Theme and Variations

Click the first square to hear the theme.  Click the other squares to hear the variations.

Essential Vocabulary

Theme - An important melody that is heard many times in a piece of music.
Variation - Music that is repeated but changed in some important way.

Bizet and The Women of Arles

The famous composer Georges Bizet wrote a piece of music called The Women of Arles.   In the beginning of this piece he uses a march tune based on an old French song.   Let's call that tune the theme. 

A theme is an important melody that is heard several times throughout a piece of music.  You will hear this theme as you click the letter in the first yellow square.

Listen to this famous French theme by Bizet by clicking the letter inside the yellow square.  

In the following squares you will hear variations.   Variations repeat the theme but the theme is changed in some important way.

A variation repeats the theme but changes it in some important way.  Click the letter to listen to the first variation.

Listen to the next variation.   It should sound different from the others.  Listen for the drum sounds.  It sounds scary because it is written in a minor key.

This variation sounds very different from the others, yet the theme can still be recognized.  Can you still hear the original theme?

This variation has a very military sound to it, like a march.  Listen for the drums.  This variation sounds very heroic.

This last section finally ends our theme and variations with a short, sad goodbye.

You are now ready to listen to the entire Theme and Variations of Bizet's "The Women of Arles."