"I am not one who was born in the custody of wisdom. I am one who is fond of olden times and intense in quest of the sacred knowing of the ancients." Gustave Courbet

25 April 2018

Happy birthday, Tchaikovsky.

Kuznetsov, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, 1893


It is already a great thing if the main ideas and general outline of a work come without any racking of brains, as the result of that supernatural and inexplicable force we call inspiration.  What I have set down in a moment of ardor I must then critically examine. Sometimes I must do myself violence before I can mercilessly erase things thought out with love.


Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Viktoria Mullova performs the Violin Concerto in D, Op. 35; Maxim Shostakovich conducting the London Philharmonic Orchestra ...

No comments: