December “Christmas” from The Seasons (Pyotr Tchaikovsky)

• Instrumentation: Flexible (5 Parts + Percussion & Piano)

• Level: Grade 4

• Duration: About 4:30

• Key Signature: Concert Ab Major

Score/Parts PDF Previews

• Only selected pages of the score/parts are available for preview..

• December “Christmas” - Score (8.5x11) PDF

• December “Christmas” - Score (11x17) PDF

• December “Christmas” - Parts PDF

Notes

Composed by Pyotr Tchaikovsky, arranged by Ian Deterling.

• Pyotr Tchaikovsky was commissioned by Nikolay Bernard, editor of the music magazine Nouvellist, to compose The Seasons - a collection of twelve character pieces for piano, each depicting a different month of the year. From the warmth of a winter fireside to the awakening of spring and the beauty of autumn, Tchaikovsky’s skill in crafting expressive melodies and vivid musical imagery is on full display, capturing the changing moods of the Russian seasons. Completed in 1876, The Seasons has endured as a beloved work in the piano repertoire, with several movements becoming popular in their own right and inspiring arrangements for a variety of ensembles.

Overview

This arrangement of December “Christmas” from The Seasons was created with flexibility and practicality in mind. It is designed to accommodate a wide range of ensemble sizes, instrumentations, and performance demands while remaining stylistically faithful to Tchaikovsky’s original work. Unlike many flexible instrumentation arrangements at the Grade 3 level, this Grade 4 setting allows for greater fidelity to the original than is typically possible in more accessible arrangements. The increased technical and musical demands are intentional, allowing ensembles that require flexible scoring and are capable of performing more advanced literature to perform a version that remains more faithful to the original work.

Instrumentation and Score Layout

The arrangement is written in five primary parts plus percussion and piano, with each part available for performance by a variety of instruments. To maintain score clarity and readability, only the most commonly used band instruments are shown in the full score. Less common instruments are fully supported and available as individual parts but may not appear in the score. This approach was chosen intentionally to reduce visual clutter and improve rehearsal efficiency, with the understanding that most performances will primarily utilize standard band instrumentation.

INSTRUMENT LIST AND FILE INDEX

All individual parts are available as separate PDF files, along with the full score (when purchased directly from iandeterling.com). To make locating individual parts easier, each instrument in the list is assigned a unique index number. This number corresponds to the numbered PDF file. For example, if you want Alto Saxophone (Part 4), find it in the instrument list and note its index number (e.g., 39). Then, locate the PDF file that has that number - files are organized in numerical order, so you can quickly access the correct part without searching through each file individually .

Note: Purchasers from other distributors may receive all parts in a single PDF file; the index numbers only correspond to the separate PDFs available via this website.

INSTRUMENT LIST

• Part 1:

  • C: Flute; Oboe; Trumpet in C; Violin

  • Bb: Clarinet in Bb; Trumpet in Bb; Soprano Saxophone

  • Eb: Clarinet in Eb; Alto Clarinet; Alto Saxophone

• Part 2:

  • C: Flute; Oboe; Trumpet in C; Guitar; Violin

  • Bb: Clarinet in Bb; Trumpet in Bb; Soprano Saxophone

  • Eb: Alto Clarinet; Alto Saxophone

  • F: English Horn

• Part 3:

  • C: Alto Trombone; Guitar; Viola

  • Bb: Clarinet in Bb; Tenor Saxophone

  • Eb: Alto Clarinet; Alto Saxophone

  • F: Horn in F

• Part 4:

  • C: Bassoon; Trombone; Euphonium; Guitar; Cello

  • Bb: Clarinet in Bb; Bass Clarinet; Tenor Saxophone; Euphonium T.C.

  • Eb: Alto Clarinet; Alto Saxophone

  • F: Basset Horn; Horn in F

• Part 5:

  • C: Bassoon; Trombone; Bass Trombone; Euphonium; Tuba; Guitar; Cello; Contrabass

  • Bb: Bass Clarinet; Contrabass Clarinet; Euphonium T.C.; Bass (Tuba) in Bb T.C.

  • Eb: Contra Alto Clarinet; Baritone Saxophone; Bass (Tuba) in Eb T.C.

  • F: Basset Horn

• Percussion:

  • Snare Drum

  • Bass Drum

  • Percussion 1: Crash Cymbals / Suspended Cymbal (only one player needed)

  • Percussion 2: Glockenspiel / Sleigh Bells (only one player needed)

  • Timpani

• Piano

What do I get when I order December “Christmas”?

• You will receive the full score and a complete set of parts as individual PDF files

  • Score formatted to Tabloid paper, 11” x 17” (279mm x 432mm)

  • Score formatted to US Letter-size paper, 8.5” x 11” (216mm x 279mm)

  • Complete set of parts

• Once your order has been processed, you’ll be emailed a link where you can download the sheet music.

• When you click on the link to download your music, you’ll be brought to the download page (see image)

  • Note that the score and parts are separated into different PDF files.

  • You can download everything (‘Download All’ button at the bottom), save the files to Dropbox, or download selected score/parts individually.

  • My website is set to five download attempts (see ‘5 downloads remaining’ in the image). If an error occurs or if you need additional download attempts, contact me here and I’ll reset the limit for you.