and the overture would soon afterwards be reworked by Tchaikovsky for large symphony orchestra — note by Vladimir Zhdanov in {{bib\|1940/210\|П. И. Чайковский. Письма к родным ; том 1}} (1940), p. 664.</ref>		<ref name="note8">By the time of writing this letter Tchaikovsky had composed a [[String Quartet in B-flat major]], which would receive its first performance at a musical soirée for students at the [[Saint Petersburg]] Conservatory on 30 October/11 November 1865, and also an [[Overture in F major]], which would be performed for the first time by a conservatory orchestra conducted by Tchaikovsky himself, in a concert on 27 November/9 December 1865 in the hall of the Mikhaylovsky Palace in [[Saint Petersburg]]. Of the quartet, only one movement has survived (an Allegro), and the overture would soon afterwards be reworked by Tchaikovsky for large symphony orchestra — note by Vladimir Zhdanov in {{bib\|1940/210\|П. И. Чайковский. Письма к родным ; том 1}} (1940), p. 664.</ref>
	</references>		</references>
	{{DEFAULTSORT:Letter 0073}}		{{DEFAULTSORT:Letter 0073}}

Brett: Text replacement - "Shobert" to "Schobert"

2023-08-28T12:36:56Z

Text replacement - "Shobert" to "Schobert"

