Meet Tchaikovsky...

Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky was just five when he started learning the piano – in his small home-town in Russia. Most families like his had a piano but very few small boys could play it so well. Then he started writing music, too. Ideas for new music poured out of him, especially wonderful tunes. He wrote a lot of music for ballets as well as for big orchestras and small groups of instruments, such as string quartets (two violins, one viola, one cello). Pyotr was a sensitive man: he was upset if audiences at first didn't like his music, even though sometimes it is difficult to like new things. He had one particular fan, a rich lady called Nadezhda von Meck. She sent him money to help him but she made a strict rule: she and Pyotr must never meet. She knew what he looked like from seeing him play at concerts, but he saw only a photograph of her!

Pyotr died unexpectedly when he was 53. No one knows exactly why – perhaps he caught an illness. But his music became more and more popular...

Naxos Global Distribution Ltd :

Naxos Records is the world's leading classical music label as measured by the number of new recordings it releases and the depth and breadth of its catalogue. Naxos was founded in 1987 by Klaus Heymann, a German-born entrepreneur based in Hong Kong. Under his continuing stewardship, Naxos has developed from being known primarily as a budget label focusing on standard repertoire into a global music group comprising a raft of downloading and streaming platforms, a significant catalogue of multimedia products, a vast international logistics network, a recording engineering arm, a publications division, and a licensing department.

Music Tracks and Information:

TR 1 ( 00:03:24 ) The Nutcracker, Op. 71 (excerpts) - Overture

Composer: Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Il'yich | Performer: Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra; Halász, Michael

TR 2 ( 00:01:47 ) The Nutcracker, Op. 71 (excerpts) - Act II Tableau 3: Variation 2: Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy

Composer: Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Il'yich | Performer: Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra; Halász, Michael

TR 3 ( 00:02:23 ) The Nutcracker, Op. 71 (excerpts) - Act II Tableau 3: Divertissement: e. Dance of the Toy Flutes

Composer: Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Il'yich | Performer: Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra; Halász, Michael

TR 4 ( 00:03:53 ) Serenade in C Major, Op. 48: II. Walzer

Composer: Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Il'yich | Performer: Vienna Chamber Orchestra; Entremont, Philippe

TR 5 ( 00:03:00 ) 6 Romances, Op. 16: No. 4. O Sing that Song (version for piano)

Composer: Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Il'yich | Performer: Yablonskaya, Oxana

TR 6 ( 00:04:48 ) 6 Morceaux, Op. 19: No. 4. Nocturne (version for cello and orchestra)

Composer: Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Il'yich | Performer: Ireland National Symphony Orchestra; Markson, Gerhard; Kliegel, Maria

TR 7 ( 00:03:13 ) Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-Flat Minor, Op. 23: I. Allegro non troppo e molto maestoso - Allegro con spirito (opening)

Composer: Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Il'yich | Performer: Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra; Lenárd, Ondrej; Banowetz, Joseph

TR 8 ( 00:06:21 ) Eugene Onegin, Op. 24, Act II Scene 1: Waltz

Composer: Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Il'yich | Performer: CSR Symphony Orchestra, Bratislava; Lenárd, Ondrej

TR 9 ( 00:02:24 ) Les Saisons (The Seasons), Op. 37b (excerpts) - IV. April: Snowdrop

Composer: Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Il'yich | Performer: Prunyi, Ilona

TR 10 ( 00:03:51 ) Les Saisons (The Seasons), Op. 37b (excerpts) - V. May: May Nights

Composer: Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Il'yich | Performer: Prunyi, Ilona

TR 11 ( 00:03:21 ) Cherevichki, "The Fancy Slippers", Act III: Danse des Cosaques (Cossack Dance)

Composer: Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Il'yich | Performer: Ukraine National Symphony Orchestra; Kuchar, Theodore

TR 12 ( 00:01:10 ) Nathalie-valse

Composer: Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Il'yich | Performer: Yablonskaya, Oxana

TR 13 ( 00:01:08 ) 4 Movements for String Quartet (excerpts) - I.