Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy from The Nutcracker Suite” by Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky”
The story was inspired by E.T.A. Hoffmann’s “The Nutcracker and the King Of Mice” and was presented to Tchaikovsky by Marius Petipa who was maître de ballet of the Imperial Theater from Dumas. Tchaikovsky was unmoved by the prospect of writing a ballet for the story and was practically strong-armed into doing so. He was also writing an opera called “Yolanta” at the same time. Work on the ballet was put on hold when Tchaikovsky took a trip to America for the opening of Carnegie Hall. It was there he was introduced to the musical instrument the celeste. This inspired him to write “Sugar Plum Fairy” and finish the piece upon his return so he could introduce the instrument to Russia. Upon its debut, “The Nutcracker” was panned and the opera “Yolanta” was hailed as a great success…
