“Kamarinskaya”, composed in 1848 by the Russian Mikhail Glinka (1804 – 1867), became famous because it was the first orchestral work, which was completely based on Russian folk music. Glinka also called this composition a “Scherzo for Orchestra”.

In this work, the composer uses two folk melodies: a wedding song, which appears after a short introduction, and a dance tune (Kamarinskaya), a traditional peasant dance, which Glinka incorporates into dozens of miniature variations. The composer certainly did not have a musical description of a wedding party in mind when he composed this work. Despite his choice of two folk tunes and possibly a light-hearted approach, this is definitely a masterpiece.