Search - Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky, Yuri Simonov, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra :: Tchaikovsky: Romeo and Juliet; Capriccio Italien; 1812 Overture

Tchaikovsky's neurotic, diffident nature is displayed in his extensive correspondence with Nadezhda von Meck, a wealthy widow who made him an allowance, yet few great composers have written music with such instantaneous and universal appeal. His compositions include six symphonies, a number of programmatic orchestral works, four concertos, and numerous operas. He was a brilliant orchestrator, and in Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, and The Nutcracker, probably the greatest writer of ballet music the world has ever known.