Music

28 | Tchaikovsky, fragile yet master of his destiny

Beautiful misfortune, an oxymoron that well characterizes Tchaikovsky's music. Very sensitive, too sensitive, he suffered all his life from his homosexuality, from a certain mania for persecution, from lack of self-confidence, from the incomprehension of other musicians... Even if he was not the only man to suffer, he is undoubtedly the one who succeeded in expressing pain in the most poignant way. Not only are his melodies magnificent, but they lay bare his soul, seeming to rise from the depths of his distress to the heavens. Yet behind this fragility lies a man who knew exactly what he wanted, as shown by his determination to publish his works as they were, despite the critics, right up to his scheduled death, for which he composed his own requiem, the Pathétique.

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