Christmas with the Master Composers (Part 7) - Analysis of The Nutcracker's "Trepak" by Tchaikovsky

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Hello everyone! This is the next article in my series of analyses for the Christmas season. These articles take a lot to make, and I am slowly realizing that I am going much too slow. I apologize if this seems rushed, but I need to get as much done tonight as possible. Today, we will be looking at my second favorite piece in the Nutcracker suite. I am quite fond of this work, and have enjoyed it for years. So, without any further lolly gagging, let's get into the skeleton of this incredible piece of music!

Analysis

Form

As I have observed in other pieces from this suite, the form is pretty straight forward. I would classify it as rounded binary considering that there is an A section, and a B section which leads back into the A section.

The A section seems to be comprised of an antecedent unit which lands on vii°6/4 and a consequent unit which lands on I6/3.

This A section repeats and is followed by the B section in D major. I will now mention that this is one of the coolest themes in the entire nutcracker. I am in love with it! I am quite fond of themes which utilize bass instruments like this theme uses the bass instruments. It is just so incredible. This section also consists of an antecedent unit which lands on V7 and consequent unit which lands on I (which pivots to become V of G).

After it pivots back to G, it lands on iv/i in what seems to be a retrograde cadence. This cadence is then repeated at gradually faster increments. This is just like throttling the whole orchestra back to G major. It is quite cool!

This then leads back into the A section for one last repeat.
!

At the end, he includes a coda which just builds and builds the excitement.

Orchestration

One cannot discuss Tchaikovsky without discussing orchestration (smart Alecs will point out that Tchaikovsky has solo piano pieces that one can't discuss orchestration for. Tou shaye). Whatever the case, I had the pleasure of sitting on the stage yesterday in a concert where this was played. The first thing I noticed was the sforzando occurring in the horns on beat two of measures two and 4 of the A section's theme. I couldn't help but think about how ingenious it was on Tchaikovsky's part to include the horns in this offsetting of the strong beat. It helps to solidify the decision, and shows the audience that he means for beat 2 to be stronger than beat 1 in these sections.

Rhythmic Ideas

If this piece is about anything, it is about rhythm. The 8th note two sixteenth note figure is prominent throughout the piece, and the whole piece is incredibly designed in how it uses rhythm to perpetuate excitement and exhilaration in the audience.

John Williams

One thing which is interesting is that John Williams borrowed this idea in Home Alone too (if you would like to see the first example, look at the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy article). Listen to this piece from Home Alone, you can hear the same rhythmic idea and similar decisions in regards to orchestration and form. It is quite clear that Williams drew influence from this piece when writing this portion of the Home Alone soundtrack.

I will once again say that this does not bother me. I think it actually shows that John Williams is quite smart as a composer. He is using an established and familiar sound world to invoke the feelings in the audience which he wants.

Harmonics

The harmonics of this piece are actually quite interesting. I often find myself confused by Tchaikovsky's harmonic decisions. They sound good, but sometimes it seems weird (to my feeble mind). One thing I am quite fond of is his use of something similar to Fauxbourdon which is a use of parallel first inversion chords. Tchaikovsky utilizes, within the last four measures of the A theme, parallel 2nd inversion chords (over a pedal point G, and under a pedal point D). I found this quite interesting. I labeled the pedal points with maroon.

I already discussed the retrograde cadence at the end of the B section. But I will just say, that was another one of my favorite harmonic decisions. The iv/i is really surprising, and overall, it produces a very cool sound!

Here is my harmonic analysis of Trepak. Keep in mind that:

Maroon represents a pedal point
Pink represents a voice exchange
and Blue represents a passing tone

Previous Analyses

The Nutcracker Suite
Miniature Overture (12/4)
March (12/6)
Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy (12/8)
*Trepak (12/10)

The Messiah
Overture (12/5)
Comfort Ye. . .Ev'ry Valley (12/7)
And the Glory of the Lord (12/9)

Upcoming Analyses

Thus Saith the Lord. . . But Who May Abide (12/11)

Conclusion

Thanks for reading this! This is a fun little piece. I honestly wish there had been more, but there isn't. I suppose leaving the audience wanting more is better than leaving the audience wanting less. Please remember that feedback is always very much appreciated. I would love to know your thoughts. Please remember to have a nice night! Hopefully I will see you tomorrow!

(Note) In order to encourage meaningful feedback on the platform, I will check comment trails of users who leave superficial comments (ie "Awesome post," or "Upvoted.") and will mute any users who exhibit a pattern of leaving "spammy" comments.