Arabian Dance

Pyotr Tchaikovsky was a late 19th century Russian composer who is well known for both his symphonic works and ballets. The Arabian Dance is one of the movements from his Nutcracker Ballet, often separated into an orchestral suite featuring some of the individual dance pieces from the ballet.

This arrangement is for five-part ensemble with three upper harmony parts and two distinct bass lines. The primary melody lines through the piece are carried in the upper two voice parts but do occasionally visit the lower voices with the lowest harmony line switching between melody, harmony, and bass line parts frequently throughout. The two bass lines alternate with carrying a continuous eighth-note line and drone-like notes. The highest voices do push the upper ranges sometimes but the other parts stick to fairly typical ranges. Overall, the piece should be performable by most intermediate groups. There is also a tambourine part for added interest.