Cracking Open Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker
The Best Moments
The Nutcracker, Op. 71, ballet in two acts (1892)
I'm Tchaikovsky, and I'm delighted to welcome you to the best moments of my Nutcracker. You'll listen to the music that audiences praised on its own in 1892, even when the ballet itself left them rather bored, and that is why it deserves your time. Here my fellow composers and I also teach you to recognize our pieces whenever you hear them, so when the music ends, you can test yourself in the Trainer .
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A Tiny Hammer Goes a Long Way
I wanted the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy to sound like sweetness itself, so I used a celesta, a keyboard whose little hammers strike metal plates. It sounds like a softer glockenspiel, and the melody tiptoes in as if it were carrying a tray of glass candies.
Flowers Before the Fairy
If you think the Sugar Plum Fairy gets the best entrance, I would remind you that the Waltz of the Flowers comes just before her Grand Pas de Deux in Act II. It opens with a soft, shimmering introduction, a bit like a garden stretching in the morning, and then the waltz swings in and the flowers begin to turn.
Toy Soldiers Reporting for Duty
Now I'll take you back to Act I, where the March is the third number, right after the Scene of the Christmas Tree. It starts with a bright, snappy call, and you can almost see the toy soldiers standing up very straight, hoping nobody notices they were Christmas presents.
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So that's a little tour of the moments in Nutcracker that I'm happiest to share with you. When I think back on them, I'm struck by how much of the magic comes from small things: a tiny hammer striking a metal plate, a waltz that makes flowers turn, a march for toy soldiers. Not every part of the story was easy, either. When the ballet first reached the stage in December 1892, the reception was mixed, and the music was received more kindly than the ballet itself. It still gives me a quiet smile to know that the score outlived all of that and went on to travel far beyond Saint Petersburg. Did you enjoy learning about the best moments of Nutcracker? I hope a few of them stayed with you, and that you'll catch yourself humming one the next time you see a Christmas tree. There is still a lot more to discover in this music. The Waltz of the Snowflakes, the dances of the Act II divertissement and the story of Clara and her Nutcracker-Prince all have their own surprises. If you'd like to keep exploring, I invite you to click on the links provided and see where they lead you. Take your time, listen closely, and let the Land of Sweets welcome you back whenever you like.