Indeed, its fame began to accelerate in the latter half of the 20th century. Commissioned to celebrate the victory of Tsar Alexander’s military over Napoleon’s invading army in Moscow, the overture has only grown in stature in the 140 years since its premiere. Yet neither that savage self-criticism nor Tchaikovsky’s Russian identity have arrested the music’s remarkable popularity in North America. One such naysayer famously decried the overture’s 15 majestic minutes, dismissing it as “very loud and noisy and completely without artistic merit, obviously written without warmth or love.” The kicker? The person making that acid-tongued assertion was none other than the composer himself, Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Of course, some people can find fault with anything. And of course, from the world of classical music, the gallant 1812 Overture, complete with its stirring brass, cathedral bells and now-iconic climactic cannon fire. To name a few examples in a few different categories: the Great Pyramid and the Eiffel Tower Michelangelo’s David and van Gogh’s Starry Night Spider-Man and Cookie Monster. It doesn’t happen often, but a few of the world’s creations manage to attain not just widespread recognition but also practically universal acclaim.
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