Letter 2682

Tchaikovsky's Six Romances (Шесть романсов), Op. 6 (TH 93 ; ČW 211-216), were written in Moscow in November 1869.

Instrumentation

Scored for high voice (Nos. 1, 2, 3, 5), medium voice (No. 6) or baritone (No. 4), with piano accompaniment.

Movements and Duration

1. Do Not Believe, My Friend (Не верь, мой друг)
   Moderato assai (C-sharp minor, 63 bars).
2. Not a Word, O My Friend (Ни слова, о друг мой)
   Andante ma non troppo (E minor, 41 bars).
3. Bitterly and Sweetly (И больно, и сладко)
   Allegro vivo (A major, 81 bars).
4. A Tear Trembles (Слеза дрожит)
   Moderato assai (G-flat major, 80 bars).
5. Why? (Отчего?)
   Moderato (D major, 41 bars).
6. None but the Lonely Heart (Нет, только тот, кто знал)
   Andante non tanto (D-flat major, 54 bars).

Texts

1. Aleksey Tolstoy (1817–1875), from an untitled poem (1856):

Не верь, мой друг, не верь, когда в порыве горя. Я говорю, что разлюбил тебя — В отлива час не верь, не верь измене моря, Оно к земле воротится, любя. Уж я тоскую, прежней страсти полный, Свою свободу вновь тебе отдам — И уж бегут с обратным шумом волны Издалека к любимым берегам. Не верь, мой друг, не верь, Не верь, мой друг, не верь Когда в порыве горя. Я говорю, что разлюбил тебя — В отлива час не верь, не верь измене моря, Оно к земле воротится, любя.

2. Aleksey Pleshcheyev (1825–1893), from his poem Silence (Молчание) (1861) — a translation from the German poem Schweigen by Moritz Hartmann (1821–1872):

Ни слова, о друг мой, ни вздоха... Мы будем с тобой молчаливы... Ведь молча над камнем,   над камнем могильным Склоняются грустные ивы... И только, склонившись, читают, Как я в твоём сердце усталом, Что были дни ясного счастья... Что этого счастья — не стало! Что этого счастья — не стало! Ни слова, о друг мой, ни вздоха... Мы будем с тобой молчаливы... Ведь молча над камнем,   над камнем могильным Склоняются грустные ивы... Склоняются грустные ивы.

3. Yevdokiya Rostopchina (1812–1858), from her poem Words for Music (Слова для музыка) (1854):

И больно, и сладко, Когда при начале любви, То сердце забьётся украдкой, То в жилах течет лихорадка,   И больно, и сладко, То жар запылает в крови...   И больно, и сладко!   Пробьёт час свиданья, — Потупя предательный взор, В волненье, в томленье незнанья Боишься, желаешь признанья, —   И в муку свиданье! Начнёшь и прервёшь разговор...   И в муку свиданье!   Не вымолвишь слова... Немеешь, робеешь, дрожишь; Душа, проклиная оковы, Вся в речи излиться готова...   Нет силы, нет слова, И только глядишь и молчишь!   И сладко, и больно... И трепет безумный затих; И сердцу легко и раздольно... Слова полились бы так вольно,   И сладко, и больно... Но слушать уж некому их.   И сладко, и больно,   И сладко, и больно.

4. Aleksey Tolstoy, from an untitled poem (1858):

Слеза дрожит в твоём ревнивом взоре — О, не грусти, ты всё мне дорога! Но я любить могу лишь на просторе — Мою любовь, широкую, как море, Вместить не могут, нет! Вместить не могут жизни берега. О, не грусти, мой друг, земное минет горе, Пожди ещё, неволя недолга — В одну любовь мы все сольемся вскоре, В одну любовь, широкую, как море, Что не вместят, нет! Что не вместят земные берега.

5. Lev Mey (1822–1862), from his poem of the same name (1858) — a translation from the German of Warum sind denn die Rosen so blaß? (1822) by Heinrich Heine (1797–1856):

Отчего побледнела весной Пышноцветная роза сама? Отчего под зелёной травой Голубая фиалка нема? Отчего так печально звучит Песня птички, несясь в небеса? Отчего над лугами висит Погребальным покровом роса? Отчего в небе солнце с утра Холодно и темно, как зимой? Отчего и земля вся сыра И угрюмей могилы самой? Отчего я и сам все грустней И болезненней день ото дня? Отчего, о, скажи мне скорей, Ты, покинув, забыла меня?

6. Lev Mey, from his poem Harpist's Song (Песнь Арфиста) (1857) — a translation from the German of Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt, in book 4 of the novel Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre (1795) by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1748–1832);

Нет, только тот, кто знал   Свиданья, жажду, Поймёт, как я страдал   И как я стражду. Гляжу я вдаль... нет сил,   Тускнеет око... Ах, кто меня любил   И знал — далёко! Ах, только тот, кто знал   Свиданья жажду, Поймёт, как я страдал   И как я стражду. Поймёт, как я страдал   И как я стражду. Вся грудь горит... кто знал   Свиданья жажду, Поймёт, как я страдал   И как я стражду.

The texts of Bitterly and Sweetly (No. 3) and A Tear Trembles (No. 4) – were shortened by Tchaikovsky, and in the romances Do Not Believe, My Friend (No. 1), Bitterly and Sweetly (No. 3), A Tear Trembles (No 4) and Why? (No, 5), the composer made some alterations to the texts.

