Tchaikovsky's twisted tutu

Synopsis

If you told most American music lovers that “Lebedinoe Ozero” was probably the most popular ballet ever written, they might just stare blankly at you—but Russians would probably nod in agreement.

For most of the last 100 years, if a ballet was staged in Russia, there was a betting chance it was Tchaikovky’s “Lebedinoe Ozero” or “Swan Lake” as it’s known in English. Just hearing Tchaikovsky’s music conjures up leggy ballerinas gliding across the stage in white tutus, or gravity-defying leaps from the male lead. For many it’s the quintessential Romantic ballet.

But on today’s date in 1877, the premiere performance of “Swan Lake” at the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow was anything but a success. It wasn’t for want of trying, either: Rehearsals for the first performance began in March 1876, before Tchaikovsky had finished the score, and went on for 11 months.

Tchaikovsky was well aware he was pushing the envelope, writing a score far more complex and difficult than was customary. Some soon labeled his music as ‘undanceable.’ Poor choreography didn’t help, either. One critic said: "The dances are weak in the extreme.... Incoherent waving of the legs that continued through the course of four hours—is this not torture?

Tchaikovsky despaired that his ballet could ever be popular, and died before the successful revival of his ballet almost 10 years later. That was choreographed by famous ballet master Marius Petipa and mounted at the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg in 1895.

Music Played in Today's Program

Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky (1840 — 1893) Swan Lake Ballet Suite Chicago Symphony; Sir Georg Solti, cond. London 425 516

On This Day

Births

• 1749 - Baptism of German composer, violinist and famous London impresario Johann Peter Salomon, in Bonn;

• 1770 - Italian composer and guitarist Ferdinando Carulli, in Naples;

• 1791 - Austrian composer and pianist Carl Czerny, in Vienna;

• 1802 - Belgian composer and violinist Charles-Auguste de Bériot, in Louvain;

• 1911 - American composer Robert McBride, in Tucson, Arizona;

• 1929 - Japanese composer Toshiro Mayuzumi, in Yokohama;

Deaths

• 1961 - Australian-born American composer and pianist Percy Grainger, age 78, in White Plains, N.Y.;

Premieres

• 1722 - first concert performance of Handel: “Water Music” (Julian date: Feb. 9);

• 1724 - Bach: Sacred Cantata No. 22 ("Jesus nahm zu sich die Zwölfe") and No. 23 ("Du wahrer Gott und Davids Sohn" performed on Estomihi Sunday as part of Bach's first annual Sacred Cantata cycle in Leipzig (1723/24);

• 1724 - Handel: opera “Giulio Cesare (Julius Ceasar)” in London at The King’s Theatre in the Haymarket (Gregorian date: Mar. 2);

• 1816 - Rossini: opera, "The Barber of Seville," in Rome at the Teatro Argentina, with the composer conducting;

• 1827 - Mendelssohn: "A Midsummer Night's Dream" Overture, in Stettin (first public performance), with Carl Loewe conducting;

• 1877 - Tchaikovsky: ballet “Swan Lake,” in Moscow (Gregorian date: Mar. 4);

• 1881 - Bruckner: Symphony No. 4 ("Romantic"), with Vienna Philharmonic conducted by Hans Richter; This was the second (revised) version of Bruckner's original 1874 score;

• 1897 - Kalinnikov: Symphony No. 1 in g, in Kiev (Julian date: Feb. 8);

• 1907 - Rimsky-Korsakov: opera “Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh,” in St. Petersburg at the Mariinsky Theater, Blumenfeld conducting (Julian date: Feb. 7);

• 1910 - Debussy: orchestral suite, "Ibéria," at a Colonne Concert in Paris, conducted by Pierné;

• 1937 - Prokofiev: "Lt. Kijé" Suite (first public performance)in Paris, with composer conducting; A radio performance of this film music suite was broadcast in Moscow on December 21, 1934;

• 1942 - Menotti: one-act opera "The Island God," at the Metropolitan Opera in New York;

• 1943 - Orff: opera "Die Kluge" (The Clever Girl), in Frankfurt at the Städtische Bühnen;

• 1962 - Henri Lazaroff: Viola Concerto, in Monaco;

• 2003 - Tan Dun: "The Map," multi-media concerto for cello and orchestra, by the Boston Symphony, with the composer conducting and Yo-Yo Ma the soloist;

Others

• 1626 - English composer and lutenist John Dowland, age c. 63, is buried in London; This date suggests Dowland most likely died in mid-February, although some older sources improbably cite Jan. 20 as his death date (That was the day Dowland's son assumed his father's post as a royal court musician).