Classical music meets traditional storytelling in this multi-arts take on The Snow Queen, in which Hans Christian Andersen‘s is narrated against a backdrop of vintage illustrations, film footage and excerpts from pieces of classical music. This is the first in a series of videos combining famous pieces of classical music with fairytales and classic children’s stories. In this video Hannah Nepilová narrates the fairytale of The Snow Queen accompanied by a selection of film footage and vintage illustrations from the story by 19th and early 20th century artists, as well as the contemporary Czech artist Marie Preclíková.
Meanwhile, excerpts of classical music by Leos Janácek, Edvard Grieg, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, Modest Mussorgsky and Carl Nielsen provide colour and characterisation, and bring out the drama in the narrative. For more videos from the series, click here.
Classical music journalist Hannah Nepilová originally founded Classical Tales in 2018 soon after having her first baby, Joshua, as a series of live performances for children combining classical music with narration. After having her second baby, Emily, in 2021, she reinvented the concept as a series of videos for viewers to enjoy in the comfort of their own homes.
To see more fairytales with classical music, visit ClassicalTales’s YouTube channel.
- Watch: Hansel and Gretel with classical music
- Read: Five pieces of classical music inspired by fairytales