Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky
June - Barcarolle
in G Minor, Op. 37 No. 6
from The Seasons

Tchaikovsky’s vision of the month of June is in G minor and features an achingly beautiful melody bathing in atmospheric melancholy.

ID: 620
Key: G Minor
Year: 1876
Level: 7
Period: Late Romantic
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Waves of 'mysterious sadness'

Tchaikovsky’s vision of the month of June is in G minor and features an achingly beautiful melody bathing in atmospheric melancholy, interspersed with occasional brighter moments. Its title - “Barcarolle” - refers to the traditional folk song sung by Venetian gondoliers, which was typically in 6/8 and a moderate tempo and rhythm, matching the gondolier’s oar stroke; though Tchaikovsky’s piece is in 4/4, it has a similar, steady rhythm. The middle of the piece features a faster and happier section in G major building to an energetic theme marked “Allegro giocoso” and a dramatic climax of arpeggiated diminished chords which leads back to a repeat of the opening material. An atmospheric Coda concludes the piece.

Background

Tchaikovsky composed 12 pieces featured in “The Seasons” at the request of the publisher of a monthly music magazine, “Novelliste”. The composer was to provide an appropriate piece for each of the 12 issues of the magazine. The resulting work became immensely popular and was later published in its entirety together with the great G major sonata, Op. 37. The Russian edition contained poetic epigraphs for each of the pieces, in the form of quotes from Pushkin, Tolstoy, and other writers. June featured the following epigraph by Aleksey Pleshcheyev:
Let us go to the shore;
there the waves will kiss our feet.
With mysterious sadness
the stars will shine down on us.



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Member's recordings of piece:

Tchaikowsky Barcarolle - June by faj
Just wanna share this to my old friend .... ...

Tchaikovsy: "June/Barcarolle" from "The seasons" by sarrasani
it.youtube.com/watch?v=nIfOP_Fjphw Enjoy it, if you want, and all the best for you, Sandro...

Tchaikovsky Op. 37 no. 6 Barcarolle by tweenkie
I'm currently relearning this piece, and I'd like to hear some comments. Thanks. ...


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Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky: June - Barcarolle Op. 37 No. 6 in G Minor from The Seasons - piano sheet music to print instantly. This piece is level 7 and was composed during the Late Romantic period.
This piece is composed by Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky and was published in 1876. Title: June - Barcarolle, Op. 37 No. 6 in G Minor from The Seasons. The difficulty level if graded by ABRSM would be approximately 7 and it belongs to the Late Romantic period.