At three o’clock on the morning of October 25th (November 6th) Tchaikovsky passed away in the presence of his brothers Nicholas and Modeste, his nephews Litke, Buxhövden, and Vladimir Davidov, the three doctors, and his faithful servant Alexis Safronov. At the last moment an indescribable look of clear recognition lit up his face—a gleam which only died away with his last breath.
My work is finished. With this account of Tchaikovsky’s last moments my task, which was to express the man, is accomplished.
To characterise the artist in every phase of his development, and to determine his position in the history of music, is beyond my powers. If all the documental and authentic evidence I have collected in this book should serve as fundamental material for another writer capable of fulfilling such a task, the most cherished aim of all my efforts will have been attained.
MODESTE TCHAIKOVSKY
APPENDIX A
CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF TCHAIKOVSKY’S COMPOSITIONS FROM 1866-1893
First Season, 1866-1867
1. Op. 15. Festival Overture upon the Danish National Hymn; completed October, 1866. Published by Jurgenson.
2. Op. 13. Symphony in G minor, No. 1, “Winter Dreams.” Begun in March, completed in November, 1866. Jurgenson.