Sabre Dance
Template:Short description Template:About
"Sabre Dance"Template:Efn is an orchestral movement from the final act of Aram Khachaturian's 1942 ballet Gayane, in which dancers display their skill with sabres. It is Khachaturian's most recognizable work worldwide and is considered one of the signature pieces of the 20th century. The composition is a fast-paced work, lasting about two and a half minutes, and incorporates elements of Armenian folk music.
The piece achieved widespread popularity in the United States in 1948, becoming a classical hit with orchestral recordings and a piano version by Oscar Levant and a jukebox sensation with charting versions by pop artists like Woody Herman. It has been widely adapted across genres and instruments, including for violin by Jascha Heifetz, for piano by György Cziffra, and a hit rock cover by Dave Edmunds. Over decades, its extensive use on screen and in popular culture has made it a "global musical shorthand for cartoonish urgency"<ref name="Poole"/> and a staple for variety acts. It is also used in sports, notably as a theme song for the ice hockey team Buffalo Sabres and in figure skating. Khachaturian expressed ambivalence about the piece overshadowing his other works.
Background
"Sabre Dance" appears in Act IV of Gayane,Template:Efn a ballet written by Khachaturian based on his first ballet, Happiness (1939).<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> With a libretto by Konstantin Derzhavin, Gayane premiered on December 9, 1942 at the Perm Opera and Ballet Theatre.Template:Sfn Set on a collective farm (kolkhoz) in Soviet Armenia, it centers on Gayane, a patriotic young woman, and her husband Giko. The drama unfolds when Giko betrays the Soviet regime by joining a band of smugglers and setting fire to the farm. In a mounting frenzy, he nearly kills his wife and daughter before they are rescued by Kazakov, a Red Army border patrol commander. After Giko's capture, Kazakov, who loves Gayane, marries her.<ref name="Biancolli"/> "Sabre Dance" occurs at the wedding party, an "exuberant celebration of folk dance", along with Armenian Shalakho and Uzundara, Caucasian Lezginka, Russian plyaska, and Ukrainian Gopak (Hopak).Template:Sfn<ref name="Biancolli"/>
Khachaturian wrote "Sabre Dance", originally called the Dance of the Kurds, after completing the score of Gayane. He did so at the Kirov Theatre's request,Template:Sfn during its World War II evacuation to Perm (then called Molotov).<ref name="Khach1980"/> He later recounted that it "came into being quite by accident." The director's request for one more dance led the composer to create a contrasting warlike and lyrical piece in just eleven hours, which was then orchestrated, staged, and rehearsed within two days.<ref>Aram Khachaturian, "About the ballet Gayaneh," Nedelya (12 October 1963) in Aram Khachaturian: Articles and Reminiscences, ed. I. E. Popov (Moscow: Soviet Composer, 1980), 132. cited in Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Khach1980"/> He wrote in November 1942 that it "immediately impressed" the orchestra, the dancers, and the audience during a full dress rehearsal. Khachaturian initially wanted to end it in a long and gradual diminuendo, but Nina Anisimova and the dancers persuaded him to end it with a gradual crescendo.Template:Sfn
Several sources of inspiration have been proposed. Soviet musicologist Georgi Tigranov suggested that the piece embodies the "manly and heroic" essence of Armenian male folk dances<ref name="Tigranov"/> and "the fiery temperament [and] raw energy" of "the warlike dances of the Transcaucasian peoples."Template:Sfn Pianist Mariam Kharatyan argues that while "Sabre Dance" is neither inspired by nor musically related to the male martial dance Zinapar from Msho Shoror, a suite transcribed by Komitas, it reflects traits of that folk tradition through Khachaturian's individual style.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Soviet theater critic Yuri Slonimsky suggested that it recalls "Polovtsian Dances" from Alexander Borodin's Prince Igor opera (1890) and Mily Balakirev's Islamey.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Tigranov and Victor Yuzefovich suggested that "Polovtsian Dances" served as a prototype for the piece in terms of energy and "emotional frenzy,"<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> while Steven J. Haller suggested that the "Sword Dance" in Reinhold Glière's 1927 ballet The Red Poppy inspired Khachaturian.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Composition
Template:Listen "Sabre Dance" is a fast-paced (marked Presto)<ref name="Biancolli"/> orchestral work lasting approximately two and a half to three minutes.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Swarsenski">Template:Cite web (first page)</ref> It follows an ABA form with a transition and coda. The opening section presents the main theme. The middle section features woodwind instruments accompanied by timpani drums. The transition features repeated patterns on the xylophone and dramatic sliding effects on the trombones. When the initial theme returns, it is interrupted by a cymbal crash, and then played at an even higher pitch. The work concludes with a descending melodic line followed by an upward climb to the final note.<ref name="charlottesymphony"/>
The orchestration employs an array of percussion instruments, including the tambourine, snare drum,Template:Sfn and particularly the xylophone,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> to emphasize the dance rhythms characteristic of folk music.Template:Sfn The score calls for several specialized woodwind instruments, including piccolo, English horn, and bass clarinet.<ref name="Chetel"/> The harp plays throughout most of the piece, while the celesta appears only in the final three measures.<ref name="Chetel"/>
The brief slower section incorporates Armenian folk music<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> and features a cello solo and alto saxophone.<ref name="Chetel"/> The saxophone, along with violins, violas, and cellos, presents a lyrical melody, enhanced by gentle flute counter-melodies based on a melodic motif from "Kalosi prken",Template:Sfn a folk male dance from the Shirak region.<ref name="Tigranov"/><ref name="Stepanyan"/>Template:Efn Tigranov suggests that the saxophone evokes the distinctive sound of traditional instruments like the duduk and the zurna,Template:Sfn while Tigran Mansurian suggests that its idiom "seems to come straight from America."<ref>In the documentary Khachaturian (2003, directed by Peter Rosen), Tigran Mansurian states at around 33:00: "What an interesting synthesis! He's taken a melody from Gyumri, an Armenian wedding dance tune ... and he's tied in a saxophone counterpoint that seems to come straight from America. The relationship between the two seems so organic, so interesting!"
