The Humoresque No. 7 is a three-minute piece with a tune that skips. Antonín Dvořák wrote it for the piano in the summer of 1894. Violinists took it up soon after, and many people now know it as a violin piece.
Quick facts
- Composer: Antonín Dvořák, who lived from 1841 to 1904
- Written: 1894
- From: a set of eight Humoresques for piano
- Length: about 3 minutes
- Shape: a skipping tune, a smooth tune, and the skipping tune again
- Also heard on: the violin, with a piano or an orchestra
A summer at home
Dvořák spent three years in New York as the head of a music school. He was homesick. In the summer of 1894, he went back to his country house in Bohemia, in what is now the Czech Republic. He wrote eight short piano pieces there and called them Humoresques.
The seventh one became famous. Publishers printed it for violin, for orchestra, and for many other instruments.
What a humoresque is
A humoresque is a short piece in a playful or changeable mood. The word is related to “humor.” This one is not a joke. It is sweet and light, with some sadness in the middle.
What to listen for
| Part | What happens |
|---|---|
| The skip | A lilting tune in a long-short, long-short rhythm. It tiptoes up and down |
| The song | A smooth, sweeter tune that flows where the first one skipped |
| The shadow | The key turns minor, and the music grows fuller and more serious |
| The skip returns | The first tune comes back to end the piece |
The skipping rhythm
The first tune uses a dotted rhythm: a long note and then a short one, over and over. The short note leads into the next long one, so the music seems to skip. Read dotted notes and ties explained for kids.
Say “LONG-short, LONG-short” along with the tune.
Piano or violin?
Dvořák wrote the piece for piano alone. On the piano, the notes of the skip are short and clear.
On the violin, the smooth middle tune can sing and slide in a way a piano cannot. The violinist Fritz Kreisler made a famous version.
Play both, and ask your child which one they like more.
For violin students
The Humoresque is the fourth piece in Suzuki Violin School, Volume 3. A student who is working on it will enjoy hearing the piano version. Read Suzuki violin Book 3 songs in order.
Things to do together
Skip and glide. Skip for the first tune. Glide for the second. Change each time the music changes.
Tap the skip. Tap the long-short rhythm on your knees.
Draw the three parts. Fold a page in three. Draw one picture for each part. Read listening maps for kids.
Two versions. Play it on piano and then on violin. Make a tally of the family’s votes.
Questions to ask
- Which part skips, and which part flows?
- Where does the music turn sad?
- How do you know when the first tune has come back?
Words to know
- Humoresque: a short piece in a playful mood
- Dotted rhythm: a long note followed by a short one
- Minor key: a set of notes that often sounds sad or serious
Print and play
Print a listening journal page. Read Dvořák for kids and print the Dvořák fact sheet. For a big piece by the same composer, read the New World Symphony listening guide.
More from this guide
This article is part of Classical music listening guides for kids: famous pieces, one at a time.
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Use it with your kids
Print a listening page, a practice chart, or a composer fact sheet. Or try a tool, such as the composer timeline or the piece picker.