Tchaik 4

I. Andante sostenuto - Moderato con anima. The introduction is the kernel, the quintessence, the chief thought of the whole work. The main idea, first in the trumpets and then in the horns, is Fate, the inexorable power that hampers over the search for happiness... The main theme of the Allegro describes feelings of depression and hopelessness. Would it not be better to forsake reality and lose oneself in dreams?... A sweet and tender dream enfolds me, a serene and radiant presence leads me on, until all that was dark and joyless is forgotten... But no, these are but dreams. Fate returns to waken us, and we see that life is an alternation of grim reality and fugitive dreams of happiness.

From Tchaikovsky's letter to his wealthy benefactor, Nadezhda von Meck, attempting to explain the meaning of the symphony.