Émile Waldteufel wrote “The Skaters’ Waltz,” a work often heard in festive concert programs around New Year’s Eve.
Waldteufel was a French composer and conductor whose full name was Charles Émile Lévy Waldteufel. He composed the waltz, also known by its French title “Les Patineurs,” in 1882. The piece evokes ice skating through flowing waltz rhythms and musical effects associated with gliding across ice.
The work is sometimes grouped in public imagination with the Viennese waltzes of the Strauss family, but its composer was French, not Austrian. That distinction matters because New Year concerts frequently feature both composers and can make their works seem interchangeable.
“The Skaters’ Waltz” is not an official New Year anthem. Its winter imagery and bright orchestral character make it a natural choice for seasonal performances, including programs built around celebration and dancing.