A Piccoloist's Guide to
Tchaikovsy's Symphony IV (1878)
by Sarah Jane Young
How the piece came to be
- Composed from May 1877- 7 January 1878
- Published in 1880
- Premiered in Moscow on 22 February 1878
- Pieces around that time:
- Francesca da Rimini (similar in anguish to Mvt. 1) written November 1876
- Eugene Onegin- an opera written while writing for Symphony No. 4
- Life events:
- ~April or May of 1877 received letter from Antonina Milyukova declaring her love for Tchaikovsky and claiming she met him at the Moscow Conservatory (where he taught)
- Antonina continued to write letters to Tchaikovsky and finally threatening to commit suicide if he did not come and visit her (Meanwhile he had sketched Mvt. 1-3 of Symphony No. 4 and began looking into the opera Eugene Onegin)
- 1 June Tchaikovsky went to visit Antonina and told her there could be nothing between them because he would never love her
- Less then a week after their first meeting, Tchaikovsky went home, started working more on the opera and saw some correlation between Antonina and the character in the opera Tatyana, went back to Antonina and proposed to her (but making it clear that there could be nothing physical between them) and she accepted
- July 1877 Married = great nightmare! Made excuses to stay away from her, visiting family, etc.
- 24 September began the first term in Moscow, Tchaikovsky had to go home
- Within days of his return he attempted to commit suicide and failed
- Upon failing he escaped to St Pertersberg and had a total nervous breakdown (7 October 1877)
- Saw a specialist who basically said get rid of the wife, had his brother go back to Moscow and settle the separation
- His brother, Anatoly, then took Tchaikovsky on a tour of Western Europe, where they visited Switzerland, Paris, Italy, and Vienna where he saw Delibes’ ballet Sylvia (which he claimed his own Swan Lake couldn’t hold a candle to it!) and then finished the symphony
- February 1878 finished opera
- The Symphony:
- The main theme in the 1st mvt. (which appears in the 4th mvt.) represents fate
- The third mvt. is reminiscent of a ballet, and shows clearly the contracting colors of the orchestra (pizzicato strings, woodwinds, brass and timpani, before combining them). All three sections are used in the coda
How to practice this work
Mvt. 3:
- Slowly! And gradually increase the tempo- so important to be able to really feel the rhythm and hear every pitch
- Flexibility exercises on high F and high A and any other note causing trouble
- Play simpler rhythms, leaving out some notes and switching the notes you leave out
- For intonation (especially in the first section that is in octaves with flute) play a drone an octave below and use your ears, changing the note that is the drone, working on really finding the pitch, and being able to find the pitch sooner and within the passage
- Once the solos are comfortable, practice warming up, waiting 30 minutes and then playing the solos without playing in between
- Letter I to the end should be played slowly with the metronome on the eighth note
Mvt. 4:
- Slowly! Again, it is so important to hear every note! Gradually increase the tempo, but continue to be sure you can really hear every pitch properly
- Plan the breathing and plan not to breath whenever possible
- For opening line, really even- set metronome to 16th notes, esp. for first measure (although some conductors opt to use a different tempo for this measure)
- Mm. 192- 199 work on getting a nice, not forced sound that projects (try singing and playing)
- The run in mm. 252 leading to 253 is worth looking at. Notice you go to an A instead of an F!
- Look at mm. 259-268- these are exposed and very fast! Plus, they need to be loud- you want to attempt to match the cymbals here. Be sure to breath in between the eighth notes leading into the runs- the more air you have the better!
What are the challenges?
Mvt. 3:
- Intonation with the octaves
- Playing quickly while hearing all the pitches
- Coming in on a high A without having played for the first two movements
- Rhythm
Mvt. 4:
- Intonation with octaves
- Even playing throughout the sixteenth notes
- Playing quickly while hearing all pitches
- Matching the cymbal in strength
Who’s playing with you?
Mvt. 3:
- Letter E-Tempo 1: Flute 1 and 2 (one octave below the piccolo), Oboe 1 and 2 and Clarinet 1 and 2 playing eighth notes and quarter notes, and Bassoon 1 and 2 playing a pedal low E
- Mm. 194-203: French Horn 1-4, Trumpet 1 and 2, Trombones (Alto, Tenor and Bass), and Timpani playing sixteenth notes on beats 1 and 2, except bars 197 and 203 which are sixteenth notes on beat 1, the and of 1, beat 2, and the and of 2
- Mm. 357 is with all the woodwinds, and letter I to the end is full orchestra
Mvt. 4:
- In general its full orchestra, and sixteenth notes are with strings and woodwinds
- Mm. 263- 268 is an octave above the violins, so you’re it! The cymbals crash on the beat and I like to think of the runs as leading into the cymbal crashes.
What recordings are there?
The Cleveland Orchestra conducted by Lorin Maazel
- Mvt. 3 Tempos: mm. 162 ~92, mm. 185 ~140, mm. 360-end ~152
- Mvt. 4 Tempos: mm1 ~152 but slowed to ~140 later on (letter B to Dish), mm. 192 ~142, mm. 236-end ~150
The Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Mariss Jansons
- Mvt. 3 Tempos: mm. 162 ~96, mm. 185 ~160, mm. 360-end ~160
- Mvt. 4 Tempos: mm. 1 ~160, mm. 108 ~150, mm. 119 back to ~160, mm. 192 ~150, mm. 236-end ~160
The London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Igor Markevitch
- Mvt. 3 Tempos: mm. 162 ~82, mm. 185 ~160, mm. 360-end ~165-172
- Mvt. 4 Tempos: I have no idea! ~120-180 It’s crazy!
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sir Georg Solti
- Mvt. 3 Tempos: mm. 162 ~100, mm. 185 ~144, mm. 360-end ~160
- Mvt. 4 Tempos: mm. 1 ~160-170, mm. 108 ~152 mm. 119 ~160, mm. 192 ~160, mm. 236-end ~172
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Daniele Gatti
- Mvt. 3 Tempos: mm. 162 ~90, mm. 185 ~142, ~ 360-end ~154
- Mvt. 4 Tempos: mm. 1 ~162, mm. 108 ~144, mm. 119 ~160, mm. 192 ~148, mm. 236-end ~150-160