- Three Marches Militaires (Schubert)
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The Three Marches Militaires, Op. 51, D. 733, are pieces in march form written for piano 4-hands by Franz Schubert.
The first of the three is far more famous than the others. It is one of Schubert's most famous compositions, and it is often simply referred to as "Schubert's Marche militaire".
Contents
Background
It is not certain when the Marches militaires were written: many scholars favour 1818[1][2] but some prefer alternative dates such as 1822 or 1824.[3] It is known that they were written during Schubert's stay at Count Johann Karl Esterházy's summer home in Zseliz in Hungary (this is now Želiezovce in Slovakia). He had accepted a job there as music teacher to the Count's daughters, and these and similar works were written for instructional purposes.
The Marches militaires were published in Vienna on 7 August 1826, as Op. 51, by Anton Diabelli.[4]
They are all in ternary form, with a central trio leading to a reprise of the main march.
March No. 1 in D major
- Allegro vivace. The trio is in G major.
- This march is one of Schubert's most famous melodies, and it has been arranged for full orchestra, military bands, and many different combinations of instruments.
- It has been quoted in various other works, including Igor Stravinsky's Circus Polka.
- Franz Liszt based his Grand paraphrase de concert, S.426a, for solo piano on the March No. 1.
- Carl Tausig also wrote a version for solo piano, in D-flat major, which has been recorded by pianists such as Vladimir Horowitz, Evgeny Kissin, Josef Hofmann, Georges Cziffra and Leopold Godowsky.[5]
March No. 2 in G major
- Allegro molto moderato
March No. 3 in E flat major
Recordings
Recordings of the original piano 4-hand version include those by Christoph Eschenbach and Justus Frantz, Radu Lupu and Daniel Barenboim, Robert Levin and Malcolm Bilson, and Artur Schnabel and Karl Ulrich Schnabel.[6]
References
External links
- 3 Marches militaires: Free scores at the International Music Score Library Project.
Categories:- Compositions by Franz Schubert
- Compositions for piano four-hands
- Military marches
- 1818 compositions
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