Polovtsian Dances (ダッタン人の踊り Dattanjin no Odori), or Polovetsian Dances is a piece composed by Alexander Borodin as the end of act 2 of his opera Prince Igor. The piece was later made into an arrangement for concert band, and was played by Minami Junior High School's concert band as their free-choice piece in the All-Japan Band Competition.
Scoring[]
The piece, in 4/4, begins with a slow, sweet melody lead by the oboe, flute, and clarinet, carried by repeating half-notes in the horn and harp. It moves to the piece's famous oboe solo, played by Mizore Yoroizuka, shortly after handed to the alto saxophone in place of the original English horn. Succeeding these, the flutes pick up the same melody as the oboe, while the basses provide a stronger foundation. The section eventually comes to a close featuring a short oboe solo. This part of the piece is heard in the main series of Hibike! Euphonium.
The tone then shifts, now much faster and intense. The section begins with trombones and other low instruments establish a bass line, shortly before a difficult clarinet solo takes the lead. Following this, the piccolo and flute repeat the same melody in a call-and-response, while the horns establish a countermelody. Clarinets and saxophones then take on the melody, while the flutes play the horn's countermelody, then flutes join the clarinets in the melody, while the trombones bring on a bright, loud countermelody. The section suddenly shifts to a more muted tone, and features a call-and-response between multiple parts, still featuring the same melody, eventually building up to the end of the section as a whole.
Now in 3/4, the section begins with a short timpani solo that quickly builds in volume, before exploding into a high energy full-ensemble melody minus basses, which, alongside bass drum and timpani, provide an accented note on the first beat of each bar. This is shortly followed by a soprano-range melody with a sustained chord in other parts. This section repeats itself. It is followed by a melody shared by saxophones, bass clarinet, and bassoon, before repeating the first two sections twice. The section is then quieted, though a suspenseful atmosphere remains, as a variety on the section's main theme is played. This part goes on for some time until repeating the first part of the section, though altered near its end as the section as a whole reaches its conclusion.
Switching to 6/8, the section enters with a short, repeating line in various instruments, continuing while the trombone and bassoon introduce another short, repeating part. The clarinets, flutes, oboe, and piccolo enter a call-and-response before several instruments begin downward runs as the tension builds up, eventually exploding similarly to the previous section. This high intensity is maintained through several melodies in different instruments. It eventually returns to the section's original introduction, this time in a different key and different instruments playing different parts. Shortly after, variations on melodies in the second part are heard, gradually quieting down, until reverting to the oboe's solo in the first section of the piece, played on flute, and afterward the alto saxophone solo. The piece continues like in the first section, but it includes parts heard in the introduction of the fourth section's call-and-response intro on top of the main melody, creating a sort of amalgamation.
The section slows down gradually, until transitioning into the introduction of the fourth section, once again building up to an explosion. Variations on the fourth section's preceding melodies are introduced, following the same general pattern. Suddenly, the piece transitions to the melody of the second section at a much faster pace and in a different key. Succeeding this, an original melody is introduced, the piece now somewhat muted though still fast-paced. Gradually it gains volume as more layers are introduced, eventually transitioning to a section featuring the second section's melodies, before an intense finale to the piece.
Instrumentation[]
- Piccolo
- Flute 1, 2
- E♭ Clarinet
- B♭ Clarinet 1, 2, 3
- E♭ Alto Clarinet
- B♭ Bass Clarinet
- E♭ Alto Saxophone 1, 2
- B♭ Tenor Saxophone
- E♭ Baritone Saxophone
- B♭ Trumpet 1, 2, 3
- F Horn 1, 2, 3, 4
- Trombone 1, 2, 3
- Euphonium
- Tuba
- Double Bass
- Harp
- Timpani
- Snare Drum
- Bass Drum
- Crash Cymbals
- Triangle
- Tambourine
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