Schneewalzer, known as ‘Snow waltz’ in English or ‘Snežni valček’ in Slovenian, was written by Thomas Koschat (1845-1914) from Klagenfurt (Slo: Celovec), Austria. Koschat was an accomplished musician, composer and vocalist whose achievements include working in the Vienna State Opera and touring Europe and America with his vocal group which specialised in folk songs from Carinthia (Kärnten), the greater region and state which Koschat hailed from.
Snow Waltz has become a staple in most accordionists’ repertoires around the world, regardless of the accordionist’s preferred genre or background. This waltz is played by orchestras, brass ensembles, Alpine trios, Oberkrainer quintetts, and solo accordionists. There are several versions of lyrics, in different languages, as well as different versions of an additional instrumental section.
Although it was written before the Alpine popular-folk music and Oberkrainer music scenes, it has become a common waltz for Alpine accordionists, recorded by many Alpine groups from Slovenia, Austria and Germany including Zillertaler Schürzenjäger, Ansambel Franca Miheliča, Lojze Slak, and so on.
Note: My arrangement features a commonly played C section which might not have been written by Koschat, and a Alpine/Oberkrainer style applied to the song.
‘Learn to play’ package (includes sheet music)
Tutorial preview:
Includes:
📝 Sheet music pdf (C)
📹 Slow tutorial video (C)
Note
📝 Sheet music pdf (C key)