This is one of the few songs Tchaikovsky composed not included in a larger collection. Written in 1870 between his Op. 6 set of six songs (1869) and his Op. 16 half-dozen (1872), So soon forgotten is an attractive song often translated under various titles in different languages. The words "So soon forgotten," or To forget so soon, repeat as a sort of refrain throughout. The text, about an ill-fated love affair, is by a Tchaikovsky classmate, Alexei Nikolayevich Apukhtin, who studied law with the composer before the latter finally turned his interests to composition. The main theme is lovely in its soaring Romanticism, the melody reaching higher and higher but never able to shirk its sense of melancholy, even if its beautiful ecstasies make the listener overlook its darkness for a time. In the latter half of the song, the mood turns stormy as the tempo increases to bring on a sense of anxiety and frustration. A shattering climax sends the music into a sort of emotional tailspin, the vocalist turning forlorn then becoming silent as the piano brings on the slow ending with sad, gentle music.

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