Composition

Until mid/late November 1869, Tchaikovsky was occupied with composition of the overture Romeo and Juliet, amongst his other work. On 15/27 November, he wrote to Aleksandra Davydova: "I have been terribly busy; hurrying to finish my new overture... besides which I have quite a few other jobs to do; as a result my nerves are under considerable strain, and I intend to take some time off, i.e. to do nothing apart from my classes" .

On 18/30 November 1869, in a letter to Modest Tchaikovsky, he expressed his dismay about the delay in staging of his opera Undina, writing: "Once my aversion to music passes, I'll start writing romances in order to earn a little money" . However, the next week he joked to Ivan Klimenko: "...had dear Dorimedontova not burst in, like some malevolent spirit fulfilling a curse, then one-sixth (of my six romances) would have been completed" .

In early/mid-December the composer wrote: '"My idleness (about which I wrote to you in a previous letter ) did not last long, and lasted only a short time and last week I wrote six romances, which are going to be printed" .

Some years later Tchaikovsky referred to Nos. 6 and 3 from this opus in his letters: "You know that out of all my romances only two are popular: None but the Lonely Heart and Bitterly and Sweetly ."

Performances

Bitterly and Sweetly (No. 3) was performed by Aleksandra Aleksandrova-Kochetova in Moscow on 14/26 March 1870, at the tenth symphony concert of the Russian Musical Society.

Why? (No. 5) was performed by Wilhelmina Raab on 3/15 January 1881 at the 7th RMS symphony concert in Saint Petersburg.

None but the Lonely Heart (No. 6) was apparently performed for the first time by Yelizaveta Lavrovskaya on 26 March/7 April 1870 in Moscow. Other early performances include:

• Meiningen, 2nd subscription concert, 8/20 February 1881, Madame Schauenberg

One unidentified song from this set was performed by Désirée Artôt-Padilla on 4/16 March 1880 at the 11th subscription concert in Breslau.

Publication

The romances were first published by Pyotr Jurgenson in March 1870 . Subsequently these romances, along with others, were frequently repeated, in their original keys, transpositions and arrangements (1873, 1876, 1884, etc.). At the end of 1890 they were published by Jurgenson in a collected edition of romances, reviewed by the author .

At the time of this reprinting, Tchaikovsky stipulated that all the songs "ought to be in their original keys. Transpositions may also be published, but the proofs must be thoroughly examined... and checked against my texts of the original romances. Many of the romances in question not only have to be corrected, but also to be amended. I want the new edition to be a completely flawless edition" .

In 1940, the Six Romances were included in volume 44 of Tchaikovsky's Complete Collected Works, edited by Ivan Shishov and Nikolay Shemanin.

Arrangements

In 1886, Raïssa Boulanger wrote to Tchaikovsky asking for a copy of the orchestrated version of Was I Not a Little Blade of Grass in the Field? (No. 7 of the Seven Romances, Op. 47), as well as to orchestrate for her the romance Bitterly and Sweetly (Op. 6, No. 3). She evidently intended to perform these romances in public. Tchaikovsky replied to Madame Boulanger on 1/13 December 1886 promising that he would fulfil both her requests .

A manuscript with an orchestration of Bitterly and Sweetly is preserved in the personal archive of Raïssa Boulanger's daughter Nadia at the Bibliothèque nationale in Paris . In his letter of 1/13 December 1886, Tchaikovsky wrote that he had commenced the orchestration and would despatch it shortly . As the manuscript in the Bibliothèque nationale is a fair copy by an unidentified hand, it remains doubtful whether the composer himself was the author of this arrangement or if he delegated the work to a student or colleague, but since the address on the back page of the score was written by Tchaikovsky, at the very least he was involved in its transmission to Boulanger . The orchestra employed (2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 2 horns and strings) is even smaller than in Tchaikovsky's other extant arrangements of his songs, although it resembles them stylistically . It is possible that the composer took into account Madame Boulanger's remark about the chamber orchestra she would have at her disposal in the musical society La Trompette . The programmes of La Trompette list a performance of Il est doux, il est bon ("en russe")' and N'étais je pas l'herbe dans la prairie on 12 March 1887 [N.S.] with "Madame Mychetskij-Boulanger" .

The romance Not a Word, O My Friend (No. 2) was orchestrated by Sergey Taneyev (for low voice with orchestra), and first published by Muzgiz in Moscow in 1957.

Autographs

Tchaikovsky's manuscript scores of all six romances are now preserved in the Russian National Museum of Music in Moscow (ф. 88, No. 130) [view].

Recordings

See: Discography

Dedications

Each of the Op. 6 romances has its own dedication: Do Not Believe, My Friend (No. 1) to Aleksandra Menshikova; Not a Word, O My Friend (No. 2) to Nikolay Kashkin; Bitterly and Sweetly (No. 3) to Aleksandra Aleksandrova-Kochetova; A Tear Trembles (No. 4) to Pyotr Jurgenson; Why? (No. 5) to Ivan Klimenko; None but the Lonely Heart (No. 6) to Anna Khvostova.

External Links

• Internet Music Score Library Project (IMSLP) — downloadable scores