The Seasons, whose entire cycle is rarely recorded, provides striking testimony to Tchaikovsky's genius. In 1876, Nuvellist, a monthly magazine published in Saint Petersburg, commissioned Tchaikovsky to compose a piece for each issue. The result was twelve pieces, one for each month of the year, whose titles and epigraphs were drawn from the Russian poetry suggested by the editor. Each piece was inspired by nature and scenes of Russian life of the times. They come together in an extraordinary fresco, an allegory of the cycle of human life. Two Nocturnes, that are included here, add a further dimension of poetry and beauty.