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Rhythm
The rhythmic form of "Dance of the
Cygnets" is AABB Coda . The
meter of the piece is 4/4 and is consistent throughout. Theme A has a driving
energy that compels the piece with the ostinati towards Theme B, where
it gains more energy with the syncopated accompaniment and melody. Theme
A is played again with its diving energy which speeds up at the coda to
almost a rushing feeling that finally ends on two very strong beats. Syncopation
is mainly found in Theme B in the second violin and viola, and also in
the melody of Theme B which is apparent because
of the accented notes. There are two rhythmic ostinati found in Theme A
that are played by the bassoons and cellos .
Theme A has two rhythmic themes. Theme a is:
Theme b is:
Likewise Theme B also has two rhythmic themes within it. Theme a is:
Theme b is:
The last rhythm is also found in
the coda.
Melody
Throughout the piece, the key is
f# minor and does not change in any of the themes. The contour of the piece
has a lot of static notes with some leaps and
steps in-between the next set of static notes. However, the melody is primarily
stagnant or stepwise, and very few leaps
are found . Theme A’s melodic form is a stagnant notes followed by some
steps and then leaps. Theme B’s contour form is stagnant notes followed
by leaps, steps, and more leaps. The coda has a contrasting contour because
it is made of a combination of steps and leaps. There are various phrases
within each theme. Theme A has two phrases (Phrase 1,
Phrase 2) that are made of four measures. There
is no real antecedent or consequence to the phrase but rather the whole
melody is a statement with the reply entwined within
it in the harmony . The first phrase has the same melodic pattern played
the first time starting on A4 and then the second time through moving up
a step to B4. The second phrase is the exact same notes played two times.
Theme B also has two phrases made of four measures (Phrase
1, Phrase 2). The first phrase starts on C#5
and then moves down to B4. Each time phrase two is played there is a variation
in the last measure. In this section there is no consequence or antecedent.
The coda is made of two phrases of two measures with a slight variation
between the two phrases (Phrase 1, Phrase
2).
Harmony
The texture of Theme A is very light. The only harmony is the two ostinati playing in the bassoon and cello parts underneath the melody . The harmony of Theme B is fuller than Theme A because of the short, constant notes. Likewise, the coda’s texture is very full with constant chords being played in all the voices. There is not much difference between the harmony and melody in Theme A because staccato and pizzicato notes are being played on Do and So in the bassoons and Do in the cellos. The ending cadence of Theme A is an f# minor which is the tonic chord. The first phrase of Theme B ends on the tonic chord, and the second phrase of theme B changes and ends on the dominant chord. The second time Theme B is played, the first phrase ends on the tonic chord, but this time Theme B’s second phrase also ends on the tonic chord.
Form
The form of "Dance of the Cygnets"
is AABB’BB’’AA Coda. There are also sectional forms within each theme.
The sectional form in Theme A is aabb
(m2, m4), in Theme B aba’c
, Theme B’ aba’c’, Theme B’’ aba’c’’,
and in the coda aa’. These themes are repeated within each section. Theme
A is repeated twice, then Theme B is repeated three times with variations
each time through, and finally the coda is played once. There is no contrast
in Theme A when it is played through the second time. However, each time
Theme B is played there are differences in the endings of each phrase.
The second time Theme B is
played, the ending chord is the dominant chord of f# minor. The third time
through, Theme B is played with no changes. The final
time Theme B is played the phrase ends on the tonic chord in f# minor.
Expressive Elements
The instrumentation is for a typical orchestra: flutes, piccolos, clarinets, trombones, etc… Throughout the whole piece the dynamic level does not get louder than piano except at the ending cadence where the dynamic level is forte for a strong finish to the piece. Other than those few markings there are no other crescendos, decrescendos, or markings of that type found in the piece. Rather the dynamic flow is at the discretion of the conductor as long as the given dynamic boundaries are followed. The tempo marking is Allegro Moderato throughout the piece with no written changes. The rhythms of the different themes create a sense of tempo change that occurs without the use of a new tempo marking. The articulation throughout the piece is a combination of staccato and legato notes. Also used are pizzicato notes in the string section and accented notes in the melody.
The Work
"Dance of the Cygnets" is from the ballet Swan Lake by Tchaikovsky. This piece was commissioned by the Imperial Theater in May 1875. This was the first ballet that was considered "musical". Before Swan Lake ballets consisted of a series of dances connected by vague plots, not musical ideas. Tchaikovsky constructed his ballet with extended quasi-symphonic movements that were unified by a system of structured themes and keys. When SwanLake was first released it was considered a failure because the greatest choreographers of the time could not create dance steps for the music even when they tried to rewrite parts. It was not until decades later that movements were coincided with the music and it was viewed as a ballet not just a musical piece. During this time nationalism was popular. Nationalism is a composer, writer, etc… took ideas from his native country and employed them into his work. For example, a German composer may write a piece of theme and variation for a German folk song. Tchaikovsky was not an adamant proponent of nationalism even though he did include some "Russian ideas" he went his own path and created music that was very tuneful. For this his music was not very popular during his time, but rather years later they became regular repertoire (Staines, 426)
The Composer
Pyotr Il’Yich Tchaikovsky was born
in 1840 in Russia. At a young age his parents taught him piano pieces and
theory, but it was not until the age of 22 that he entered the city music
conservatory and studied with Anton Rubenstein. During his life time he
completed seven symphonies including Symphony No. 4, Romeo and
Juliet, Symphony No. 6- "The Pathetique", and "The 1812 Overture".
He also completed no less than ten operas, but only The Queen of Spades
and Eugene Onegin became regular repertoire. Tchaikovsky wrote five
concertos for violin and piano, and chamber music for string quartets,
orchestra, voice, chamber ensembles. However, some of Tchaikovsky’s greatest
works were his ballets Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, and
The Nutcracker, which revolutionized ballets of the time. Tchaikovsky
was a good friend with Balakirev who was a renowned nationalistic composer.
Unlike Balakirev, Tchaikovsky was not interested with nationalism and he
stayed true to what he felt his pieces should employ, not what they were
expected to be. Tchaikovsky died November 2, 1893 of now considered suspicious
circumstances. At the time he was said to have committed suicide. However,
in the 1970’s a Russian scholar looked at his death and found that a few
days earlier her was summoned by the "court of honor" because of a scandalous
act, and ordered to commit suicide (Staines,
428).
If you enjoyed "Dance of the Cygnets" here is an active
listening lesson plan for you to use and a quiz!!
Lesson Plan
Also, if you would like to learn more about Peter Tchiakovsky
the person/composer the following web pages will tell you more about him.
Want to learn more about the ballet Swan Lake?
Or Midi files to listen to other works by Peter Tchaikovsky?
