The Chinese Dance by Tchaikovsky as classical piece of music?

Question by All I Want For Christmas Is You!: Is the Chinese Dance by Tchaikovsky as classical piece of music?
For school we have to do this paper on what we hear in a piece of music. This week we have to do a classical piece of music and I really want to do something from the Nutcracker and I would REALLY like to do the Chinese Dance but I’m not sure if it’s classical or not.

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Answer by del_icious_manager
Yes, it is most definitely ‘classical’ (with a small ‘c’) in the generic sense of the word. It does not come from the ‘Classical’ (large ‘C’) period (approx 1750-1820), but the ‘Romantic’ period (approx 1820-1910). However, most people mean ‘classical’ music to mean all Western art music.

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Comments ( 2 )

Alberich says

In the BROADEST sense of the term "classical", yes; in the STRICTEST, no.

You will note from the following article, Tchaikovsky lived from 1840 – 1893.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tchaikovsky

This article is about "Western Art Music"(what most refer to when they employ the term "classical"). If you look to the right, there's a "box" listing the different periods of W.A.M.; and that defined as the "classical" period, covers the era of from 1730 to 1820:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_music_(dis…

So that presuming this assignment to be authoritative, Tchaikovsky would not be considered a "classical" composer; but most, do not relate to him in this strictest – or as "del_icio…" phrased it, "generic" – sense; but rather by and large, considered him to be a so called "classical" composer.

But the bottom line, we are each our own arbiter.

Alberich

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i. jones says

Yup. The whole of the Nutcracker Ballet is in the Classical repertoire

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