Story Orchestra: The Sleeping Beauty

In this retelling of the classic ballet story, bring Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty to life by pressing the musical notes on each page.

Discover the enchanting world of The Sleeping Beauty in this musical retelling of the ballet – push the button on each beautiful scene to hear the vivid sound of an orchestra playing from Tchaikovsky's score.

Guardian: ‘a lively retelling, enriched by Jessica Courtney Tickle’s luscious illustrations – each spread is like an illuminated garden’

Join the King and Queen as they throw a party for their new baby, Princess Aurora. But when a terrible guest arrives and places a curse on princess, the kingdom must find the one special person who can defeat it…

As you and your little one journey through the magical scenes illustrated by artist Jessica Courtney Tickle, you will press the buttons to hear 10 excerpts from the ballet’s music. At the back of the book, find a short biography of the composer, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, with details about his composition of Swan Lake. Next to this, you can replay the musical excerpts and, for each of them, read a discussion of the instruments, rhythms and musical techniques that make them so powerful. A glossary defines musical terms.

The Story Orchestra series brings classical music to life for children through gorgeously illustrated retellings of classic ballet stories paired with 10-second sound clips of orchestras playing from their musical scores.