The film is available online: Template:Cite web</ref>
The ending creates musical tension by combining different musical scales and keys simultaneously.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The work also features elements of polyrhythm, with duple and triple meters overlapping in different instrumental voices.Template:Sfn Pedal points and bass ostinatos heighten the dramatic tension and dynamic intensity.Template:Sfn
Reception and legacy
Jay Nordlinger described "Sabre Dance" as "one of the most famous pieces of music",<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> while NPR's Tom Huizenga called it "one of the catchiest, most familiar—perhaps most maddening—tunes to come out of the 20th century."<ref name="NPR">Template:Cite web</ref> Filmmaker Yusup Razykov, who directed a film about the piece's creation in 2019, dubbed it as "a kind of ringtone of the 20th century."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Sportswriter Bob Ryan called it "one of the great uplifting pieces of music ever written."<ref name="BostonRyan"/> The piece is considered a "warhorse" and a children's favorite.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Efn
The piece, which is his most recognizable,<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> earned Khachaturian a worldwide reputation and continues to define his legacy.<ref name="time68"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Efn He has sometimes been called "Mr. Sabre Dance",<ref name="montreal"/> which he found annoying and unfair.<ref name="Khach1980"/> Khachaturian maintained mixed feelings about the piece. While happy with its Western popularity, Khachaturian wished for more attention to his other works.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 1963, he called it "one unruly and rowdy child in my musical family," adding, "Honestly, if I had known it would gain such popularity and start elbowing aside my other works, I would never have written it!"<ref name="Khach1980"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He felt other melodies in Gayane deserved equal attentionTemplate:Sfn and told an American interviewer, "It's like one button on my shirt, and I have many buttons."<ref name="time68"/><ref>Template:Cite news (archived)</ref> When asked about its popularity by American TV representatives in Moscow, he jokingly responded, "Serves you right!"<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Composer Nikolai Kapustin recalled that Khachaturian was particularly irritated by the casual, whistling performances of the piece, once humorously mimicking such renditions for his close friends.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Noted for its explosive energy and relentless pace,<ref name="Kaptainis"/>Template:Efn "Sabre Dance" was promoted by RCA Victor in 1948 as a "vivid, rampant, passionate orchestral tour de force".<ref name="RCA">Template:Cite journal</ref> Early American critics found the piece "bold and spirited",<ref name="Biancolli"/> conveying a "violent savagery of emotion."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Michael Dervan found it catchy and rhythmically insistent,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> while David Schwartz described it as "raucous, silly, and altogether enjoyable."<ref name="organ"/> Rob Barnett likened it to a roller-coaster ride of escapism.<ref name="Barnett"/> George Loomis suggested it captures Khachaturian's essential qualities: "brash, optimistic, rhythmic, colourful and above all accessible."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Edward Greenfield opined that while "Sabre Dance" may be the most striking of the Gayane dances, "it is far from being the best."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Others have been more critical. Steven J. Haller dismissed it as "a blistering, tub-thumping excess."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> During Khachaturian's 1968 U.S. tour, Time magazine described the piece as a "tuneless orchestral blooey."<ref name="time68"/> Peter G. Davis and Martin Bernheimer called it "infamous" and "obnoxious."<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> Pianist Sviatoslav Richter called it his most hated piece and "a work that stinks to high heaven."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Recordings, arrangements, and covers
Orchestral recordings
After World War II, "Sabre Dance" quickly became a popular classical sensation in the West.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The piece was given an American premiere by Efrem Kurtz and the Kansas City Philharmonic during the 1944–45 season.<ref name="Biancolli"/> At the New York Philharmonic's June 1946 premiere at Lewisohn Stadium, conductor Alexander Smallens encored "Sabre Dance" following prolonged applause.<ref name="Biancolli"/>
In 1948, it reached No. 11 on the U.S. best-selling sheet music charts, No. 9 in Canada, and No. 14 in England.<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> That same year, major American orchestras recorded the piece, including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra conducted by Artur Rodziński,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> the New York Philharmonic conducted by Efrem Kurtz,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> and the Boston Pops Orchestra conducted by Arthur Fiedler.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> The Chicago and New York recordings topped Billboard's classical charts and became top-selling classical releases of the year,<ref name="classical48chart"/> with the Chicago Symphony's version becoming the ensemble's first million-seller.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The piece was concurrently recorded by the "semi-classical" studio orchestras led by Victor Young, Ray Bloch, and Harry Horlick, among others.<ref name="kaput"/><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Notable subsequent recordings include the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra (Fabien Sevitzky, 1953),<ref name="Indianapolis"/> Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (Yuri Temirkanov, 1986),<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> London Symphony Orchestra (Stanley Black, 1989),<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Bolshoi Symphony Orchestra (Alexander Lazarev, 1994),<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and National Symphony Orchestra (Loris Tjeknavorian, 2005).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Instrumental arrangements
