This or That? Tchaikovsky or Silvestri

At our house lately we’ve been immersed in the music of the Nutcracker! Last week my girls performed in their first ever Nutcracker ballet. I’ve had Tchaikovsky’s beautiful music running through my head over and over as I’ve helped them get ready and watched several performances. I have a newfound appreciation for this music and this incredible composer!

I decided that some of this iconic Christmas music from the beloved ballet should be a part of this month’s Mini Music History resources! And with Christmas break upon us, I thought I’d send these out a little early this month in case you need some fun Christmas music history activities 🙂

I noticed a really cool similarity between the Arabian Dance from Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker, and “Seeing is Believing” from Alan Silvestri’s score to the film The Polar Express.

Take a listen!

With this month’s “This or That?” freebie, your students will listen to both pieces and decide which one they like the best! Along the way they can listen for similarities, read a little bit about each composer and learn some music history.

I have two other Mini Music History resources to help learn more about Tchaikovsky and Silvestri. Shop all Mini Music History resources here.