Pyotr Tchaikovsky - The Voyevoda, Op. 78

"Tchaikovsky's symphonic ballad 'The Voyevoda' is the least familiar amongst his series of free-standing descriptive orchestral works. It is also the shortest, by a margin of some five or six minutes, and although the conciseness of its two principal thematic groups and its resourceful orchestration have attracted interest from scholars and musicologists, 'The Voyevoda' is hardly ever performed in public.

Tchaikovsky began to sketch out the work in the latter part of 1890, and completed the score in the following year. The 'Voyevoda' of the title was a Polish landowner, and the subject of a novel by Mickiewicz. A dedicated patriot, he had answered the call to arms in the cause of national freedom. Now, having returned home after defending his country in battle, he finds his wife in the embrace of a former lover. The Voyevoda thus decides to kill them both himself, but at the critical moment, it is he who is tragically killed by a bullet from his own gun.

The morbid subject matter undoubtedly fascinated Tchaikovsky, and indeed, the omnipresent strand of malignant fate controlling human destiny is a familiar theme in a large number of his works, and one made more poignant, perhaps, given the facts concerning Tchaikovsky's own death.

'The Voyevoda', Op. 78, is cast for conventional orchestral resources, with the addition of harp and English horn. The work opens quietly, with a restless ostinato for cellos and basses heard above a throbbing tympani beat, all the while developing in volume and intensity, suggesting the Voyevoda's torment. A cascading second theme, later punctuated by stabbing unison chords, depicts his plan of action. Shimmering harp writing and an expansive wind melody part way through suggest moments of earlier happiness, but the obsessive ostinato figures return to haunt the Voyevoda, who pledges to complete his task. Trombones and tympani are employed to depict the fatal shot, before the work ends ominously."

—Michael Jameson
Date: 1890-1891
Catalogue: Op. 78, Tchaikovsky Handbook 54

Performers:
Eliahu Inbal as conductor
Frankfurt Radio Symphony
Note: This channel does not own the score or audio, and they are only used for non-commercial purposes. This video is a reupload from Thomas van Dun, who withdrew all score videos of pieces not composed by himself.

Original Uploader’s Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/ThomasvanDun/

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