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Swan Lake, Op. 20a: Suite [critical ed.]: Full Orchestra, Ensemble Works, Score and Parts (EDWIN F KALMUS)

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Swan Lake, Op. 20a: Suite [critical ed.] Cover Image
Swan Lake, Op. 20a: Suite [critical ed.]: Full Orchestra, Ensemble Works, Score and Parts (EDWIN F KALMUS)

Swan Lake, Op. 20a: Suite [critical ed.]: Full Orchestra, Ensemble Works, Score and Parts (EDWIN F KALMUS)

By Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky, ed. Carl Simpson

Item: 36-A218502
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Swan Lake, Op. 20a: Suite [critical ed.]: Full Orchestra, Ensemble Works, Full Score (EDWIN F KALMUS)

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Description
While the original ballet, the story of Prince Siegfried's love for the Swan Queen, enchanted by the evil magician Rotbart to turn into a swan everyday, more or less succeeded at its 1877, Moscow premiere, Tchaikovsky was very concerned that the music be saved from the oblivion common to ballet scores. Inspired by the French composer Delibes, he thought to create a concert suite of the music. No further correspondence on the idea exists, but a Swan Lake Suite, Op. 20a was published seven years after Tchaikovsky's death in 1900, containing six numbers from the ballet, though it remains uncertain whether they were selected by the composer or someone else, leaving the exact authorship of the suite unknown. This edition offered by Carl Simpson pulls from multiple sources and restores the final movement to its rightful place at the end while retaining three wonderful dance movements that were added to a later Soviet score, bringing the number of movements to nine, though it may performed as the original suite of six movements merely by omitting the additional three movements from performance. Movements: 1. Scene, 2. Valse, 3. Danse de Cygnes, 4. Pas d'Action, 5. Czardas - Danse Hongroise, 6. Danse Espagnole, 7. Danse Napolitaine, 8. Mazurka, 9. Scene et Finale. Instrumentation: 2+Picc.2.2.2: 4.2+2Crnt.3.1: Timp.Perc (3): Hp: Str (9-8-7-6-5 in set). This newly engraved critical edition is by Carl Simpson.

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Additional Details
Series: Kalmus Critical Editions
Publisher: Keiser Productions, Inc.
UPC: 660355004995
SKU: 36-A218502
Instrumentation: 2+Picc.2.2.2: 4.2+2Crnt.3.1: Timp.Perc (3): Hp: Str (9-8-7-6-5 in set)

More about this title

About the Composer: Peter Tchaikovsky

Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) stands as one of the most performed composers in the concert repertoire, yet his path to musical authority was unconventional. Trained at the St. Petersburg Conservatory and later a professor at the Moscow Conservatory, he composed across all genres while navigating the competing demands of Russian nationalist aesthetics and Western European forms. His symphonies, concertos, and ballets remain cornerstones of orchestral education, prized for their emotional directness, melodic generosity, and masterful orchestration.

Tchaikovsky's three ballets—Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, and The Nutcracker—transformed ballet music from accompaniment into concert art. He understood that ballet scores deserved the same compositional rigor and symphonic development as symphonies, and his orchestrations became models for how to blend color, drama, and dance within a single coherent work. This Swan Lake suite reflects that conviction: music originally written to serve choreography became concert repertoire capable of standing entirely on its own.

Why we love this

This critical edition gives you control over length and scope without sacrificing Tchaikovsky's orchestration. The original six-movement suite structure remains available while the added three movements (Danse Napolitaine, Mazurka, and a rearranged finale) offer flexibility for different concert contexts and ensemble strengths. Carl Simpson's editorial work restores textual integrity while keeping the music performable at multiple difficulty levels, making this far more useful than a fixed edition.

What to expect

Elegant Russian salon music meets full symphonic color. The ballet's dramatic narrative dissolves into a series of elegant dances and dramatic interludes, each movement a distinct character study. Tchaikovsky's gift for melody shines throughout, supported by his signature lush orchestration and harmonic language that feels both Romantic and distinctly Russian.

Who it's for

Orchestras and conducting programs seeking substantial Romantic-era repertoire that balances melodic accessibility with real orchestral challenge. This suite works equally well for community orchestras aiming to tackle concert-grade material and college orchestras building historical literacy around major compositional figures.

How to get the most out of it

  • Balance the harp part carefully in the Valse; Tchaikovsky uses it to anchor harmonic transitions, but it should support rather than dominate the string lines.
  • The three percussion players must coordinate cues precisely, especially in the Czardas and the finale where rhythmic clarity drives the energy forward.
  • Shape the woodwind doublings in the Danse de Cygnes with attention to phrase architecture; the flutes and oboes often pass thematic material between them across several measures.
  • Establish a clear conducting gesture for the Scene movements to guide the ensemble through orchestration shifts and key areas that Tchaikovsky modulates through rapidly.

How to use it

Program the original six-movement suite as a standalone concert work that fills a full program slot, or excerpt selected movements (particularly the Valse and Danse de Cygnes) alongside other Tchaikovsky pieces for a thematic concert. The suite also serves as an ideal stepping stone between lighter Romantic repertoire and the full ballet, introducing orchestras to Tchaikovsky's sound world without the length and complexity of the complete score.

Skills your students will build

  • Reading extended Romantic-era orchestrations with frequent doublings and dynamic layering
  • Coordinating independent wind, brass, and percussion parts that move at different rates
  • Balancing solo passages (harp, principal woodwinds, solo strings) against full ensemble textures
  • Managing key modulations and harmonic rhythm in extended dance movements
  • Responding to flexible conducting gestures in scenes with rubato and dramatic pacing shifts

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