Melodies for the entire life
‘An original way to make a declaration of love or to put the children to bed.’ “ (Le Monde)
Nothing is as emotional as the memory of childhood – of our own, of our children and grandchildren. Photos and little stories that often start with ‘Do you remember how you ...’ capture very special moments. The tunes that will accompany our lives – the favorite nursery rhyme, the all-important teenager hit or the song played on our first date – they all remain unforgettable too.
The selected melodies of our musical boxes accompany these important moments and keep the memory of them for ever alive.
Mozart’s poignant declaration of love for love
VOI CHE SAPETE
The Marriage of Figaro
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
KV 492, 1786
Cherubin’s Ariette ‘Voi, che sapete’ from the famous Opera ‘The Marriage of Figaro’ is a melody created by Mozart entirely out of feeling and for the feeling itself. Cherubin sings of love, though not yet knowing what love is. So he asks emotionaly moved ‘You who know what love is, Ladies, see if I have it in my heart?’ Yes, it’s certainly love!
Our Musical boxes playing this melody:
MOZARTKUGEL LIGHT
MOZARTKUGEL SHADOW
SNOWBALL
Papageno’s magical melody
DAS KLINGET SO HERRLICH
The Magic Flute
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
KV 620, 1791
In Mozart's Musical Comedy ‘The Magic Flute’ the fowler Papageno and the young Prince Tamino are sent out by the Queen of the Night to free their abducted daughter Pamina. To survive the adventure, they receive a magic flute and a magic carillon. Yet in the first dangerous encounter, their sound is disarming. The attackers turn away and tremble beguiled: ‘That sounds so pretty, that sounds so fine! Never did I hear and see anything like it!’ To sing along!
Our Musical box playing this melody:
GOLDEN OAK
May your heart be mine
JE TE VEUX
Chanson de Caf’Conc
Erik Satie, 1897
His love affair with the painter Suzanne Valadon inspired the young Satie for his most famous chanson. ‘Je te veux – I want you!’ – an absolutely unmistakable message to the beloved. Today, Satie is well known for a different composition: his three 1888 Gymnopédies for piano are equally appreciated by listeners and performers for their melancholy simplicity. The three quarter time has our music box melody in common with them; however, the grace and freshness of Satie’s chanson recall the music of the Montmartre nightspots. Paris mon amour!
Our Musical boxes playing this melody:
DIAMOND
CARAT
The first hit in the world
DONAUWALZER
The Blue Danube
Johann Strauss II, 1866/76
It’s is the most played waltz in the world, the secret hymn of Austria and the absolute highlight of the New Year’s Concert of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra – the reliable extra in the Golden Hall of the ‘Musikverein’.
Once dedicated as a satirical choral piece to the defeat of Austria at the Battle of Hradec Kralove in July 1866, the orchestral version of the Donauwalzer today is a gift of zest for life. Even the strict Johannes Brahms is enthusiastic and notes in a restaurant the melody on his napkin. Below he regrets: ‘Unfortunately not by me!’. All the conductors have conducted it and many artists have been inspired by. The composer Paul Lincke called it the ‘first hit in the world’!
Our Musical box playing this melody:
MUSICBOX
Art song for two hands
NOCTURNE
Opus 9, No. 2
Frédéric Chopin, 1832
Yet as a child Chopin was fascinated by the voices and melodies of the Opera. Later on, in his 21 Nocturnes, the young composer transferred the expressive possibilities of human art song directly to his most important medium, the piano. The Nocturne Opus 9, No. 2 is considered as his most famous piece. It’s still a big dream for many piano students to be able to play this romantic melody.
Our Musical box playing this melody:
NOCTURNE
Relaxing poetry
GUTEN ABEND, GUT’ NACHT
Lullaby
Johannes Brahms, 1868
Johannes Brahms dedicated his lullaby to Berta Faber, whom he admired, on the occasion of the birth of her son Hans, ‘for always happy use’. A year later it was performed to the public for the first time – accompanied on the piano by Clara Schumann. Since then it has been considered the most beautiful of all lullabies, and its catchy melody connects parents and children to this day. The famous composition by Brahms is not only a classic for musical boxes; it is also a preferred choice for encore in concerts – as a signal that no more is going to follow.
Our Musical box playing this melody:
CIRQUE
Poetic miniature
TRÄUMEREI
Kinderscenen
Robert Schumann
Opus 15, No. 7, 1838
Robert Schumann’s diary contains the following entry on his romantic piano piece: ‘Saturday, 24 February 1838 – I composed the little thing 'Träumerei'.’ Later he confided in his beloved Clara Wieck and wrote: ‘What I shyly composed, perhaps it will bring us reality. Yes, my Klara, believe it, we will be quite happy!’ Already the following year she became his wife. In the cycle of works ‘Kinderscenen’, this ‘little thing’ is at the centre and remained so throughout Clara and Robert's life. Today, the ‘Träumerei’ is considered Schumann’s most famous composition.
Our Musical boxes playing this melody:
VIS-À-VIS No. 1
VIS-À-VIS No. 2
VIS-À-VIS No. 3
VIS-À-VIS No. 4
Singing with your fingers
SPRING SONG
Songs Without Words
Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy
Opus 62, No. 6, 1844
Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy gave his sister Fanny a lyrical piano piece for her 23rd birthday in 1828. She called it ‘Song Without Words,’ thereby coining the term for an entire musical genre. By 1845, the composer had written 48 such miniatures, which were successfully published in eight volumes. His sister did not lack lyrics. She described the compositions as music that is ‘sung with the fingers’ and ‘fills the soul with a thousand things better than words!’
The composition we have chosen comes from Book 5, written between 1842 and 1844. Mendelssohn dedicated it to ‘Dr. Clara Schumann, née Wieck.’ The name ‘Spring Song’ (Frühlingslied) for Opus 62 No. 6, which is still popular today, comes from a manuscript by the composer. It did not appear in the printed version at the time.
Our Musical boxes playing this melody:
NATURE SPRING
Romantic dreamy melody
FLOWER WALTZ
The Nutcracker
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Opus 71a, 1892
‘It’s awfully fun to write a march for tin soldiers and a waltz of the flowers’ This is how Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky is quoted when he tells fellow musicians about his work on the ballet ‘The Nutcracker.’ The work premiered in Saint Petersburg in 1892 and its plot was not well received by the premiere audience. However, the music was an instant hit, and that has not changed to this day.
The story of the little girl Klara and her nutcracker, who comes to life and transforms into a handsome young prince in the first act of the fairy tale, takes place at Christmas. That is why a visit to the ballet ‘The Nutcracker’ is still an integral part of the holiday program for many families today. You have to wait a while for the ‘Flower Waltz.’ It is not danced until the 13th piece in the second act, shortly before the grand finale. But it’s worth the wait: the concert waltz is typical of Tchaikovsky’s romantic and dreamy melodic ability and at the same time an important work in the great waltz literature.
Our Musical box playing this melody:
NATURE WALTZ
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