Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) was the leading composer of late19th century Russia, loved into the 21st century for his ballet scores, symphonic poems, symphonies, operas, songs, piano music, & chamber works. He became one of the most popular composers in the world, inspiring a cult of gay admirers who detected in his work themes of forbidden love.
When he was 37years old, & realized his attraction to man, he married Antonina Miliukova, one of his biggest fans. after just 2 weeks he threw himself in the Moscow River. His doctor insisted that he leave her & he left St. Petersburg & never saw his wife again, although he continued to support her. She had several children by other men, gave each infant to an orphanage & spent the rest of her life in asylums. Tchaikovsky's brother- Modest was also gay, he also married for convention, but was trapped in unhappiness. Tchaikovsky was a rock star in his lifetime. he was the conductor at the opening night of Carnegie Hall, 121 years ago this weekend. He died at 53, & 60,000 people showe up for his funeral.
Knowledge of Tchaikovsky's life as a homosexual was far less accessible than his music. Although some of his letters & diaries survive, many of his personal papers were suppressed, destroyed, or altered, during the Soviet period of Russian history.
Today most musicologists acknowledge the composer's homosexuality, but opinion concerning its importance & its relationship to his musical life varies widely.
I intended this blog to celebrate Famous Gay People on their birthdays & it is interesting for me to do this posting about Tchaikovsky because I have very little passion for Symphonic Music. But, Tchaikovsky's life had an influence on my early life because of the Ken Russell film The Music Lovers. This was the first movie I saw that depicted a homosexual & it blew my little 15 year old mind to smithereens. I saw it with my friend Rich from high school. We had just started to share our feelings about being gay & what it would bring to our lives & then I saw this outrageous film & I was conflicted & thrilled.
The Music Lovers, was the 1st film I saw that depicted a gay man, & it was largely responsible for 2 main developments in my young life, my obsession with the films of Ken Russell, & a passion for Richard Chamberlain (still in his prime).
The Music Lovers is a biographical depiction of one of the greatest composers & like nothing like I had ever seen before. Russell's The Music Lovers is a bio-pic that is troubled, anxious, raw & unashamedly personal. The crazy camera movements, the over the top acting, the use of music both as part of the plot & as a background, & an emphasis on an aspect of the great composer's life rarely written about or known, Russell's film was able to show a homosexual man in the 19th century, with his failings, successes & the indulgences that were behind his creative genius, & show the agony, despair & joy behind his music.
Critics panned the film as a bombastic emphasis on Tchaikovsky's homosexuality. I believe Russell was not trying to portray just the composer's sexual orientation, but the demons that haunted him & confusions & anxiousness that followed him throughout his life- his love affairs, disappointments, & friendships from which many of his masterpieces came to life. I loved how cleverly Russell used the music to enhance the drama & the mood of the film.
Richard Chamberlain as the Russian composer gave his best performance; Glenda Jackson who worked with Russell on Women In Love, was insanely original in her role. The sad fact that The Music Lovers has never been released on DVD just confirms how underrated Ken Russell is as an artist. At a time when really awful films get 2 disc releases with lots of extras, classic films such as The Music Lovers, remain out of stock & out of sight. It is time to give this film a proper release, & the director the recognition he truly deserves.
When he was 37years old, & realized his attraction to man, he married Antonina Miliukova, one of his biggest fans. after just 2 weeks he threw himself in the Moscow River. His doctor insisted that he leave her & he left St. Petersburg & never saw his wife again, although he continued to support her. She had several children by other men, gave each infant to an orphanage & spent the rest of her life in asylums. Tchaikovsky's brother- Modest was also gay, he also married for convention, but was trapped in unhappiness. Tchaikovsky was a rock star in his lifetime. he was the conductor at the opening night of Carnegie Hall, 121 years ago this weekend. He died at 53, & 60,000 people showe up for his funeral.
Knowledge of Tchaikovsky's life as a homosexual was far less accessible than his music. Although some of his letters & diaries survive, many of his personal papers were suppressed, destroyed, or altered, during the Soviet period of Russian history.
Today most musicologists acknowledge the composer's homosexuality, but opinion concerning its importance & its relationship to his musical life varies widely.
I intended this blog to celebrate Famous Gay People on their birthdays & it is interesting for me to do this posting about Tchaikovsky because I have very little passion for Symphonic Music. But, Tchaikovsky's life had an influence on my early life because of the Ken Russell film The Music Lovers. This was the first movie I saw that depicted a homosexual & it blew my little 15 year old mind to smithereens. I saw it with my friend Rich from high school. We had just started to share our feelings about being gay & what it would bring to our lives & then I saw this outrageous film & I was conflicted & thrilled.
The Music Lovers, was the 1st film I saw that depicted a gay man, & it was largely responsible for 2 main developments in my young life, my obsession with the films of Ken Russell, & a passion for Richard Chamberlain (still in his prime).
The Music Lovers is a biographical depiction of one of the greatest composers & like nothing like I had ever seen before. Russell's The Music Lovers is a bio-pic that is troubled, anxious, raw & unashamedly personal. The crazy camera movements, the over the top acting, the use of music both as part of the plot & as a background, & an emphasis on an aspect of the great composer's life rarely written about or known, Russell's film was able to show a homosexual man in the 19th century, with his failings, successes & the indulgences that were behind his creative genius, & show the agony, despair & joy behind his music.
Critics panned the film as a bombastic emphasis on Tchaikovsky's homosexuality. I believe Russell was not trying to portray just the composer's sexual orientation, but the demons that haunted him & confusions & anxiousness that followed him throughout his life- his love affairs, disappointments, & friendships from which many of his masterpieces came to life. I loved how cleverly Russell used the music to enhance the drama & the mood of the film.
Richard Chamberlain as the Russian composer gave his best performance; Glenda Jackson who worked with Russell on Women In Love, was insanely original in her role. The sad fact that The Music Lovers has never been released on DVD just confirms how underrated Ken Russell is as an artist. At a time when really awful films get 2 disc releases with lots of extras, classic films such as The Music Lovers, remain out of stock & out of sight. It is time to give this film a proper release, & the director the recognition he truly deserves.
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