Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Pathétique

I studied Thcaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Pathétique extensively so I am sure I am biased but I also can’t help feeling as if it’s wrongly overlooked when it is, very honestly, such a beautiful composition. And, for me at least, it holds such a weighty amount of emotions and passions for Tchaikovsky to go on and title it as his Pathétique symphony, which roughly translates to “passionate” or “emotional.”

He had a hard time writing it, continuously stating that he could not create good music; he had written an earlier version before trashing it and once he got to work on this finished version, he vowed to finish it. Part of the mystery regards what the symphony is actually aiming to achieve. It was dedicated to Tchaikovsky’s nephew, of which he was known to be involved with, though never out in the wide open. Some have speculated that it is about their doomed relationship and others, like me, see it as Tchaikovsky’s suicide note: his last gift of music, which he premiered only nine days before his death.

The symphony’s music is utterly exceptional with every movement being even better than before. The first one marks a sonata-allegro form where Tchaikovsky shifts from Bm to the BM, while always maintaining a dark and gloomy mood. The second movement is interesting because that 5/4 meter easily suggests a waltz but this is much livelier. The third movement is very deceptive because it’s too dissonant to be a march, much too upbeat to be a waltz and it revolves around two themes.

And finally the final movement is an Adagio (entirely different for what symphonies called for). The movement is a moving, rousing one (check out those chords from the bassoon around the first quarter mark) that always stays in the original Bm before ending on a solemn, quiet ending. Here is that Finale from the sixth symphony, with Charles Dutoit conducting the impeccable NHK Symphony Orchestra from Tokyo, Japan. – Bryan