Peter and the Wolf and The Carnival of the Animals: Listening Guides
Peter and the Wolf (1936) by Sergei Prokofiev is a story for narrator and orchestra in which each character has an instrument: the bird is a flute, the duck an oboe, the cat a clarinet, Grandfather a bassoon, the wolf three French horns and Peter the strings. The Carnival of the Animals (1886) by Camille Saint-Saëns is a 14-movement musical zoo.
Updated · By the Classfern Music Department
Works in the UK and the US. This version uses US words and grades (measure, half step, elementary school); the UK version uses bar, semitone and Key Stages. · UK version of this page
Key facts
- Peter and the Wolf: Sergei Prokofiev, 1936, Op. 67; narrator and orchestra; about 25 minutes.
- First performed in Moscow on 2 May 1936; written for the Central Children’s Theatre.
- The Carnival of the Animals: Camille Saint-Saëns, 1886; 14 movements.
- Saint-Saëns let only The Swan be published in his lifetime; the whole suite was first played in public in 1922.
- Prokofiev’s music is in copyright in the UK and EU: this page describes it and plays none of it.
What instruments are the characters in Peter and the Wolf?
In Peter and the Wolf, each character has its own instrument: the bird is the flute, the duck the oboe, the cat the clarinet, Grandfather the bassoon, the wolf three French horns and Peter the string section. The hunters are woodwind and trumpet, with their gunshots on timpani and bass drum.
| Character | Instrument | Family | Listen for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bird | Flute | Woodwind | High, quick, fluttering notes |
| Duck | Oboe | Woodwind | A slightly nasal, waddling tune |
| Cat | Clarinet | Woodwind | Short, sly notes low on the clarinet |
| Grandfather | Bassoon | Woodwind | A low, grumbling tune |
| Wolf | Three French horns | Brass | Dark, frightening chords |
| Peter | Strings (violins, violas, cellos, basses) | Strings | A bright, cheerful march |
| Hunters | Woodwind and trumpet; gunshots on timpani and bass drum | Woodwind, brass, percussion | A marching tune with loud bangs |
Prokofiev wrote it in 1936 to teach children the sounds of the orchestra. A narrator tells the story: Peter goes out into the meadow, the bird and the duck argue, the cat creeps up, Grandfather warns Peter about the wolf, the wolf swallows the duck, and Peter, with the bird’s help, catches the wolf by its tail before the hunters arrive. At the end, you can hear the duck still quacking inside the wolf.
Hear the Peter and the Wolf instruments
Press a character to hear a few plain notes in the range of its instrument. These are not Prokofiev’s tunes: his music is still in copyright in the UK and EU, so listen to the real piece on a recording. The sounds are simple tones made in your browser to show how high or low each instrument plays. They are not recordings of real instruments.
Sounds are made in your browser. This tool never uses the microphone, and nothing is recorded, saved or sent.
Why can’t this page play Prokofiev’s music?
Sergei Prokofiev died in 1953, and Peter and the Wolf is still treated as in copyright in the UK and EU, so Classfern describes it rather than copying the score or a recording. Listen to it on a CD, a library recording, a licensed streaming service or a broadcast your school is allowed to use.
Many orchestras also give family concerts of Peter and the Wolf. Saint-Saëns died in 1921, so The Carnival of the Animals is out of copyright as music, though every recording still belongs to its performers and label.
What are the movements of The Carnival of the Animals?
The Carnival of the Animals by Camille Saint-Saëns has 14 short movements, starting with the Royal March of the Lion and ending with a Finale. In between come hens and roosters, wild donkeys, tortoises, the elephant, kangaroos, the aquarium, long-eared characters, the cuckoo, birds, pianists, fossils and the swan.
| No. | Movement | Instruments | Listen for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Introduction and Royal March of the Lion | Two pianos, strings | Fanfares and a proud march; the lion roars in rumbling runs |
| 2 | Hens and Roosters | Two pianos, clarinet, violins and viola | Pecking, clucking repeated notes |
| 3 | Wild Donkeys (Swift Animals) | Two pianos | Racing scales up and down |
| 4 | Tortoises | Strings, piano | Offenbach’s fast Can-can played very, very slowly |
| 5 | The Elephant | Double bass, piano | A heavy waltz on the double bass, borrowing light tunes by Berlioz and Mendelssohn |
| 6 | Kangaroos | Two pianos | Hopping chords that speed up and slow down |
| 7 | Aquarium | Two pianos, flute, glass harmonica, strings | Shimmering, rippling water |
| 8 | Characters with Long Ears | Two violins | High and low “hee-haw” notes |
| 9 | The Cuckoo in the Depths of the Woods | Two pianos, clarinet (offstage) | Soft chords and a two-note cuckoo call |
| 10 | Aviary | Flute, strings, two pianos | Fluttering birdsong on the flute |
| 11 | Pianists | Two pianos, strings | Pianists practising scales, a little clumsily |
| 12 | Fossils | Xylophone, clarinet, two pianos, strings | Rattling bones; quotes Danse macabre and old French nursery tunes |
| 13 | The Swan | Cello, two pianos | A smooth, gliding cello tune over rippling pianos |
| 14 | Finale | All the players | A galloping finish where the animals return |
Saint-Saëns wrote it in 1886 as a musical joke for friends and would not let it be published while he was alive, worried it would harm his serious reputation. Only The Swan was published in his lifetime. The “glass harmonica” in Aquarium is a set of spinning glass bowls, nothing to do with the mouth harmonica; today a celesta or glockenspiel usually plays its part.
Hear the nursery tune hidden in Fossils
In Fossils, the xylophone rattles like old bones, and Saint-Saëns slips in old tunes. One is the French nursery song “Ah! vous dirai-je, maman”, which English speakers know as the tune of Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. Here it is on a xylophone sound. Then listen for it in a recording of Fossils.
- French nursery tune quoted in Fossils
These are short, simple versions made by Classfern from music that is out of copyright. The sound is made in your browser; nothing is recorded, saved or sent.
How do you teach Peter and the Wolf and The Carnival of the Animals?
Teach both pieces by listening in short sections. Introduce each character’s instrument first, then play the music without telling pupils which animal it is and ask them to guess. Pupils describe the speed, volume and pitch, draw the animal, and then compose their own animal theme on a classroom instrument.
- Meet the instruments with the sound buttons above and the orchestra sound explorer.
- Guess the animal from one Carnival movement at a time.
- Describe it with music words: fast or slow, loud or quiet, high or low, smooth or spiky.
- Compose: give a new animal its own instrument and tune. Play it on tuned percussion tubes or the glockenspiel.
- Perform a class “carnival” with a narrator.
Listening sheet (printable)
Judged by a teacher or parent (rubric) While you listen, write or draw your answers on paper. A grown-up uses the three lines below to describe the work.
- Which character is playing now? How do you know?
- Is the music fast or slow? Loud or quiet? High or low?
- Draw the animal or character. Label the instrument.
- Which movement or character did you like best, and why?
| Line | Beginning | Developing | Secure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Names the instrument | With help | Some instruments | Most instruments |
| Describes the music | One word | Speed or volume | Speed, volume and pitch |
| Gives a reason | No reason | A simple reason | Links sound to character |
Quick quiz: Peter and the Wolf and the Carnival of the Animals
Marked by Classfern 6 multiple-choice questions on the Classfern lesson engine. Your answers stay on this device.
Classfern’s free music listening guides on lessonplanner.info also cover famous composers for kids and the music history timeline. Classfern is not connected with or endorsed by any orchestra, publisher or record label.
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