Pjotr Iljitsj Tsjaikovski

Pjotr Iljitsj Tsjaikovski (Russian: Пётр Ильи́ч Чайко́вский) (Votkinsk, 7 May 1840 – Sint-Petersburg, 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer, regarded as one of the greatest composers of the High Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression outside Russia. Tsjaikovski wrote a number of the most popular musical works in the classical repertoire, such as the ballets Het zwanenmeer and De notenkraker, the Ouverture 1812, the opera Jevgeni Onegin, the Fourth, Fifth and Sixth symphonies, the First Piano Concerto and the Violin Concerto.
Although Tsjaikovski acquired Western music theory through his studies at the young Conservatorium van Sint-Petersburg, he wanted to express the typically Russian mentality. He was fond of using Russian folk melodies. Russian culture in the nineteenth century displayed a split character, with both indigenous and adopted elements that had been far apart since the time of Peter the Great. This resulted in uncertainty among the intelligentsia about the national identity of the country, something that was reflected in Tsjaikovski's career.
Despite his great successes, Tsjaikovski's life was marked by personal crises.