← Older revision		Revision as of 14:36, 28 August 2023
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	<references>		<references>
	<ref name="note1">Tchaikovsky was suffering from a disease of the eyes which had apparently started while he was still at [[Kamenka]] that summer, and which made it difficult for him to read in the evenings. See [[Letter 71]] to his sister.</ref>		<ref name="note1">Tchaikovsky was suffering from a disease of the eyes which had apparently started while he was still at [[Kamenka]] that summer, and which made it difficult for him to read in the evenings. See [[Letter 71]] to his sister.</ref>
	<ref name="note2">Shortly after his arrival in [[Saint Petersburg]] from [[Kamenka]] in early/mid September 1865 Tchaikovsky began renting an apartment in Prince Aleksey Golitsyn's House on the Moika River Embankment. His landlady was a kind elderly German woman (see [[Letter 71]]), but he was very unhappy with the small size of the room. After about a month, therefore, he moved into one of the furnished rooms in the boarding house opened a few years earlier by his aunt [[Yelizaveta ~~Shobert~~]] on 11 Panteleymonovskaya Street. Addresses provided in {{bib\|1997/94\|Жизнь Петра Ильича Чайковского ; том 1}} (1997), p. 182.</ref>		<ref name="note2">Shortly after his arrival in [[Saint Petersburg]] from [[Kamenka]] in early/mid September 1865 Tchaikovsky began renting an apartment in Prince Aleksey Golitsyn's House on the Moika River Embankment. His landlady was a kind elderly German woman (see [[Letter 71]]), but he was very unhappy with the small size of the room. After about a month, therefore, he moved into one of the furnished rooms in the boarding house opened a few years earlier by his aunt [[Yelizaveta Schobert]] on 11 Panteleymonovskaya Street. Addresses provided in {{bib\|1997/94\|Жизнь Петра Ильича Чайковского ; том 1}} (1997), p. 182.</ref>
	<ref name="note3">i.e. [[Aleksandra Davydova\|Aleksandra]]'s in-laws, the Davydovs. Among those members of the Davydov family who were now living in [[Saint Petersburg]] (though they still spent the summer months at [[Kamenka]]) were Aleksandra Ivanova Davydova (née Potapova; 1802-1895), her daughters Yelizaveta (1823-1904), Aleksandra (1827-1917), Sofya (1832-1903), and [[Vera]] (1843-1923), and her son Aleksey (1846-1909). Tchaikovsky got on very well with the whole family.</ref>		<ref name="note3">i.e. [[Aleksandra Davydova\|Aleksandra]]'s in-laws, the Davydovs. Among those members of the Davydov family who were now living in [[Saint Petersburg]] (though they still spent the summer months at [[Kamenka]]) were Aleksandra Ivanova Davydova (née Potapova; 1802-1895), her daughters Yelizaveta (1823-1904), Aleksandra (1827-1917), Sofya (1832-1903), and [[Vera]] (1843-1923), and her son Aleksey (1846-1909). Tchaikovsky got on very well with the whole family.</ref>
	<ref name="note4">Aleksey Vasilyevich Davydov (1846-1909), the younger brother of [[Lev Davydov]].</ref>		<ref name="note4">Aleksey Vasilyevich Davydov (1846-1909), the younger brother of [[Lev Davydov]].</ref>
	<ref name="note5">Luigi Piccioli (1812-1868) was an Italian singing-teacher who had settled in [[Saint Petersburg]] in the 1840s. As his wife was a friend of [[Yelizaveta ~~Shobert~~]], he made the acquaintance of the Tchaikovsky family and, in particular, had become friends with the future composer when the latter was sixteen. For some years Tchaikovsky had been strongly influenced in his musical tastes by Piccioli and the latter's exclusive veneration of Italian belcanto opera — see {{bib\|1997/94\|Жизнь Петра Ильича Чайковского ; том 1}} (1997), p. 116-117, and Tchaikovsky's brief ''[[Autobiography]]'' (1889). Even after he had become more independent in his musical views Tchaikovsky still liked to visit the Picciolis' house where he also had a chance to practice his Italian.</ref>		<ref name="note5">Luigi Piccioli (1812-1868) was an Italian singing-teacher who had settled in [[Saint Petersburg]] in the 1840s. As his wife was a friend of [[Yelizaveta Schobert]], he made the acquaintance of the Tchaikovsky family and, in particular, had become friends with the future composer when the latter was sixteen. For some years Tchaikovsky had been strongly influenced in his musical tastes by Piccioli and the latter's exclusive veneration of Italian belcanto opera — see {{bib\|1997/94\|Жизнь Петра Ильича Чайковского ; том 1}} (1997), p. 116-117, and Tchaikovsky's brief ''[[Autobiography]]'' (1889). Even after he had become more independent in his musical views Tchaikovsky still liked to visit the Picciolis' house where he also had a chance to practice his Italian.</ref>
	<ref name="note6">For financial reasons, the recently retired [[Ilya Tchaikovsky]] had decided to leave [[Saint Petersburg]] in the spring of 1865 and went to live with his eldest daughter [[Zinayda]] in the Urals for a year. Shortly before leaving the capital he had married for a third time, to [[Yelizaveta Tchaikovskaya\|Yelizaveta Mikhaylovna Aleksandrova]] (née Lipport), herself a widow. [[Yelizaveta Tchaikovskaya\|Yelizaveta]] stayed behind in [[Saint Petersburg]] with some relatives, and, as the above letter shows, she was a very good stepmother to the composer and his younger brothers [[Anatoly]] and [[Modest]], who were attending the School of Jurisprudence.</ref>		<ref name="note6">For financial reasons, the recently retired [[Ilya Tchaikovsky]] had decided to leave [[Saint Petersburg]] in the spring of 1865 and went to live with his eldest daughter [[Zinayda]] in the Urals for a year. Shortly before leaving the capital he had married for a third time, to [[Yelizaveta Tchaikovskaya\|Yelizaveta Mikhaylovna Aleksandrova]] (née Lipport), herself a widow. [[Yelizaveta Tchaikovskaya\|Yelizaveta]] stayed behind in [[Saint Petersburg]] with some relatives, and, as the above letter shows, she was a very good stepmother to the composer and his younger brothers [[Anatoly]] and [[Modest]], who were attending the School of Jurisprudence.</ref>
	<ref name="note7">This refers to the romantic feelings which [[Aleksandra Davydova\|Aleksandra]]'s sister-in-law, [[Vera Butakova\|Vera Davydova]], had conceived for Tchaikovsky over the last two years, and which she had evidently now confided to [[Aleksandra Davydova\|Aleksandra]]. Although he did not requite her feelings beyond the extent of friendship (though one that was based on a shared love of music), [[Vera Butakova\|Vera]]'s infatuation with Tchaikovsky continued even after her marriage, in 1871, to a much older man, Vice-Admiral Ivan Butakov (1822-1882) — see {{bib\|1993/186\|Tchaikovsky. The quest for the inner man}} (1993), p. 102-105, 435.</ref>		<ref name="note7">This refers to the romantic feelings which [[Aleksandra Davydova\|Aleksandra]]'s sister-in-law, [[Vera Butakova\|Vera Davydova]], had conceived for Tchaikovsky over the last two years, and which she had evidently now confided to [[Aleksandra Davydova\|Aleksandra]]. Although he did not requite her feelings beyond the extent of friendship (though one that was based on a shared love of music), [[Vera Butakova\|Vera]]'s infatuation with Tchaikovsky continued even after her marriage, in 1871, to a much older man, Vice-Admiral Ivan Butakov (1822-1882) — see {{bib\|1993/186\|Tchaikovsky. The quest for the inner man}} (1993), p. 102-105, 435.</ref>

