Suite No. 3 in G, Op. 55: Conductor Score & Parts

$300.00 USD

Suite No. 3 in G, Op. 55: Conductor Score & Parts

Name: Suite No. 3 in G, Op. 55: Conductor Score & Parts
Brand: Alfred Music
SKU: 36-A243602
Price: 300.00 USD
Availability: InStock

By Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky

Item: 36-A243602

$300.00

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The longest and best known of his four orchestral suites, SUITE NO. 3 in G Major, Op. 55 was written and orchestrated between April and July 1884. Unoriginally uncertain if his new large scale work would be best approached as a symphony or a piano concerto, Tchaikovsky eventually settled on a third orchestra suite after a walk in his garden on April day. Originally intended to have five movements, the intended first movement caused the composer so much consternation that he eventually rejected it altogether and opted for a four-movement suite instead, though he used the material from the rejected first movement - "Contrastes" - in his CONCERT FANTASIA for piano and orchestra, which he began while still orchestrating SUITE NO. 3. The suite was received warmly by concertgoers at the January 24th, 1885 premiere in Saint Petersburg, Russia, under the baton of Hans von Bülow. Following the premiere, Tchaikovsky wrote to his patroness that "reality far exceeded my expectations. I have never before experienced such a triumph. I saw that then entire mass of the audience was moved, and grateful to me. These moments are the finest adornment of the artist's life. Thanks to these it is worth living and laboring." In 1970, co-founder and founding choreographer of the New York City Ballet, George Balanchine, created a ballet set to the music of SUITE NO. 3. Instrumentation: 3(3dPicc).2+EH.2.2: 4.2.3.1: Timp.Perc(2-3): Hp: Str(9-8-7-6-5).

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Series: Kalmus Orchestra Library

Publisher: Keiser Productions, Inc.

UPC: 735816081577

SKU: 36-A243602

Instrumentation: 3(3dPicc).2+EH.2.2: 4.2.3.1: Timp.Perc(2-3): Hp: Str(9-8-7-6-5)

More about this title

About the Composer: Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky

Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) ranks among the most performed composers in the orchestral repertoire, bridging Romantic expression with rigorous formal structure. A conservatory-trained symphonist who later became one of Russia's most celebrated national composers, Tchaikovsky wrote four orchestral suites across his career, each showcasing his gift for orchestration and his ability to craft movements that balance structural integrity with direct emotional appeal.

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Why we love this

This is Tchaikovsky at his most generous with the orchestra. The score demands secure ensemble playing and intonation from all sections, but it rewards that discipline with some of the most grateful orchestral writing in the repertoire. The warm reception at its 1885 premiere was no accident; Suite No. 3 combines accessible lyricism with genuine structural sophistication, making it engaging for audiences while offering conductors and musicians substantial musical challenges.

What to expect

Suite No. 3 unfolds with the confidence of a composer fully in command of large-scale orchestration. The music moves between moments of lyrical warmth and structural ambition, with the strings carrying much of the emotional weight while woodwinds, brass, and harp add color and harmonic richness. It feels both intimate and grand, intimate in its melodic generosity and grand in its orchestral scope.

Who it's for

This conductor score and parts set serves orchestras with strong string sections and balanced woodwind and brass forces who are ready for the technical and musical demands of a mature Romantic masterwork. It suits advanced high school orchestras, college ensembles, and professional community orchestras seeking a substantial concert work that showcases both ensemble discipline and expressive maturity.

How to get the most out of it

Balance the harp parts carefully; they often provide harmonic foundation rather than solo color, so they need presence without overriding the strings.
Attend to the dialogue between woodwind choirs and strings in the slower movements. Each entrance should feel conversational rather than layered, which requires clear articulation and precise rhythm from the winds.
The percussion parts (timpani and triangle primarily) mark structural and emotional moments rather than drive the texture. Restraint and precision serve the music better than projection.
Use the conductor score to map the harmonic progressions in advance. Tchaikovsky's modulatory schemes can sound seamless only if the tempo relationships and weight shifts between sections are intentional.

How to use it

Program Suite No. 3 as a centerpiece in a concert exploring Russian orchestral tradition or 19th-century Romantic orchestration. Its substantial length and musical weight position it well as a major work on a program with shorter contemporary or contrasting pieces. It also pairs naturally with Tchaikovsky's other concert works or with repertoire by Russian contemporaries.

Skills your students will build

Balancing independent string parts within a full orchestral texture
Sustaining long-lined playing with consistent tone and intonation across multiple sections
Executing rapid scalar passages in woodwind and brass with clarity and ensemble precision
Responding to subtle tempo and dynamic shifts that shape Romantic harmonic progression
Maintaining rhythmic control during extended passages with complex harp and percussion accompaniment