s feared by everybody in the group. Balakirev was a fierce nationalist, actively detesting any form of art that was not purely Russian. His aim was to establish a truly national music, and much of "The Five's" time was spent criticizing and rewriting other people's compositions – including each other's – in the "approved" Russian style.
             No one dared challenge the authority of "The Five." One man attempted to project his own voice. That man was Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. His music had a special appeal to his listeners: memorable tunes, whether passionately eloquent or stylishly graceful; wild, abandoned dance music; the sheer grandeur of pieces such as the 1812 Overture or the famous opening of his Piano Concert No. 1; and most strikingly, his masterful handling of a vast palette of orchestral color. Ironically, Tchaikovsky was to win far more renown for Russian music abroad than any of his fellow nationalists.
             Tchaikovsky's music was always easy to listen to, giving immense pleasure even at its most tragic and overwhelmingly emotional climaxes. In contrast to his enjoyable music, Tchaikovsky's life was exceedingly tumultuous and unhappy. The man himself was often melancholy and moody. These qualities were result of his own temperament: he was a hypochondriac, and was homosexual, which was regarded as a great shame and disgrace at that time. But after all, he was Russian, and like many of his fellow countrymen, was impelled towards displays of extreme emotion.
             Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was born on May 7, 1840, in Kamsko-Votkinsk, a small industrial town east of Moscow. His father, Ilya Petrovich, was a mining engineer. He was a person of high standing in Kamsko-Votkinsk and was able to comfortably provide for his wife and four children. Pyotr's mother Alexandra was a nervous epileptic, of whom Pyotr inherited his tendency to real or imagined ill-health, fits of ...