Brett: 1 revision imported

2022-07-12T12:47:42Z

1 revision imported

← Older revision	Revision as of 14:47, 12 July 2022
(No difference)

Brett at 19:34, 1 December 2019

2019-12-01T19:34:54Z

New page

{{letterhead
|Date=early/mid October 1865
|To=[[Aleksandra Davydova]]
|Place=[[Saint Petersburg]]
|Language=Russian
|Autograph=[[Saint Petersburg]] (Russia): {{RUS-SPsc}} (ф. 834, ед. хр. 16, л. 24–25)
|Publication={{bib|1940/210|П. И. Чайковский. Письма к родным ; том 1}} (1940), p. 68–69 <br/>{{bib|1955/37|П. И. Чайковский. Письма к близким}} (1955), p. 19 (abridged)<br/>{{bib|1959/50|П. И. Чайковский. Полное собрание сочинений ; том V}} (1959), p. 85–86 <br/>{{bib|1981/81|Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Letters to his family. An autobiography}} (1981), p. 17–18 (English translation). }}
==Text and Translation==
{{Lettertext
|Language=Russian
|Translator=Luis Sundkvist
|Original text=Милая моя Саша! Напишу тебе вкратце всё, что со мною произошло с тех пор, как я тебе не писал. Во-первых, болезнь глаз хотя и не идёт ''crescendo'', но и к выздоровлению не очень близко, всё оттого, что никак не могу собраться к какому-нибудь доктору; впрочем, в понедельник решил непременно идти к ''Блессичу''. Квартира моя была мне до того противна, что я решился переехать к тёте Лизе, у которой нанял весьма порядочную и дешёвую комнату, к сожалению, весьма далеко от Консерватории. Впрочем это для меня в настоящее время полезно, ибо, как тебе не безызвестно, я подвержен геморрою. Братья будут спать у меня, по крайней мере, тётя Лиза обещалась так устроить. О приезде ваших в ''четверг и воскресенье'' тебе уже известно, и это письмо я тебе пишу у них, сидя у Алёши в комнате перед обедом. Занимаюсь я теперь гораздо менее прошлого года, по причине глаз, которые вечером отказываются смотреть на ноты, буквы и тому подобную работу. По будням обедаю всего чаще у ''Пиччиоли'', также у тёти Кати, тёти Лизы и у Лизаветы Михайловны, которая продолжает быть с нами внимательной и услужливой до невероятной степени; я не знаю, что бы я без неё делал: она возится с моим бельём, зашивает шинели и пальто, перетаскивает меня с одной квартиры на другую, посещает братьев и т. д. Модест, бедный, был недавно на целое воскресенье наказан, и очень несправедливо. Анатолий начал брать уроки на скрипке, и мне ужасно совестно, милая Саша, что это причиняет тебе излишний расход. Я заставлю их обоих написать тебе из Училища. Насчёт того, что ты мне писала о воспоминаниях, оставленных в Каменке, я отказываюсь верить, это не лезет мне в голову, и если б было справедливо, т. е. серьёзно, то действовало бы на меня очень неприятным образом.

