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1812 Overture

File:1812_overture.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons

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1812 Overture

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Also known as The Year 1812 Solemn Overture, The Year 1812

1880 concert overture by Tchaikovsky

Key facts

Key
E ♭ major
Occasion
Commemoration of the 1812 Russian defense against Napoleon 's invading Grande Armée
Composed
1880 ( 1880 )
Date
20 August 1882 ; 143 years ago ( 1882-08-20 )
Location
Moscow
Conductor
Ippolit Al'tani

via Wikipedia infobox

Wikidata facts

Named after
1812
Country of origin
Russia
Tonality
E-flat major
Image
1812 overture.jpg
Show 10 more facts
Commons category
1812 Overture
date of first performance
1882-08-20
instrumentation
cannon
inception
1880-00-00
form of creative work
overture
title
Торжественная увертюра «1812 год»
opus number
49
set in period
1812
Sources (4)

via Wikidata · CC0

~18 min read

Encyclopedic overview

The Year 1812, Solemn Overture, Op. 49, popularly known as the 1812 Overture, is a concert overture in E♭ major written in 1880 by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The piece commemorates Russia's successful defence against the French invasion of the nation in 1812.

Written in just 6 weeks the Overture's first public performance, conducted by Ippolit Al'tani, took place in Moscow on 20 August [O.S. 8 August] 1882, under a tent, near the still unfinished Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, which also memorialised the 1812 defence of Russia.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “1812 Overture” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

Gallery (3)