Concert in Bremerhaven

Johann Strauss II
The Blue Danube / Waltz
op. 314 (1867)

What prompted Johann Strauss to choose ‘By the beautiful, blue Danube‘ as the title of his composition? Was it the regulation of the river Danube that was being planned at the time? Or the poems by Karl Beck in which the phrase appears? Had Strauss been planning a waltz with such a title for some time, or did this thought not come to him until he was reminded by the Vienna Men’s Choral Society of the promise he had once made to compose a work dedicated to them?

Be that as it may, The Blue Danube is, apart from a student exercise, Strauss’s first composition for voices. Did he draw on the advice and support of the choirmaster of the Society, Rudolf Weinwurm, when it came to the vocal parts? There is a great deal that we do not know. On the other hand it has been definitively established that the first performance was given on 15 February 1867, with Weinwurm conducting, at an ‘Evening of Songs for Carnival‘ held in the hall of the Dianabad establishment in Vienna, and that, despite later commentaries to the contrary, the waltz received glowing reviews. The orchestral version of The Blue Danube was first heard at the Carnival Review concert at the Volksgarten establishment on 10 March 1867, with the composer conducting in person. The first edition for piano had already been published on the day of the first performance, which was rather unusual practice at that time. The demand for the waltz must have been enormous, because it is more or less impossible to say just how many times it was reprinted by C.A. Spina, the original publisher, within a very short time. Foreign editions, arrangements for all widely played instruments and combinations of them, highly virtuoso paraphrases, and passages from the waltz quoted in the works of other composers and those of Strauss himself: these all bear witness to the enormous popularity of The Blue Danube.

Moreover, Eduard Hanslick, the high priest of critics, attested the work a ‘quite remarkable significance […] the significance of a quotation, of a phrase summing up everything there is in Vienna that is beautiful, lovable and gay. […] Alongside the national anthem composed by Papa Haydn, which celebrates the emperor and the imperial family, we have in Strauss’s Blue Danube a second national anthem which sings of our country and people.’

Synopsis: Dr. Thomas Aigner

Translation: Dr. Leigh H. Bailey

Johann Strauss (Sohn) : An der schönen blauen Donau / Walzer op. 314
© by «Kulturverein Wiener Blut»

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Sunday, 10. December 197819.00 o' clock
Bremerhaven ⁄ City hall

Concert in Bremerhaven
German, Suisse, France and Luxembourg tour 1978

Willi Boskovsky conductor

Program
Johann Strauss II : Wine, Women and Song / Waltz op. 333
Johann Strauss II : Anna Polka op. 117
Josef Strauss : In a Flash / Quick polka op. 230
Josef Strauss : Village Swallows from Austria / Waltz op. 164
Johann Strauss II : Persian March op. 289
Franz von Suppè : Fatinitza March
Break Johann Strauss II : Overture to the operetta "The Gypsy Baron"
Carl Michael Ziehrer : Walk In / Waltz op. 518
Josef Strauss : The Chattering Woman / Polka mazurka) op. 144
Johann Strauss II : Bandits Galop / Polka schnell op. 378
Johann Strauss II : Artist’s Life / Waltz op. 316
Johann Strauss II : Champagne Polka op. 211
Franz Lehár : Gold and Silver / Waltz op. 79
Encore Johann Strauss II : The Blue Danube / Waltz op. 314
Johann Strauss I : Radetzky March op. 228

Note:
This tour through Germany, Suisse and Luxembourg lead the Vienna Johann Strauss Orchestra among other places to Mühlhausen, where they should perform in a multi-functional hall, which has also been use for ice-skating. When Willi Boskovsky recognized this, he refused to conduct. Only the manager could convince him to change his mind, but Boskovsky insisted on wearing a fur coat. As expected, the multi-functional hall got transformed into a heated concert hall very fast, but Boskovsky still wanted to wear the coat. So it became one of the hottest concerts for the conductor.

You will find more anecdotes in our collection

For an overall view of all concerts of this tour, please click HERE

Willi Boskovsky
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