Letter 4824
| Date | 11/23 December 1892 |
|---|---|
| Addressed to | William von Sachs |
| Where written | Saint Petersburg |
| Language | French |
| Autograph Location | New York (New York, USA): The Morgan Library and Museum (Morgan collection) |
| Publication | П. И. Чайковский. Полное собрание сочинений, том XVI-Б (1979), p. 204 |
Text and Translation
| French text (original) |
English translation By Ronald de Vet |
11/23 Déc[embre] 1892 St. Petersbourg Mon cher ami!
J'ai été tellement absorbé par la mise en scène de mes dernières oeuvres au Théâtre Impérial, — que volens-nolens il a fallu être inexact dans ma correspondence. Maintenant que tout est fini (j'ai obtenu un beau succès) je me sens si fatigué, si malade, si avide de repos, que c'est à peine si je puis Vous tracer ces quelques lignes. De ce pas je vais chez Jurgenson (frère) et remplirai Votre désir quant à la 5-me symphonie. Demain je pars pour l'étranger mais me sens incapable d'aller à Hamburg et Schwerin pour passer de nouveau par toutes les émotions d'un auteur d'opéra. Au lieu de cela je vais m'ensevelir pendant quelque temps dans quelque petit coin de l'Italie. Cependent j'espère pourvoir diriger un concert à Bruxelles dans quelque semaines, après quoi je ne sais où j'irai, mail il est certain que je ne rentrerai pas en Russie avant le grand carème. Je Vous conseillerai de remettre Votre excursion en Russie à plus tard, car au mois de Févrir il n'y a rien à voir ici et Vous n'entendrez aucune de mes oeuvres: les Théâtres étant fermés en carème, et c'est déjà la fin de la saison Théâtrale. Cette année-ci le Carème commence très tôt malheureusement. Je Vous embrasse de tout mon coeur. P. Tschaïkovsky |
11/23 December 1892 Saint Petersburg My dear friend!
I have been so absorbed by the production of my latest works at the Imperial Theatre [1], that nolens volens I had to be inaccurate in my correspondence. Now that everything is finished (I had a nice success) I feel so tired, so sick, so avid for rest, that I am hardly able to write to you these few lines. I will go straight-away to Jurgenson (the brother) [2] and fulfil your wish as to my Fifth Symphony. Tomorrow I will go abroad [3], but I feel incapable of going to Hamburg and Schwerin to go through all the emotions of an opera composer again [4]. Instead, I will hide for some time in some little corner of Italy [5]. Meanwhile I hope to be able to conduct a concert in Brussels in a few weeks [6], after which I don't know where I'll go, but it is certain that I will not return to Russia before Lent [7]. I would advise you to postpone your trip to Russia till later, because in February there is nothing to see here and you will hear none of my works: the theatres are closed during Lent, and it is already the end of the theatrical season. This year Lent begins very early [8], unfortunately. I embrace you with all my heart. P. Tchaikovsky |
Notes and References
- ↑ The opera Iolanta and the ballet The Nutcracker, which had premiered at the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg on 6/18 December.
- ↑ Osip Jurgenson had a music shop on No. 9, Bolshaia Morskaya Street, Saint Petersburg.
- ↑ To visit his old governess Fanny Dürbach in Montbéliard, via Berlin and Basel.
- ↑ Performances of Iolanta were scheduled in both cities (See Letter 4807, also to William von Sachs), but the production in Schwerin did not take place.
- ↑ Tchaikovsky did not in fact travel to Italy, and he would never see the country again. He visited Paris instead.
- ↑ From Montbéliard, Tchaikovsky travelled via Paris to Brussels to conduct a concert on 2/14 January 1893. The programme consisted of the Suite No. 3, the Piano Concerto No. 1 (soloist Franz Rummel), the suite from The Nutcracker, various piano pieces (played by Rummel), the Valse and Elegia from the Serenade for String Orchestra, and the overture The Year 1812. As it was a charity concert, Tchaikovsky refrained from accepting a fee, a gesture that was much appreciated.
- ↑ Apparently, Tchaikovsky changed his plans, because from Brussels he went back to Paris for six days and returned to Russia (Odessa) on 12/24 January 1893, well before Lent. It was during Tchaikovsky's stay of almost two weeks in Odessa that Nikolay Kuznetsov would execute the well-known painting of the composer.
- ↑ In 1893, Lent began on Monday 8 February [O.S.], as, according to the Julian calendar, Easter Sunday was on 28 March [O.S.]. This was the earliest Easter since 1885.
