Par TCHAIKOVSKI PIOTR ILITCH. The Nutcracker Suite is a piano arrangement of the concert version of the ballet of that name. Tchaikovsky used only part of the music for the ballet in the suite. The Overture, and the March which is the most important of the characteristic dances in the Suite, come from the first act of the ballet. The remaining dances originate from the second act. They are: The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, in which the leading part is, in the original composition, played typically by the celeste almost all the way through; the fiery Russian 'Trepak' which reminds us of Tchaikovsky's national origins; the Arab Dance tinged with a gentle melancholy; the Chinese Dance with its tripping ostinato rhythm; the graceful Dance of the Reed Flutes; and finally the longest piece in the Suite: the Waltz of the Flowers in which Tchaikovsky, writing in the penultimate year of his life, showed his musical affinity with Johann Strauss. The Nutcracker Suite was perfomed for the first time, with great success, on 7 March 1892 at the Ninth Symphony Concert of the Russian Musical Society in St Petersburg./ Répertoire / Piano 4 Mains

Alfred's Basic Piano Library offers nine perfectly graded beginning series which are designed to prepare students of all ages for a successful musical learning experience. This duet book is correlated with the corresponding level of Alfred's Piano Library but the pieces are written in a manner which makes them highly adaptable to almost any other method.

This flirtatious duet has energetic and vigorous rhythms but leans toward a light elegance with its modest dynamics. First published for string orchestra in 1883 Serenade became quite popular in France and was published forpiano duet in 1905. The composer Gabriel Pierne (1863- 1937) studied at the Paris Conservatory from age 8 until his graduation at age 19. His teachers included Cesar Franck (organ) and Massenet (composition). Audiences willenjoy hearing Serenade almost as much as the duet performers will love performing it!