Вообще же, несмотря на некоторые невзгоды, расположение духа у меня довольно розовое, кажется, оттого собственно, что снедающее меня самолюбие (это мой главнейший недостаток) в последнее время было польщено несколькими музыкальными успехами и впереди я предвижу другие. Целую тебя, Саша, очень крепко, а также милого Лёвушку и детей.
{{right|П. Чайковский}}

|Translated text=My dear [[Sasha]]! I shall give you a brief summary of everything that has happened to me since I wrote to you last. First of all, although the disease of my eyes is not going in ''crescendo'', still I am quite a long way yet from a full recovery, and this is all because I just cannot bring myself to go and see a doctor. However, I have decided that on Monday I shall without fail go and see ''Blessich'' <ref name="note1"/>. I found my apartment so detestable that I finally decided to move to [[Aunt Liza]]'s place, where I have rented a very decent and cheap room, though it is unfortunately also very far from the Conservatory<ref name="note2"/>. Still, at the present moment that is beneficial for me, because, as you know, I suffer from haemorrhoids. The twins are going to sleep at my place; at least [[Aunt Liza]] has promised to arrange that. As you are already aware, your folks <ref name="note3"/> arrived here on ''Thursday and Sunday'', and I am in fact writing this letter to you from their place (I'm sitting in Alyosha's <ref name="note4"/> room, waiting for dinner). I am now working far less than was the case last year on account of my eyes, which in the evenings refuse to look at notes, letters, and other such work. On weekdays I dine most often at the ''Picciolis''{{'}} <ref name="note5"/>, as well as at [[Aunt Katya]]'s, [[Aunt Liza]]'s, and at [[Lizaveta Mikhaylovna]]'s, who continues to be incredibly attentive and obliging towards us <ref name="note6"/>. I don't know what I would do without her: she takes care of my linen, mends my greatcoats and overcoats, drags me from one set of lodgings to another, visits the twins etc. [[Modest]], poor fellow, was recently punished with detention lasting a whole Sunday, and very unfairly too. [[Anatoly]] has started having violin lessons, and I feel terribly ashamed, dear [[Sasha]], because this is causing you additional expenses. I will make both of them to write to you from the School. With regard to what you wrote to me about the memories left behind at [[Kamenka]], I refuse to believe this — it just won't go into my head — and if it were true, that is, something serious, then this would have a very unpleasant effect on me <ref name="note7"/>.

