Tchaikovsky, Symphony No. 6 in B minor, op.74 “Pathétique”

Tchaikovsky composed his Sixth Symphony in 1893, the year of his death; he outlived the world premiere in St. Petersburg by only nine days. The title "Pathétique" was given to the work by Tchaikovsky's borther Modest. It aptly characterizes the work as a symphony of passionate emotions. Tchaikovsky himself considered this work as a climax of his oeuvre, and wrote to his brother Anatole: "I believe it is being born as the best of my works." To another friend he wrote: "I love it as I have never loved any of my other musical creations." And the world agreed with him. In spite of the brilliance and excitement of his Fourth and Fifth Symphonies, it is clear that the "Pathétique" is the work of a man at last complete master of symphonic form and idiom and, most important of all, master of his own wild emotions.