Tchaikovsky- Violin Concerto in D Major, op. 77 Part I
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto in D Major was written in 1878 in the Swiss town of Clarens while he was vacationing with a violin pupil of his named Yosif Kotek (who was also rumored to be a lover of Tchaikovsky’s). Despite Kotek’s input and significant role in the Concerto’s composition, Tchaikovsky originally dedicated the work to violinist Leopold Auer. As had been the case with Tchaikovsky’s other concertos (the Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat Minor, op. 23 and the Piano Concerto No. 2 in G Major, op. 44), the dedicatee refused to premier the work on the grounds that it was “impossible to play”. He then offered the dedication to Kotek who, miffed, refused and declared it unplayable as well despite his role in nearly every aspect of the solo part. Adolph Brodsky played the premier in Vienna on December 4, 1881.
Despite the harsh criticisms levied against it by such notable critics as Eduard Hanslick (“The violin is not so much played but pulled, torn, and shredded…”) and Friedrich Fischer (“Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto gives us the hideous notion that there can be music that stinks to the ear!”), hindsight and common sense have mercifully replaced such decidedly unkind words. Contrary to the struggle between soloist and orchestra we see evident in works like Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 or Brahms’ Violin Concerto in D Minor, Tchaikovsky’s violin is not totally at odds with the orchestra and in many ways seems to complement it. The marvelously operatic themes fit the violin’s range and timbre perfectly, and while Tchaikovsky’s liberal modification of sonata and rondo form seems to create imbalance, he does it to fit his expressive needs.
I. Allegro moderato
The concerto begins with a lazily falling and rising melody in the violins. This short phrase is capped with more forceful but still fluffy chords in the strings. The opening phrase is sequenced downwards, this time answered by the winds. Pulsing cellos and a rolling timpani (0:18) begin to build underneath a string and wind dialogue, resulting in a forte series of chords in the brass. Two-note leaps sequenced downwards in the strings, winds, and brass set the stage for the entrance of the solo violin at 0:45.
The violin enters with a wandering, almost whimsical series of ascending and descending arpeggios before ending the introduction and beginning the exposition at 1:06 with a gorgeously melodic theme one. The theme is sung more than it is played, while the grace notes adorning the beginning of each phrase give the theme a playful character. The orchestra accompanies quietly with pizzicato ascents in the cello and sustains in the rest of the strings until 1:18, when a walking bass begins and the rest of the strings begin to echo the violin. The violin starts to pick up the pace with a series of dotted descents before playing an abbreviated, multiple-stop version of theme one at 1:44. The music begins to rise upwards through a series of ascents in the solo violin are sequenced upwards (2:17) egged on by an attentive orchestral accompaniment on the offbeats. A cheerful phrase from the orchestra continues to tease the violin (2:32), sending it on a series of ascents that reach higher and higher before a series of chords from the orchestra sends the violin tumbling back downwards (2:52).
A brief violin passage in the low register leads to theme two in the violin with sparse accompaniment by the orchestra. At 3:28, slightly more active accompaniment by the orchestral strings support the violin as it again begins reach high into its range before descending back into the third statement of theme two (3:52), this time adding sustained horn chords and clarinet glissandos. A series of rapid, triplet descents result in a section based on theme two motives (4:19) high in the solo violin with ascending flute runs and followed by sturdier descending horns. Like a coiled spring, rapidly rising scales from the solo violin begin low in its register and leap over the orchestra, which answers with ascents of its own (4:43). The orchestra then plays theme two motives with the violin playing busily above. At 5:09, rapid triplet figures in the solo violin contrast with staccato eighth notes from the winds. The triplets continue but in double stops, with each phrase ending in a hairpin-turn like rise and fall. Orchestral tuttis at 5:38 continue to agitate the violin, who plays an increasingly erratic line with huge leaps on the staff. At last the rising tide of the orchestra proves to be too much for the violin to hold back, and at 5:54 the long exposition comes to an end with a sweeping, glorified orchestral statement of theme one.
The developmental version of theme one features broad string lines and almost military-sounding brass playing a march-like rhythm. After a series of 3-note ascents the theme is repeated (6:14). A tense but forward-moving transition theme bounces around the orchestra, with short motives passed from the strings to the winds to the brass. The solo violin re-enters with a declaratory statement at 7:13, followed by a double-stopped statement of theme one accompanied by pizzicato strings which is repeated. A series of rising motives in the winds (7:55) over frenzied double-stopped ascents in the violin build back into the orchestral theme one at 8:24. Orchestral two-note ascents accented with timpani rolls gather momentum until they result in a series of fortissimo orchestral tuttis answered by the violin.
After the last series of tuttis, the violin begins its cadenza at 9:14. Theme one motives (10:15) are further developed and transformed before a series of ascents followed by descents that almost sound like a horse neighing (10:44). Theme two motives are sequenced upwards (11:07) and sped up, resolving to a series of slurred ascents and scalar descents. Rapidly jumping trills at 11:46 conclude the cadenza and the development.
The development and recapitulation are bridged by the violin trill at the end of its cadenza. Theme one’s recapitulation is first heard softly in the solo flute at 12:06 accompanied by soft, pizzicato strings. The violin takes over and descends into a series of growling, rapid notes in its low register before repeating the theme again at 12:38. After the transition and another reappearance of the playful figure in the orchestra (13:32), the solo violin slows and recapitulates theme two at 14:07. The second phrase of theme two is accompanied by a swelling line in the bassoon (14:33). The third phrase is high in the violin’s register and is highlighted with airy ascents in the flutes and clarinets. Rapid ascents in the violin answered by the orchestra lead to rapid violin figures over theme two motives in the orchestra (15:34). More rapid violin figures over staccato winds (15:49) gradually build as the strings join and continue to threaten to overtake the violin.
The coda begins at 16:34 with a pointed hit on the timpani, after which the solo violin plays a series of rising staccato notes. A series of sequentially descending motives in the violin are answered by the winds. A long violin ascent begins at 16:58 as the tempo picks up and the violin exchanges statements with the orchestra at 17:05. The dialogue continues to pick up speed until a series of orchestra four-note ascents are answered with string descents. The movement ends with an orchestral ascent that descends to the final chord.
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If you are interested in listening to a recording, I recommend Erich Leinsdorf’s 2000 release with the Boston Symphony Orchestra with Itzhak Perlman on RCA. You can buy this recording from Amazon by clicking on the image below. Alternatively, you can purchase this recording from the iTunes Music Store often at a reduced price by following the link below.
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