Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky - Mazeppa, No.1 (Opera / Operetta)

The libretto for Mazeppa was written by Viktor Petrovich Burenin, based on Pushkin's poem Poltava. Tchaikovsky made changes to it, however, replacing Burenin's text with Pushkin's wherever possible, without losing the former's focus on the main character, Mazeppa, and without embracing the latter's greater historical scope. The opera is cast is three acts and six scenes, its story set in early-eighteenth century Russia. Maria, daughter of the wealthy Cossack Kochubei, declares her love for the much-older Mazeppa. Andrei then announces his passionate love for her. Mazeppa asks of Kochubei his daughter's hand, but is denied. Kochubei's scheme to reveal Mazeppa's anti-tsarist intrigues to the Tsar backfires, landing him in a dungeon. Meanwhile, Mazeppa reveals his plans to Maria, who knows nothing of her father's imprisonment. Liubov, Maria's mother, apprises her of her father's plight. Maria hurries to save her father, but arrives moments after he is beheaded. During the Battle of Poltava, Andrei ambushes Mazeppa, who then shoots him. Maria comforts the dying Andrei, while Orlik drags Mazeppa off.

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was a Russian composer of the Romantic era. His wide-ranging output includes symphonies, operas, ballets, instrumental, chamber music and songs. He wrote some of the most popular concert and theatrical music in the classical repertoire, including the ballets Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker, the 1812 Overture, his First Piano Concerto, his last three numbered symphonies, and the opera Eugene Onegin. Born into a middle-class family, Tchaikovsky was educated for a career as a civil servant, despite his obvious musical precocity. He pursued a musical career against the wishes of his family, entering the Saint Petersburg Conservatory in 1862 and graduating in 1865. This formal, Western-oriented training set him apart from the contemporary nationalistic movement embodied by the influential group of young Russian composers known as The Five, with whom Tchaikovsky's professional relationship was mixed.

Tchaikovsky lived from May 7, 1840 - November 6, 1893

This is copyright free music.
Public Domain Mark 1.0
The audio material was not altered.

You may notice some distortion, cracking, and clarity issues in this audio. This audio file is the original from the European Archive.