“The Nutcracker” premiered, in its full ballet form, in 1892 in St Petersburg; a set of miniatures to which Tchaikovsky provided the score. Though the ballet was a flop originally, the music – delightfully witty, light, and adventurous – gained huge popularity as a suite in its own right. It was only later that the ballet performances gained popularity, on the back of Tchaikovsky’s memorable and enchanting music. Here a selection of the most well-known of those miniatures, in the sort of form that initially gained the music its popularity, is put into the hands of a saxophone ensemble, who have the opportunity for glistening nimbleness and furiously rompish fun. Tchaikovsky’s taste for orchestral colour can also be serviced with a range of extra parts for those more “colourful” saxophones at the higher and lower ends!

Although written with an SSAATTBB line-up in mind, this arrangement comes with optional Soprillo, Sopranino, Alto 3, Tenor 3 and Bass saxophone parts. There is also an optional percussion part for Tambourine and Glockenspiel included.

The E-Edition PDF bundle comes with the following parts:

Standard parts
Soprano Saxophone 1
Soprano Saxophone 2
Alto Saxophone 1
Alto Saxophone 2
Tenor Saxophone 1
Tenor Saxophone 2
Baritone Saxophone 1
Baritone Saxophone 2

Optional parts
Soprillo Saxophone
Sopranino Saxophone
Alto Saxophone 3
Tenor Saxophone 3
Bass Saxophone
Percussion (Tambourine & Glockenspiel)

“Selections from the Nutcracker Suite” is also available in hard-copy from June Emerson Wind Music.