Oscar Levant arranged a piano solo version,<ref name="BoydLevant"/> releasing it on Columbia Records in 1948. It reached No. 6 on the year's classical chart.<ref name="classical48chart"/> He performed it frequently on the radio program Kraft Music Hall<ref name="BoydLevant"/> and in the 1949 film The Barkleys of Broadway,<ref name="Barkleys"/> described as "a brazen bit of cross-marketing" that let audiences see him play.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> According to the Current Biography Yearbook, Levant's rendition "received popular attention."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Other notable piano recordings include Benno Moiseiwitsch (1948)<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref><ref name="Barnett"/> and György Cziffra (1954 with the Hungarian Radio),<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> whose version has been called a "madcap overhauling"<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and a "marvel of pianistic aplomb."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Liberace frequently featured it in his 1950s TV and concert performances.<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref>
Violinist Jascha Heifetz created a technically demanding transcription for violin and piano in 1948, which has been called a "brilliant trifle" and "positively over-the-top."<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> Violinist Vanessa-Mae covered a techno-flavoured version by Tolga Kashif in her 2004 album Choreography, which has been well received.<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> The piece has inspired multiple accordion and harmonica arrangements, most notably by Mogens Ellegaard (1959) and Larry Adler (1978), respectively.<ref>{{Unbulleted list citebundle |Template:Cite magazine | Template:Cite web | Template:Cite web | Template:Cite journal</ref> James Galway adapted it for flute, recording it alongside other Khachaturian works with the Royal Philharmonic in 1985.<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> It has been arranged for several folk instruments. These include a bongo version featuring Jack Costanzo in Pete Rugolo's 1955 album Rugolomania,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> a balalaika version by Mikhail Rozhkov,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> which appeared in the 1969 Soviet film Moskva v notakh,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and an arrangement for Armenian instruments shvi and duduk by Ruben Altunyan (1999).<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Popular music covers
In 1948, "Sabre Dance" became a jukebox sensation in the United States<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref>—dubbed the "Khachaturian Year" by Newsweek.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> As the U.S. and the Soviet Union had no reciprocal copyright treaty, the piece was effectively in the public domain<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> and became subject to "elegant plagiarism."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Contemporary audiences embraced it as a novelty,<ref name="Herman95"/> and the recording industry produced multiple competing versions.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Its popularity in the U.S. coincided with the Soviet denunciation of Khachaturian (along with Shostakovich and Prokofiev).<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="kaput"/>
Collectively, various recordings spent 23 weeks on the top 40 of the Cash Box Disc-Hits Box Score,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> peaking No. 1 in May 1948.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Three versions charted on Billboard's Most-Played Juke Box Records: Woody Herman's dance-band foxtrot (arranged by Ralph Burns) reached No. 6,<ref name="Taubman"/><ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> Freddy Martin's instrumental "Sabre Dance Boogie" hit No. 7,<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref>Template:Efn and The Andrews Sisters' vocal rendition (lyrics by Allan Roberts and Lester Lee) with harmonica accompaniment landed at No. 20.<ref name="Herman95"/><ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> Billboard called Martin's version "the most commercial," while Herman's was deemed more authentic.<ref name="BillboardFeb48"/> Described as ravishing, the Andrews Sisters' version was considered extremely challenging to perform vocally, singing at seven syllables a second.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> It was, however, released "a little too late to cash in on the Khatchaturian bonanza."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Welsh guitarist Dave Edmunds' band Love Sculpture released a frenzied blues/psychedelic guitar/bass/drum instrumental version in November 1968Template:RefnTemplate:Efn that propelled them to fame.<ref name="inmusicwetrust">Template:Cite web</ref> Within a month, it sold over 15,000 copies, reached No. 5 in the UK chart, and charted in Switzerland, the Netherlands, and West Germany.Template:Refn The piece became Edmunds' "official guitar showcase piece."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> with Scottish critic Neville calling it "a successful adaptation in pop terms."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Pete Prown and HP Newquist called it "raucous but untraditional,"<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> while Motörhead's Lemmy called it "the fastest thing you've ever heard in your fucking life!"<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Edmunds later called it "the most unlikely hit record", admitting he didn't know why he chose it.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> He rerecorded an updated version for his 1994 album Plugged In, feeling the original was poorly done.<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref>
