Scheherazade

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov

1888

A symphonic suite based on One Thousand and One Nights (also known as The Arabian Nights).

One Thousand and One Nights

A collection of stories originating from the Middle East and passed through Asia through generations, altered and restructured to reflect the culture of each time until storytellers started to compile them to eventually form One Thousand and One Nights – 1,001 stories, all bound together by the tale of Scheherazade. Popular tales include Sinbad the Sailor, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, and Aladdin and His Lamp.

Scheherazade

The Story of the Storyteller

Once upon a time, the Sultan of a large empire left his castle to embark on a hunting trip. Returning unexpectedly, he caught his wife in bed with servants. Enraged, he beheaded her, and vowed to take revenge by beginning a tradition of taking a new wife every night, and beheading her the next morning before she could be unfaithful... until Scheherazade.

To spare the young women of the empire, Scheherazade volunteered to marry the Sultan against her father's wishes. On their wedding night, as a last wish, Scheherazade begged for her sister Dunyazad's company, so to bid her farewell. Dunyazad, however, had been secretly prepared to ask for a story from Scheherazade during the long night, and the Sultan lay awake and listened with awe as Scheherazade told her first story.

The night passed, and Scheherazade stopped her story in the middle. The Sultan, engrossed, asked her to finish, but Scheherazade said there was no time, as dawn was breaking. The Sultan spared her life for one day so she could finish her story the next night. The following night, Scheherazade finished her story, and began a second, more exciting tale, again stopping halfway before dawn. The Sultan spared her life for one more day so she could finish it the following night.

The Sultan spared Scheherazade day by day, as he eagerly anticipated the conclusion of the previous night's story. After 1,001 nights and 1,000 stories, Scheherazade declared she had no more tales to tell, and asked to say goodbye to the three sons they'd had during those years. The Sultan, however, had fallen in love with Scheherazade, so spared her life and made her his queen.

During the winter of 1887, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov decided to compose an orchestral piece based on pictures and tales from One Thousand and One Nights.

Scheherazade Op. 35

NIKOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV

'A Symphony Based on a Story'

The Sea and Sinbad's Ship

The Story of the Kalendar Prince

The Young Prince and the Young Princess

Festival at Baghdad, The Ship Breaks Against a Cliff Surmounted by a Bronze Horseman