''Variations on a Theme by Tchaikovsky'', Op. 35a, a piece for

string orchestra A string orchestra is an orchestra consisting solely of a string section made up of the bowed strings used in Western Classical music. The instruments of such an orchestra are most often the following: the violin, which is divided into first a ...

Anton Arensky Anton Stepanovich Arensky (; – ) was a Russian composer of Romantic classical music, a pianist and a professor of music. Biography Arensky was born into an affluent, music-loving family in Novgorod, Russia. He was musically precocious and ha ...

, started out as the slow movement of his String Quartet No. 2 in A minor, Op. 35, for the unusual scoring of violin, viola, and 2 cellos. It was written in 1894, the year after the death of

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popula ...

, in a tribute to that composer.Classical Archives
/ref> It is based on the theme from the song "''

Legend A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess certain qualities that give the ...

''", the fifth of Tchaikovsky's ''Sixteen Children's Songs'', Op. 54. Tchaikovsky's song was originally set to a Russian translation by Aleksey Pleshcheyev of a poem in English called "Roses and Thorns" by the American poet Richard Henry Stoddard.Sonic Labyrinth
/ref>Richard D. Sylvester, Tchaikovsky's complete songs: a companion with texts and translations
/ref> At the first performance of the quartet, the slow movement was so well received that Arensky soon arranged it as a separate piece for string orchestra, Op. 35a, in which form it has remained among the most popular of all Arensky's works.

Structure

After Tchaikovsky's theme is heard, the piece has seven

Variations Variation or Variations may refer to: Science and mathematics * Variation (astronomy), any perturbation of the mean motion or orbit of a planet or satellite, particularly of the moon * Genetic variation, the difference in DNA among individual ...

followed by a Coda, set out as follows (mostly in the key of

E minor E minor is a minor scale based on E, consisting of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has one sharp, on the F. Its relative major is G major and its parallel major is E major. The E natural minor scale is: Change ...

): * Theme, Moderato * Variation I, Un poco più mosso - * Variation II, Allegro non troppo - Starting with a sudden chord, the theme is heard in the lower strings. * Variation III, Andantino tranquillo - Now in

E major E major is a major scale based on E, consisting of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has four sharps. Its relative minor is C-sharp minor and its parallel minor is E minor. Its enharmonic equivalent, F-flat maj ...

, the theme is taken up by the

first violin The concertmaster (from the German ''Konzertmeister''), first chair (U.S.) or leader (UK) is the principal first violin player in an orchestra (clarinet or oboe in a concert band). After the conductor, the concertmaster is the most significant ...

s. * Variation IV, Vivace - This is a lively movement dominated by the offbeat

pizzicato Pizzicato (, ; translated as 'pinched', and sometimes roughly as 'plucked') is a playing technique that involves plucking the strings of a string instrument. The exact technique varies somewhat depending on the type of instrument: * On bowe ...

* Variation V, Andante * Variation VI, Allegro con spirito * Variation VII, Andante con moto * Coda: Moderato - This is a reprise of the theme, with

harmonics In physics, acoustics, and telecommunications, a harmonic is a sinusoidal wave with a frequency that is a positive integer multiple of the ''fundamental frequency'' of a periodic signal. The fundamental frequency is also called the ''1st harm ...

in the first 2 measures.

References

{{Authority control 1894 compositions Compositions for string orchestra Composer tributes (classical music)

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popular ...

Compositions by Anton Arensky Arrangements of compositions by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Structure

See also

References