In general, though, despite certain adversities, my mood is quite rosy — I think this is actually because the pride which is consuming me (this is my principal defect) has lately been flattered by some musical successes, and I can foresee other such successes in the near future <ref name="note8"/>. I kiss you very warmly, [[Sasha]], and likewise dear [[Levushka]] and the children.
{{right|P. Tchaikovsky}}
}}
==Notes and References==
<references>
<ref name="note1">Tchaikovsky was suffering from a disease of the eyes which had apparently started while he was still at [[Kamenka]] that summer, and which made it difficult for him to read in the evenings. See [[Letter 71]] to his sister.</ref>
<ref name="note2">Shortly after his arrival in [[Saint Petersburg]] from [[Kamenka]] in early/mid September 1865 Tchaikovsky began renting an apartment in Prince Aleksey Golitsyn's House on the Moika River Embankment. His landlady was a kind elderly German woman (see [[Letter 71]]), but he was very unhappy with the small size of the room. After about a month, therefore, he moved into one of the furnished rooms in the boarding house opened a few years earlier by his aunt [[Yelizaveta Shobert]] on 11 Panteleymonovskaya Street. Addresses provided in {{bib|1997/94|Жизнь Петра Ильича Чайковского ; том 1}} (1997), p. 182.</ref>
<ref name="note3">i.e. [[Aleksandra Davydova|Aleksandra]]'s in-laws, the Davydovs. Among those members of the Davydov family who were now living in [[Saint Petersburg]] (though they still spent the summer months at [[Kamenka]]) were Aleksandra Ivanova Davydova (née Potapova; 1802-1895), her daughters Yelizaveta (1823-1904), Aleksandra (1827-1917), Sofya (1832-1903), and [[Vera]] (1843-1923), and her son Aleksey (1846-1909). Tchaikovsky got on very well with the whole family.</ref>
<ref name="note4">Aleksey Vasilyevich Davydov (1846-1909), the younger brother of [[Lev Davydov]].</ref>
<ref name="note5">Luigi Piccioli (1812-1868) was an Italian singing-teacher who had settled in [[Saint Petersburg]] in the 1840s. As his wife was a friend of [[Yelizaveta Shobert]], he made the acquaintance of the Tchaikovsky family and, in particular, had become friends with the future composer when the latter was sixteen. For some years Tchaikovsky had been strongly influenced in his musical tastes by Piccioli and the latter's exclusive veneration of Italian belcanto opera — see {{bib|1997/94|Жизнь Петра Ильича Чайковского ; том 1}} (1997), p. 116-117, and Tchaikovsky's brief ''[[Autobiography]]'' (1889). Even after he had become more independent in his musical views Tchaikovsky still liked to visit the Picciolis' house where he also had a chance to practice his Italian.</ref>
<ref name="note6">For financial reasons, the recently retired [[Ilya Tchaikovsky]] had decided to leave [[Saint Petersburg]] in the spring of 1865 and went to live with his eldest daughter [[Zinayda]] in the Urals for a year. Shortly before leaving the capital he had married for a third time, to [[Yelizaveta Tchaikovskaya|Yelizaveta Mikhaylovna Aleksandrova]] (née Lipport), herself a widow. [[Yelizaveta Tchaikovskaya|Yelizaveta]] stayed behind in [[Saint Petersburg]] with some relatives, and, as the above letter shows, she was a very good stepmother to the composer and his younger brothers [[Anatoly]] and [[Modest]], who were attending the School of Jurisprudence.</ref>
<ref name="note7">This refers to the romantic feelings which [[Aleksandra Davydova|Aleksandra]]'s sister-in-law, [[Vera Butakova|Vera Davydova]], had conceived for Tchaikovsky over the last two years, and which she had evidently now confided to [[Aleksandra Davydova|Aleksandra]]. Although he did not requite her feelings beyond the extent of friendship (though one that was based on a shared love of music), [[Vera Butakova|Vera]]'s infatuation with Tchaikovsky continued even after her marriage, in 1871, to a much older man, Vice-Admiral Ivan Butakov (1822-1882) — see {{bib|1993/186|Tchaikovsky. The quest for the inner man}} (1993), p. 102-105, 435.</ref>
<ref name="note8">By the time of writing this letter Tchaikovsky had composed a [[String Quartet in B-flat major]], which would receive its first performance at a musical soiree for students at the [[Saint Petersburg]] Conservatory on 30 October/11 November 1865, and also an [[Overture in F major]], which would be performed for the first time by a conservatory orchestra conducted by Tchaikovsky himself, in a concert on 27 November/9 December 1865 in the hall of the Mikhaylovsky Palace in [[Saint Petersburg]]. Of the quartet, only one movement has survived (an Allegro), and the overture would soon afterwards be reworked by Tchaikovsky for large symphony orchestra — note by Vladimir Zhdanov in {{bib|1940/210|П. И. Чайковский. Письма к родным ; том 1}} (1940), p. 664.</ref>
</references>
{{DEFAULTSORT:Letter 0073}}