Waltz of the Flowers 
 

From The Nutcracker Suite

By P. I. Tchaikovsky
 
 

Lesson by Christina Ewing



 
 
 
 

 
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, born in 1840, was a landmark Russian composer who composed a vast body of works, many either politically inspired, such as his 1812 Overture,or otherwise telling a story.   The Nutcracker Suite is a popular ballet composed by Tchaikovsky in 1892. It tells the story of a young girl named Clara who anxiously awaits Christmas morning and spends the night dreaming of vivid scenes with wonderful characters. Therefore, the ballet is traditionally performed during the Christmas season.   The musical movements of The Nutcracker reflect the scenes that Clara beholds. The one we will focus on is entitled "Waltz of the Flowers."
 

"Waltz of the Flowers" is literally a waltz, meaning that the music is in 3/4 meter. In 3/4 meter, the first beat of each measure is accented, which lends to a dance-like quality in the music. The B section of the piece, which is the string theme, shows this most obviously. Listen to this in the following excerpt, and think about which beats the strings are playing on.

Listen!

You can hear that the strings are playing on beats one and three. Beat three acts as a pickup to help accent beat one.

  The form of "Waltz of the Flowers" contains a great deal of repetition; each theme repeats itself before proceeding to the next one. There are four basic themes in the piece. They are as follows:

A theme:    Listen!

The A theme contains a melody heard in the french horns and clarinets. The A theme is repeated with a slightly different ending, therefore we could call the repeat Aí. (A prime)

B theme:    Listen!

The B theme, which we heard before, is in the violins. Again, B is followed by Bí.

         C theme:        Listen!
The flutes play the melody for the C theme, and C' contains the triangle in the background.  This gives C' a lighter, more sparkly timbre than C.

D theme:      Listen!

The D theme and its prime are heard only once, and the melody can be found in the cello section. The melody is rich and intense and helps propel the music.

Now that we are familiar with the themes found in "Waltz of the Flowers," we can analyze the form. Click the button below to listen to the piece. While you are listening, follow the call chart below to see how the different sections relate.  Click on any of the sections of the form to hear it by itself.
   
                     Listen to Waltz of the Flowers!                     1. Introduction                    9.     B'                            17.     B
                    2.     A                                10.    C                            18.     B'
                    3.     A'                               11.    C'                            19.    A
                    4.     B                                12.    D                            20.     B
                    5.     B'                               13.    D'                            21.     A
                    6.     A                                14.    C                             22.    C
                    7.     A'                               15.    A                              23.    C
                    8.     B                                16.    A'                             24.    Coda
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
As you just heard, the introduction starts with lush harp cadenzas. Theme A enters with the french horns providing both melody and harmony. The melody outlines the major tonic triad while the harmony includes other notes of the tonic triad. Listen again to theme A, this time listening for how the melody and harmony interact.       Theme A!

The second half of theme A contains ascending lines, which help build tension and add drama.

Another important element to consider in this piece is dynamics, or volume. Individual themes are crucial, so when an instrument is featured in a theme, that performer needs to play louder to bring out the theme. Listen to theme D again, and note how the cellists play louder and fuller to bring out their melody.
                                 Theme D!
 

Now it's time to test your knowledge.  Click here for the quiz!



 
 

 

I hope you enjoyed learning about different elements of music (dynamics, form, etc.) through Tchaikovskyís "Waltz of the Flowers." I encourage you to explore the rest of The Nutcracker Suite, and perhaps consider some of the elements weíve discussed while listening!
 
 

Image of flower courtesy of www.Barrysclipart.com
Image of nutcrackers, Christmas tree, dancers, and cello courtesy of www.arttoday.com
 

For teacherís reference:

Tchaikovsky, The Greatest Hits, Disc One
Reference Gold Records


 
 
 

Track Nine, Waltz of the Flowers, total time 6:17

Form and Track Times:

Intro  0:00                  Bí 2:47                 B 4:49

A 1:05                         C 3:02                 Bí 5:03

Aí 1:20                        Cí 3:17                 A 5:17

B 1:35                         D 3:30                 B 5:24

Bí 1:50                        Dí 3:45                A 5:38

A 2:04                         C 4:00                 C 5:44

Aí 2:18                         A 4:20                 C 5:57

B 2:33                         Aí 4:35                 Coda  6:08