5 Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky

Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky was born in 1840 in Russia. His family was rich and sent him to special schools. Tchaikovsky went to a university and studied law. But at the age of 23, he decided to give his life to music. He studied music in Saint Petersburg. When he was 26,he wrote his first symphony.

Tchaikovsky became a famous and successful composer. But he did not live a happy or exciting life. He was very shy and lived alone. Every day he stayed home and wrote music. He was often unhappy. He was afraid of many things. He was afraid to die. He was also afraid his head would fall off his shoulders. This was a problem when he conducted music. So he sometimes held his head with his left hand and conducted with his right hand.

In 1876, Tchaikovsky received a letter from a mysterious rich widow. Her name was Madame von Meck. She said she loved his music and offered to send him money every year. There was one condition. They must never meet. Tchaikovsky agreed. They wrote to each other for 14 years. Then Madame von Meck suddenly stopped writing. Tchaikovsky was very hurt. When he died three years later, he said her name.

Tchaikovsky died after he drank contaminated water. He was 53. Some people say he drank it by accident. Others say he drank the water to kill himself. Today we remember Tchaikovsky for his wonderful symphonies and ballets. To this day, Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, and The Nutcracker are three of the world's most popular ballets.