밀리 발라키레프 (Tamara, symphonic poem)

Tamara is a symphonic poem by Mily Balakirev, written in 1882. The basis was the ballad of the same name by Mikhail Lermontov, Tamara ("In the deep gully of Dariala..."), written by the poet around 1837 under the impression of the old Georgian legend apparently heard in the Caucasus as a fantastic depiction of the Queen Tamar of Georgia. The original idea of the poem occurred to Balakirev under the influence of his trips to the Caucasus in 1862 and 1863. According to the memoirs of N. Rimsky-Korsakov in the autumn of 1866, M. A. Balakirev "more and more often played themes for orchestral fantasy 'Tamara'". The severe crisis that struck the composer in the early 1870s interrupted his work - it was only in 1876, at the insistence of M. Glinka’s sister, L. I. Shestakova, that Balakirev resumed the composition. The poem was completed in 1882 and first performed on 7 (19) March 1882 in St. Petersburg, at a concert of the Free Music School under the direction of the composer. It was then performed twice in Paris, at the Concerts Lamoureux. In 1884 it was printed by P.I. Jurgenson.