Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was born in Votkinsk, Russia, on May 7, 1840.In 1869 Tchaikovsky composed the Fantasy-Overture Romeo and Juliet, which he would still revise in 1870 and 1880.
In 1875 Tchaikovsky composed Piano Concerto No. 1.
In 1876 he completed the Swan Lake ballet.
Tchaikovsky befriended a wealthy widow named Nadezhda von Meck, who would support him financially for the next 20 years.
In 1889 he composed the ballet Sleeping Beauty.
Tchaikovsky completed the Nutcracker ballet in 1892.
Symphony No. 6 (Pathetic) was premiered in 1893.
Tchaikovsky and her patron, Nadezhda von Meck, conducted their relationship solely on the basis of correspondence during the years she sponsored it.
Tchaikovsky's marriage in 1877 was an immediate disaster, and shortly after his marriage he made arrangements never to see his wife again.
The cause of Tchaikovsky's death is still uncertain: Some authorities believe that his death was accidental, but others contend that he purposely took arsenic or drank water infected with cholera.
His brother Modest was a playwright and librettist who wrote a biography of Tchaikovsky.
Above any other composer, Tchaikovsky adored Mozart. He even once referred to him as "the Christ of music. Of other composers, Wagner bored him while detesting Brahms.
Tchaikovsky struggled with his sexuality and worked hard to keep his homosexuality a secret.
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