I never compose in the abstract; that is to say, the musical thought never appears otherwise than in a suitable external form. In this way I invent the musical idea and the instrumentation simultaneously.


Letter to N. F. von Meck, March 5th (17th), 1878. In: The Life and Letters of Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky (ed.1906), p. 280

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Quotes

I never compose in the abstract; that is to say, the musical thought never appears otherwise than in a suitable external form. In this way I invent...

I never compose in the abstract; that is to say, the musical thought never appears otherwise than in a suitable external form. In this way I invent...

I never compose in the abstract; that is to say, the musical thought never appears otherwise than in a suitable external form. In this way I invent...

I never compose in the abstract; that is to say, the musical thought never appears otherwise than in a suitable external form. In this way I invent...