Dave, thanks for the Archive excavation.  I see that Tchaikovsky did not
even make Steve's short list.  But if these are the criteria:

>1.  Have a lasting influence on the course of music.
>
>2.  Be proficient in all genres of his day.
>
>3.  Show a wide expressive range.
>
>4.  A consistency of result.  Not everything must be wonderful,
>but a preponderance should.
>
>5.  I'm not as sure about this one, but at least one semi-popular
>hit.  To me, this shows that the music speaks to everybody.

...I definitely think he should have.  And in my original post, I
somehow omitted the Serenade for String Orchestra.  I can envision
Tchaikovsky thumbing his nose at his critics while composing this:
"Look what I can do with only a scale."

Mitch Friedfeld