“Album pour enfants” and Kamenka

Is there anyone out there who once learned to play a musical instrument and does not know at least one piece from Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s “Album pour enfants?” Naturally, this cycle is best remembered by those who have played, even occasionally, on the piano “A Sweet Dream,” “A Doll’s Illness,” “An Old French Song,” “Baba Yaga,” and many other pieces of diverse character.

Do you know that the composer created “Album pour enfants” in Ukraine? In the spring of 1878 Tchaikovsky visited the family of his younger sister Aleksandra Davydova in Kamenka, now a district center in Cherkasy oblast. The composer wrote in a letter to Nadezhda von Meck on April 30, “Tomorrow I will get down to a series of miniature pieces for children. I have been long thinking that it would be a good idea to assist, as far as possible, the enrichment of children’s musical culture, which is very poor now. I want to make a number of small and very easy-to-grasp pieces with titles attractive to children, like those of Schumann.”

In a short while, a piano cycle of 24 children’s pieces was composed. Tchaikovsky dedicated it to his favorite nephew Volodia Davydov who had just turned seven. When “Album pour enfants” was published, the author wrote to L. V. Davydov, the boy’s father, “Tell Bobik (Volodia’s home nickname – Author) that notes with little pictures have been printed, that it is Uncle Pete who composed the notes, and that it is written above them: ‘Dedicated to Volodia Davydov’. He, poor thing, will not even understand what ‘dedicated’ means! And I could dedicate entire symphonies to Bobik if only for sake of his inimitably nice little figure, when I see him playing, looking at the notes, and counting.”

Years had passed by. In 1893 Tchaikovsky composed the 6th “Path tique” Symphony. It was his last oeuvre, which he dedicated to the already grown-up Vladimir Davydov.

It was also in Kamenka, 125 years ago, that Tchaikovsky composed the vocal cycle “Sixteen Songs for Children” set to the verses of the well-known Russian poet Aleksei Pleshcheyev. In February 1881 the composer received, as s gift, the poetic book “Snowdrop” from Pleshcheyev whom he had known since the time he was young. There was a dedication on the book: “To Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky as a token of respect and gratitude for his beautiful music set to my bad poems.”

At first the composer intended to use several dozen texts in the cycle but then chose only 14 by Pleshcheyev, one by I. Surikov, and one more by S. Aksakov. In October 1883 Tchaikovksy wrote in a letter to his brother, “I got down to composing children’s songs, writing precisely one a day. But it is easy and very pleasant work to do, for I took Pleshcheyev’s text “Snowdrop” which abounds in splendid little things.” Unlike “Album pour enfants,” “Children’s Songs” are not intended to be sung by children. It is a superb piece of music for children to be performed by adults.

There is a state-run historical and cultural preserve now in Kamenka, which comprises, among other things, the Pushkin and Tchaikovsky Literary and Memorial Museum.