Far more than the other piano pieces Tchaikovsky had written during the past three years, these items seem designed for the amateur salon rather than the concert hall. Yet, ironically, the first and third pieces were premiered during a public concert, the first all-Tchaikovsky evening. The set begins with a Reverie in 3/4 time. It seems freely improvisatory, beginning with a gentle Andante, then wandering into a faster, florid, cadenza-like section. After a reprise of the opening material the cadenza returns at greater length, leading back to the Andante and its dying-away conclusion.

The second piece is a hearty Polka de Salon in B flat; the frolicsome main matter briefly cedes to a series of runs, and this interlude infects the reprise of the first section with grander, highly pianistic touches, including a blitz of double octaves at the end. The third item is a D-minor Mazurka de Salon, obviously inspired by Chopin. The hesitant yet irresistible main theme sandwiches a more vigorous and even more folklike B section. The whole piece has enjoyed many transcriptions, sometimes under the spurious title Valse créole.



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