Dances
The first dance, which uses no chorus and is sometimes omitted in concerts, is No. 8, entitled "Dance of the Polovtsian Maidens" : presto, 6/8, F major; it is placed directly after the "Chorus of the Polovtsian Maidens," which opens the act and is followed by "Konchakovna's Cavatina". The dances proper appear at the end of the Act as an uninterrupted single number in several contrasting sections listed as follows (basic themes are indicated with letters in brackets and notated in the accompanying illustration)
- No. 17, "Polovtsian Dance with Chorus"
- Introduction: Andantino, 4/4, A Major
- Gliding Dance of the Maidens : Andantino, 4/4, A Major
- Wild Dance of the Men : Allegro vivo, 4/4, F Major
- General Dance : Allegro, 3/4, D Major
- Dance of the Boys and 2nd Dance of the Men : Presto, 6/8, D Minor
- Gliding Dance of the Maidens (reprise, soon combined with the faster dancing of the boys): Moderato alla breve, 2/2, A Major
- Dance of the Boys and 2nd Dance of the Men (reprise): Presto, 6/8, D Minor
- General Dance: Allegro con spirito, 4/4, A Major
As an orchestral showpiece by an important nineteenth-century Russian composer, notable instrumental solos include the clarinet (in No. 8 and the Men's Dance ) and the oboe and English horn (in the Women's Dance ).
Read more about this topic: Polovtsian Dances
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—Rutherford Birchard Hayes (1822–1893)