In November Denis von Meck, a descendant of the nice composer, got here to UN Headquarters to speak about Tchaikovsky’s relationship with the USA, and his necessary position in guaranteeing the success of New York’s iconic Carnegie Corridor.
Denis von Meck Within the late nineteenth century New York lacked good high quality venues for music performances, so a gaggle of music lovers eager to see a brand new live performance corridor within the metropolis turned to Andrew Carnegie, a widely known patron of the humanities on the time.
Carnegie was extra all in favour of literature and constructing libraries, however his spouse was a music lover. By way of her, they succeeded in attention-grabbing him within the thought of funding what grew to become Carnegie Corridor.
Nevertheless, it was a dangerous enterprise: the Corridor was removed from the town centre in downtown New York, and the roads had been poor. There have been fears that few folks would need to make the journey, so it was determined to ask Tchaikovsky, probably the most well-known musician on this planet, to attend a five-day pageant, at which he would conduct.
Denis von Meck, descendant of Tchaikovsky and founding father of the von Meck Basis
UN Information: How did Tchaikovsky come to be so well-known within the US?
Denis von Meck: When Tchaikovsky composed his First Piano Concerto in 1875, he devoted it to Nikolai Rubinstein, his director on the Moscow Conservatory and an excellent pianist. Nevertheless, Rubinstein demanded adjustments and, when Tchaikovsky declined, refused to carry out it.
Tchaikovsky turned to a number of musicians to carry out the concerto, together with Hans von Bülow, the German conductor and pianist, who agreed. The primary efficiency happened in Boston, and the second in New York.
Walter Damrosch, one of many main German conductors and musicians of the time, heard it in New York and requested Tchaikovsky for extra music. Because of this, his works grew to become extensively circulated, and he grew to become extraordinarily standard within the US, much more so than in Europe and, maybe, much more than in Russia.
This success was a really nice shock for Tchaikovsky, who left America with many nice reminiscences, and constructive phrases in regards to the nation.
UN Information: Should you take a look at the Wikipedia article about Tchaikovsky in English, there may be an audio recording from 1890, which is believed to include his voice. As an skilled on the composer, do you suppose that is genuine?
Denis von Meck: Sure, it’s real. It was made on the finish of his life, within the early days of sound recordings, and it is usually out there on YouTube. Researchers at Tchaikovsky Museum in Klin had been capable of totally decipher the phrases, and in addition determine all the contributors.
