Description
At sixteenth place in Tchaikovsky's Children's Album, Op. 39, written in 1878, an old French tune is sung in the simplest of settings. The set of twenty-four was prompted by Schumann's Album for the Young and dedicated to his nephew Volodya Davydov. The melody is not Tchaikovsky's own: it derives from a sixteenth-century French chanson, and he later used it again in his opera The Maid of Orleans.
In G minor and duple time, a simple melody is stated twice with a short middle section between. The accompaniment does no more than mark chords quietly, leaving the plainness of the tune intact. The piece runs about a minute, with under 190 notes inside a three-octave span.
There is nothing technically difficult here; a beginner can read it in a day. The task is judging how much to sing a plain melody. Overdo the expression and the folk quality vanishes; do nothing and it lies flat. Choose a single peak for the phrase and move towards it — that alone gives a short song its breath.
Twenty-four piano pieces Tchaikovsky composed in 1878 for children, yet musically rich enough to reward listeners of any age.
Browse all songs in Children's Album →Sheet Music
Sheet music provided by Mutopia Project
What this piece teaches
From Tchaikovsky's Album for the Young, a short piece with a wistful melody to sing out. It is practice in shaping a phrase with changes of volume.
How to practise it
- Grow a little towards the top of each phrase and fall away at its end, as if singing it in one breath.
- The left-hand chords are support. Keep them a level below the melody throughout.
- Loop a phrase you like and try it with slightly different dynamics each time.
About the Composer
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was Russia's foremost Romantic composer, achieving worldwide fame through ballets such as Swan Lake and The Nutcracker. His style blends Western compositional technique with Russian melodic warmth, and his pedagogical piano collection Children's Album remains a beloved favorite. This site includes 7 of his works, including pieces from that collection and The Seasons.
View all works by Tchaikovsky →