This study focuses on the Russian composer Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky and his piano work The Seasons, Op. 37b which was composed during the period from 1875 to 1876. He began music studies with his mother during his childhood and started his formal training on the piano and composing with German pianist, Rudolf Kündinger (1832-?) starting 1855. In 1862, he pursued his music studies at St.Petersburg Conservatory. He became music professor at Moscow Conservatory in 1866.

The Seasons. Op. 37b was composed and submitted to the music magazine “Novellist” in 1875 by invitation of its then editor Nikolay Matveyevich Bernard. Structurally, the piano work consists of twelve pieces, hence the subtitle “12 characterictic scenes”. Each piece has a different title and was based on various Russian short poems.

This study consists of five chapters. The first chapter introduces the motivation, purpose, scope and research methods of this study. The second chapter provides a brief

biograghy of the composer, his other piano works, music styles and influence. The third chapter expands on the background and motives of the composition of The Seasons, Op. 37b. The fourth chapter analyses in detail the structure, creative approach, performance techniques and interpretation of the piece. Lastly, the fifth chapter provides a summary and conclusions of this research.

Keywords: Piano works, Tchaikovsky, The Seasons