Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Most popular Russian composer, master of melody
Most quoted
"I am passionately fond of the winter and I find that it has an invigorating effect on me until January; but from that time onwards I find the length of it unbearable."
— from Letter, 1878
"I would like with all the strength of my soul for my music to spread, for the number of people who love it, who find consolation and strength in it, to increase."
— from Letter, 1878
"There is no doubt that even the greatest musical geniuses have sometimes worked without inspiration. This guest does not always respond to the first invitation."
— from Letter, 1878
All quotes by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (387)
The world is full of noise, but only a few people truly listen.
I am not afraid of death, but I am afraid of not having enough time to finish my work.
My music is my legacy. It is all I have to leave behind.
I am a man of many moods, but I am always true to myself.
The only thing that matters in life is to be true to yourself, even if it means being unpopular.
Indeed, I am a thousand times more convinced that there is no happiness in the world, no peace, no joy, no contentment, no anything, except in music.
I am a man who has suffered and who has loved, and who has found in music a refuge from the storms of life.
Truly, there is no greater joy than to create, to bring forth something new from the depths of one's soul.
Life is a succession of moments, and to live each one is to succeed.
The more I live, the more I am convinced that the only true happiness lies in the love of God and man.
Music is the language of the soul. It speaks where words are powerless.
There are moments when I feel that I am not living, but merely existing. And then music comes, and I live again.
To be a composer is to be a priest, to serve the highest ideals of beauty and truth.
The human heart is a strange and complex thing, full of contradictions and mysteries.
Death is not the end, but a transition to another state of being.
Beauty is everywhere, if only we have eyes to see it.
The purpose of art is to express the inexpressible, to give form to the formless.
I believe in the power of music to heal, to inspire, and to transform.
The greatest tragedy in life is not death, but what we let die inside us while we live.
To suffer is to live, to feel is to be human.
Contemporaries of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Other Musics born within 50 years of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840–1893).