A number of rock versions have subsequently been released. The Dutch band Ekseption's 1969 recording has been well received.<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> British folk metal band Skyclad's 1996 album Irrational Anthems includes an acclaimed version.<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> Tony Levin offered a progressive rock version in his 2006 album Resonator,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> to mixed reviews.<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> Brian Setzer's orchestra recorded a version based on Edmunds' arrangement in their 2007 album Wolfgang's Big Night Out.<ref>{{Unbulleted list citebundle | Template:Cite news | Template:Cite journal</ref>
Usage in popular culture
On screen
The piece was featured in the 1952 Soviet film Concert of Stars (Концерт мастеров искусств), directed by Aleksandr Ivanovsky and Herbert Rappaport. The performance, with choreography by Nina Anisimova, was by the Kirov (Mariinsky) Ballet. Howard Thompson wrote that "Sabre Dance", with its "electric and supposedly definitive interpretation", is a highlight of the film.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The piece has "invaded every corner of world pop culture,"<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and "become a kind of global musical shorthand for cartoonish urgency"<ref name="Poole"/> and "a kitsch staple of plate-spinning and magic acts."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The piece's popular familiarity has been enhanced by its traditional use as accompaniment by circuses<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="charlottesymphony"/> and on television variety shows, most notably The Ed Sullivan Show when plate spinners appeared.Template:Refn In the Soviet Union, it was popularized with an episode of the animated short Nu, pogodi! (1973).<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref>
"Sabre Dance" has featured in many feature films.Template:Efn In Billy Wilder's One, Two, Three (1961), the piece, adapted by André Previn, is regularly employed to amplify comic effect.<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> In Tengiz Abuladze's Repentance (1987), it is used to inject tension at a key moment.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite web (archived PDF)</ref> In The Hudsucker Proxy (1994), the Coen brothers use it to underscore a rapid montage of the development of the hula hoop.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In Federico Fellini's 8½ (1963) the piece is adapted by Nino Rota as a recurring lighthearted motif,<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> and a parody, also by Rota, appears in Amarcord (1973).<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In Tim Burton's Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985), the main theme, reminiscent of "Sabre Dance", is used to convey whimsical chaos and comic exuberance.<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle </ref> In "A Piano in the House", a 1962 episode of The Twilight Zone, it functions as a musical trigger,<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> while in The Amazing Race 28 (2016), it appears in an episode filmed in Armenia.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
In sports
The piece has also been used prominently in sports. The National Hockey League (NHL) team Buffalo Sabres have used the piece as a theme song since the team was established in 1970.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Sportswriter Bob Ryan found it to be "the greatest piece of intro music in sport."<ref name="BostonRyan"/> After a hiatus, "Sabre Dance" was again made their theme song in 2011,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> specifically using Vanessa-Mae's version.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
"Sabre Dance" has been a recurring choice for figure skating programs, performed by competitors from numerous countries in both national and international events.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Among the most prominent skaters who have performed to the piece are Toller Cranston,<ref>in 1973Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> Scott Hamilton,<ref>Template:Unbulleted list citebundle</ref> Michelle Kwan,<ref>in 1993–94. Template:Cite book</ref> Johnny Weir,<ref>in 1999. Template:Cite web</ref> and Evgeni Plushenko.<ref>in 1999–2000. Template:Cite news
Template:Cite news</ref> The piece has also been used in women-only sports synchronized swimming<ref>performed by Fanny Létourneau & Claire Carver-Dias. Template:Cite news</ref> and rhythmic gymnastics.<ref>the Belarussian team coached by Irina Leparskaya in 2013–14. Template:Cite news</ref>
A snippet of "Sabre Dance" was featured in the 2014 Winter Olympics opening ceremony held in Fisht Olympic Stadium, Sochi, Russia, on February 7.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Between 2010 and 2013, "Sabre Dance" was played at Donbas Arena, the venue of the Ukrainian football club Shakhtar in Donetsk, whenever the Armenian player Henrikh Mkhitaryan scored a goal.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
References
- Notes
- Citations
- Bibliography
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