Tchaikovsky gay

Tchaikovsky was gay at a time when it was illegal in Russia. His marriage was designed to stop people gossiping about his love life – but it turned into a source of misery and torment for both him and Miliukova.

Tchaikovsky was a gay man. Historians and classical scholars almost unanimously agree – as letters and diaries, including letters to his brother, Modest, who was also gay, make clear.

Tchaikovsky’s letters provide ample evidence that he was indeed gay, and his family—or at least his brothers—were aware of it. The composer’s younger brothers, Modest and Anatoly, were twins who were ten years younger than him.

In Tchaikovsky's case, gay men have long upheld the idea that the angst, despair and suffering deemed so apparent in his music's "melodic lyricism" can be directly traced to the struggle of a closeted gay man living in torture with his secret.