Strauss had already used the theme in his Jubel-Quadrille, Op. 130; the upbeat bears a considerable resemblance to the second theme from the Allegro in Joseph Haydn's Symphony No. 100 composed in 1794.[1]
For the trio, Strauss used an older folk melody called Alter Tanz aus Wien or Tinerl-Lied[2] which was originally in 3/4 time. When Radetzky came back to Vienna after winning the Battle of Custoza (1848), his soldiers were singing the then-popular song. Allegedly Strauss heard this singing and incorporated the melody, converted to 2/4 time, into the Radetzky March.[3]
When it was first played in front of Austrian officers, they spontaneously clapped and stamped their feet when they heard the chorus. This tradition, with quiet rhythmic clapping on the first iteration of the melody, followed by thunderous clapping on the second, is often observed when the march is played in classical music venues in an orchestral version prepared by Leopold Weninger (1879–1940).[6]
Since it was first introduced in 1946 by conductor Josef Krips during the New Year's Concert (Neujahrskonzert) of the Vienna Philharmonic[7] it is always played as a jubilant encore. It was announced in 2019 by the Vienna Philharmonic board of directors that a new version would be used that would replace the Weninger arrangement[8] in an attempt to "de-Nazify" the march.[9] The new arrangement was first performed at the New Year's Concert in 2020.
Piece parts
The Radetzky March consists of three main parts:
The introduction: the whole orchestra plays and the brass section carries the melody.
The first figure: played by the string section.
At figure two: the whole orchestra plays until figure three, when it repeats back to the D.S. (first figure).
The trio: played by the brass section, with the trumpet playing three sixteenth notes in the last bars.
Figure five: the whole orchestra plays.
Figure six: the whole orchestra plays and then repeats back to figure five.
The orchestra plays until the last bar, then returns to the D.C. (beginning).
The orchestra plays until figure three, finishing with the Fine ("end") bar— the direction is Da capo al fine (repeat from beginning up to the word Fine).
In movies and television
List of film and television works where you can hear the Radetzky march.
La Marche de Radetzky [fr](1994): This historical drama taken from the eponymous novel by Joseph Roth (1894-1939), depicts through the dismay of the young lieutenant von Trotta, the disintegration of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in the decade preceding 1914. This description is punctuated by cheerful notes and mocking the musical leitmotif: the Radetzky March.
Svatojánský věneček [cz] (2015): In this Czech fairytale, one of the suitors of the princess invents a special cartridge that serves as a musical instrument and can play the Radetzky march.
DějePIC! (2017): Czech children's comedy show about famous Czech personalities. One episode is dedicated to Marshal Radetz.
