The Nutcracker, Op. 71 (complete full orchestration) Cover Image

The Nutcracker, Op. 71 (complete full orchestration): Full Orchestra, Oversized Score

$450.00 USD
$450.00 USD
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The Nutcracker, Op. 71 (complete full orchestration) Cover Image
The Nutcracker, Op. 71 (complete full orchestration): Full Orchestra, Oversized Score

The Nutcracker, Op. 71 (complete full orchestration): Full Orchestra, Oversized Score

By Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky/ Libretto adapted from E. T. A. Hoffmann's 1816 short story "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King"

Item: 36-A217501OS
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Description
The Nutcracker is a two-act "fairy ballet" written by Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky (1840-1893). Based on E. T. A. Hoffmann's 1816 short story, "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King," the original 1892 production, choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov in Saint Petersburg, was not considered a success, although the 20-minute suite extracted by the composer was. Starting in the 1960s, the popularity of the full ballet has grown enormously, with frequent performances every Christmas season among the major ballet companies. Instrumentation: 3(2&3dPicc).2+EH.2+BCl.2: 4.2.3.1: Timp.Perc(3-4).Toy Drum: Toy Tpt: Hp(2).Clst: Str (4-4-3-3-3 in set): Childrens Chorus (available separately). This is the complete ballet in its original orchestration. Reduced orchestrations are also available from Edwin F. Kalmus. 11x14 oversized full score.

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Additional Details
Series: Kalmus Oversized Score Library
Publisher: Keiser Productions, Inc.
ISBN10: 8-89-563703-8
ISBN13: 979-889-563-7036
UPC: 612735858896
SKU: 36-A217501OS
Instrumentation: 3(2&3dPicc).2+EH.2+BCl.2: 4.2.3.1: Timp.Perc(3-4).Toy Drum: Toy Tpt: Hp(2).Clst: Str (4-4-3-3-3 in set): Childrens Chorus

More about this title

About the Composer: Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky

Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky (1840–1893) stands as Russia's most celebrated composer, bridging nineteenth-century romanticism with distinctly Russian musical identity. His gifts for orchestration, melodic invention, and emotional directness made him a master of large-scale forms; his ballets, symphonies, and concertos remain central to the concert repertoire and educational canon worldwide.

Tchaikovsky's approach to orchestration influenced generations of composers and conductors. His ability to write idiomatically for every section of the orchestra, combined with his gift for memorable melody, makes his scores invaluable teaching tools for understanding how orchestral color serves narrative and emotional content.

Why we love this

This complete orchestration captures one of the world's most performed ballets in its original, richly detailed form. Conductors treasure the score for its transparency, elegant voice-leading, and brilliant use of the orchestra; it remains endlessly rewarding to study, conduct, and perform. The Nutcracker's mix of dazzling showpieces, intimate character dances, and sweeping dramatic moments gives orchestras of varying experience levels something substantive to explore.

What to expect

The Nutcracker unfolds as a journey from the intimate, magical wonder of a child's Christmas Eve dream into a cascade of exotic dances and grand orchestral spectacle. Tchaikovsky's orchestra breathes with elegance and color; delicate passages shimmer alongside triumphant brass chorales, and every transition feels inevitable yet surprising.

Who it's for

Conductors leading established orchestras, regional ballet companies, university ensembles, and advanced high school orchestras will find this score essential for mounting full productions or concert performances of the complete ballet. It serves directors who want to study Tchaikovsky's original orchestration in detail or who need the authoritative full score for performance, recording, or educational purposes.

How to get the most out of it

  • Coordinate the two harps carefully in passages where they double or answer each other; their rhythmic precision anchors harmonic and textural clarity.
  • Balance the toy trumpet and toy drum with the rest of the orchestra in the Battle scene; these instruments should cut through without dominating.
  • Shape the famous "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" celesta line with the utmost clarity; allow the surrounding orchestration to support rather than obscure it.
  • When children's chorus enters, ensure diction is clean and confidence is built through separate rehearsals with that section before full orchestra calls.

How to use it

Program this as a full evening work during the December concert season, or extract individual acts and suites for concert performances when full ballet production is not feasible. The score also serves as a definitive study text for conducting students and orchestration classes seeking to understand late nineteenth-century Russian orchestral practice.

Skills your students will build

  • Reading complex full scores with multiple staves and transposing instruments
  • Conducting sustained phrase lines across diverse orchestral sections
  • Balancing solo instruments and choral elements within a large ensemble texture
  • Interpreting Tchaikovsky's expressive markings and understanding Russian romantic style
  • Coordinating specialized instruments (harps, celesta, toy percussion) with conventional orchestration

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