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Flight of the Bumblebee

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The music of this number recurs in modified form during the ensuing tableau (Act III, Tableau 2), at the points when the Bumblebee appears during the scene: it stings the two evil sisters on the brow, blinds Babarikha (the instigator of the plot to trick Saltan at the beginning into sending his wife
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The piece closes Act III, Tableau 1, during which the magic Swan-Bird changes Prince Gvidon Saltanovich (the Tsar's son) into an insect so that he can fly away to visit his father (who does not know that he is alive). Although in the opera the Swan-Bird sings during the first part of the "Flight",
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or range of the notes that are played that challenges the musician, but simply the musician's ability to move to them quickly enough. Because of this and its complexity, it requires a great deal of skill to perform. Often in popular culture, it is thought of as being notoriously hard to play.
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uninvolved and easily omitted; this feature, combined with the fact that the number decisively closes the scene, made easy extraction as an orchestral concerto piece possible.
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In the "Tsar Saltan" suite, the short version is commonly played, taking less than two minutes. In the Opera version, the three-minute fifty-five-second version is performed.
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both of which are associated with Prince Gvidon from earlier in the opera. These are illustrated here in
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is intended to musically evoke the seemingly chaotic and rapidly changing flying pattern of a
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This article is about a musical piece. For the actual flight of a bumblebee, see
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away), and in general causes havoc at the end of the tableau. The readers of
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Here is the text of the scene where the Swan-Bird sings during this music:
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of the opera, its common English title translates like the Russian one (
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The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh and the Maiden Fevroniya
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The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh and the Maiden Fevroniya
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373:Будь здоров, Гвидон, лети, (Bud' zdorov, Gvidon, leti,) 411:Although the "Flight" does not have a title in the 58:. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. 1482: 447:Gvidon's Leitmotifs in "Flight of the Bumblebee" 375:только долго не гости! (tol'ko dolgo ne gosti!) 369:потихоньку опускайся, (potikhon'ku opuskaysya,) 16:Orchestral interlude by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov 367:судно в море догоняй, (sudno v more dogonyay,) 1077: 591: 152: 605: 568:A MIDI page including five versions of the 312:. Unsourced material may be challenged and 208:"Flight of the Bumblebee" performed by the 1084: 1070: 598: 584: 554:International Music Score Library Project 332:Learn how and when to remove this message 118:Learn how and when to remove this message 1491:Compositions by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov 389:Well, now, my bumblebee, go on a spree, 1483: 1413:Harry James and His Orchestra 1948–49 1381:Would I Love You (Love You, Love You) 1065: 579: 1018:Rimsky-Korsakov Apartment and Museum 498:, with nearly uninterrupted runs of 310:adding citations to reliable sources 277: 56:adding citations to reliable sources 27: 1304:Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out to Dry 1276:I'll Get By (As Long as I Have You) 13: 391:catch up with the ship on the sea, 182: 14: 1512: 540: 1185:I Don't Want to Walk Without You 1045: 1036: 1035: 863:Russian Easter Festival Overture 282: 219:Problems playing this file? See 198: 32: 1283:On a Little Street in Singapore 1115:Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing) 1091: 43:needs additional citations for 1297:I'm Beginning to See the Light 426:Those familiar with the opera 254:, composed in 1899–1900. This 1: 535: 471: 454: 7: 1339:I'm Always Chasing Rainbows 1325:It's Been a Long, Long Time 1255:I've Heard That Song Before 1164:The Flight of the Bumblebee 1013:Nadezhda Rimskaya-Korsakova 691:The Noblewoman Vera Sheloga 402:(The bumblebee flies away.) 273: 10: 1517: 248:(1844–1908) for his opera 18: 1450: 1397: 1332:I Can't Begin to Tell You 1099: 1031: 1005: 986: 953: 930:Symphony No. 1 in E minor 925: 918: 849:Fantasy on Serbian Themes 837: 830: 790: 783: 764: 757: 629: 622: 613: 237: 194:"Flight of the Bumblebee" 168: 160: 153: 148: 137: 132: 67:"Flight of the Bumblebee" 1241:I Had the Craziest Dream 1023:Rimsky-Korsakov Monument 505:. It is not so much the 909:The Tale of Tsar Saltan 770:Flight of the Bumblebee 707:The Tale of Tsar Saltan 607:Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov 559:Flight of the Bumblebee 548:Flight of the Bumblebee 476:download the audio file 459:download the audio file 397:Good luck, Gvidon, fly, 251:The Tale of Tsar Saltan 246:Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov 230:Flight of the Bumblebee 143:Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov 133:Flight of the Bumblebee 21:Bumblebee § Flight 1129:It's the Dreamer in Me 972:Trombone Concerto in B 936:Antar (Symphony No. 2) 399:only do not stay long! 395:get deep into a crack. 187: 1420:Young Man with a Horn 1269:All or Nothing at All 1262:Moonlight Becomes You 723:Kashchey the Immortal 186: 1171:You Made Me Love You 616:List of compositions 524:of the song for the 353:English translation 306:improve this section 52:improve this article 1367:Stella by Starlight 1360:Jalousie (Jealousy) 987:Cultural depictions 961:Piano Concerto in C 885:The Golden Cockerel 747:The Golden Cockerel 240:) is an 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Index

Bumblebee § Flight

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Interlude
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
Classical music
"Flight of the Bumblebee"
US Army Band
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Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
The Tale of Tsar Saltan
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