Chapter 46 - Listening Guide Quiz 38: Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker, Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy

Listen to the following music excerpts and drag them to the correct location on the image below.

arched lines 0:15 (Green): 2nd pizzicato strings 0:08 (Red):1st solo celesta 0:17 (Yellow): 3rd

Which instrument plays the primary melody in the first section (A) of this dance?

celesta

Which of the following statements correctly describe Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy?

-The strings are played pizzicato in the first section. -The performing ensemble includes a bass clarinet. -It is in three-part form (A-B-A).

Which instruments are heard in the music of the second section (B)?

-celesta -woodwinds -strings

Drag and drop the appropriate words to describe Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy.

Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy is from a set of dances found in Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker, a(n) ballet from 1892. The instrumentation is notable for its use of the celesta, which the composer described as "something between a piano and a glockenspiel, with a divinely beautiful tone." Its bouncy duple meter and staccato melody make the work both mysterious and delightful.

Here is the A section of Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy: (A section 0:24) Here is the B section: (B section 0:15) Fill in the blank below to describe the next section of music, which follows the B section. (music following B section 0:17)

The B section is followed by music that sounds like the A section.

What is the meter of Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy?

duple

Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy has a tempo marking of andante non troppo, which means that is to be performed extremely fast. T/F

false

Which instruments play at the beginning of Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy? (Note that the excerpt is very quiet so you may need to turn up your volume.)

plucked strings