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The Queen of Spades (Russian: Пиковая дама, Pikovaya dama) is an opera, Opus 68, in 3 acts, 7 scenes, by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky to a Russian libretto by the composer's brother Modest Tchaikovsky, based on a short story of the same name by the poet Alexander Pushkin. The premiere performance took place in 1890 in St. Petersburg, Russia.

For a period the opera was commonly performed in French under the still recognized title Pique Dame. Nowadays, the opera is almost exclusively sung in Russian. There are several recordings of it, and it is frequently performed.

Composition history

The management of the Imperial Theatre offered a commission to Tchaikovsky to write an opera to a plot by Ivan Vsevolozhsky in 1887/88. Originally Tchaikovsky refused, but later in 1889, he accepted. Toward the end of that year, he met with theatre managers to discuss the script, the lay-out of the scenes, and the elements of performance.

He sketched out the opera from January to March in Florence in only 44 days. From July to December of 1890, Tchaikovsky completed a set of changes to the literary text, recitatives, and voice parts. Working with the tenor Figner, he created two versions of Hermann’s aria from the seventh scene, including different tonalities. All of these changes are found in the proof sheets and inserts for the first and second editions.

While composing the music, Tchaikovsky actively edited the libretto. He substantially changed the text, entered scenic notes, made reductions, and wrote his own lyrics for arias for Yeletsky, Lisa, and the chorus.

Performance history

In the opera, the main hero Hermann is on stage and sings in all seven scenes. This demands a singer of great skill and endurance. The part was written for the notable Russian tenor Nikolay Figner, who performed the role in the premiere.

The composer himself took part in the preparation of the Saint Petersburg premiere. Critics gave rave reviews. \"Figner's bright temperament has given to each phrase in the powerful moments the needed relief. In the lyrical parts... Figner’s singing was awe-inspiring with a charming softness and sincerity.\" Tchaikovsky later wrote, \"Figner and the Saint Petersburg orchestra... have made true miracles.\"

The success of The Queen of Spades, as its author had well expected, was tremendous. It continued that success twelve days later at the Kiev premiere. The Bolshoy Theatre premiere took place the following year. Tchaikovsky was extremely pleased with the opera. In an eloquent self-estimation, he said, \"...either I am terribly mistaken, or The Queen of Spades really is a masterpiece....\" This appraisal truly was prophetic.

Read more at Wikipedia.org