Casual Discussion German marching tunes

[Joe Shearer]

I am putting in one or two old German marches, that immediately strike the ear with their peculiarity. I wonder if any other member notices this oddity.

 

[Joe Shearer]

I was looking for marches that have that quirk.

 

[TR_123456]

I get it now

 

[Ryder]

 

[Joe Shearer]

Thanks.

This was in my collection, but not in my collection.

You know, of course, that the original Armee Marsch collection had three sections,

• the slow march section (not what the British Army or the Indian Army considers the slow march, but the original parade march of European armies BEFORE the French Revolution),
• the quick march section, that the Germans equated with the Napoleonic quick march of 120 steps per minute, while the British march at the same (French) pace, unless some finicky Guards bandmaster sticks to 116, distinctly slower; the pipe band swaggers along at 120. The British (and therefore Commonwealth) slow march of today is exactly half the pace of the quick march, at 60 BPM; of course, one can march at quick time or slow time on all quick march tunes, by taking one step instead of the two in the quick step.
• Finally, my favourite - the cavalry section, AM III. Sadly, my own favourite, Keel Row, isn't - obviously - in the German Collections.

What you have shared is a famous Blankenburg tune.

Now the shocking part - no Blankenburg, von Blon, Eilenberg, Freidemann, Steiberitz, and Teike tunes are in the AM or the subsequent HM lists, except four (4!) in the HM list!

So this is not in my AM collection (I have arranged by AM number, not by HM), but it is in my German marches collection, the ones whose numbers were untraceable.

For the curiousity, these two marches I presented are at the old European parade tempo,

This AM I tempo is quite different; as far as I could make out, these are all uniformly 70 to 75 beats per minute (faster than the Indian slow march).

 

[Joe Shearer]

I get it now

60 BPM!

Of course, there are so many marches, including British and American. Here is one of my favourite cavalry marches - OK, two, I couldn't help slipping in the famous, stirring Finn march from the Hakkapellitaa light cavalry (contrary to popular legend, they were a scruffy lot on smallish ponies, but desperately brave; Gustavus Adolphus build his doctrine of a flat-out charge depending on them).

The first one is listed as a Galoppmarsch; riders may kindly note that this was ridden at a canter, not a full gallop. So the tempo is perfect -

Then the Hakkapelliitta - from the Finnish 'Hack them down!' It was best to be somewhere else when they charged.

 

[F-6 enthusiast]

Yorkischer march (NVA )

@Joe Shearer I have argued time and time again that BD should have adopted the Prussian Drill style (goosestep) instead of the british style which looks cringe
Why adopt customs of your former colonial overlords ? Especially For a country like BD , All colonial remnants need to phased out, especially the mindset.

 

[Joe Shearer]

Yorkischer march (NVA )

@Joe Shearer I have argued time and time again that BD should have adopted the Prussian Drill style (goosestep) instead of the british style which looks cringe
Why adopt customs of your former colonial overlords ? Especially For a country like BD , All colonial remnants need to phased out, especially the mindset.

I'm glad you raised this.

I'm on the other side. I want to remove all foreign traits from our drill, starting with the stiff-kneed goose-step. It's tremendously harmful to the knee. I want to remove the Russian practice of the inspected squad looking at the inspecting dignitary. Either all the Russian drill, or none. I want to remove that jump-step before eyes right, and every other Pakistani practice, not because it is Pakistani practice, but because it reduces our jawans to posturing dolls. I would like to go back to the old, established British practices, BUT with all the Old Regiments, the current infantry regiments, reduced to two battalions each, marching at their own pace of 115 beats per minute, with only the light infantry marching at 120. I would like the bands from swaying like drunken sailors from side to side, just because some moron saw the Scots pipers swagger and thought rocking like that was a great idea. Above all, I would like all the soldiers - not airmen, not sailors - to be organised into five or six mammoth regiments - Mechanised (not infantry), Mountain, Desert, Jungle, Airborne and Amphibious (not Marine), with two more special regiments, High Altitude and High Altitude Mechanised. These should NEVER parade in public.

 

[Anmdt]

I hereby apply with this piece from Prussia.

 

[Joe Shearer]

I hereby apply with this piece from Prussia.

A brilliant march!
The second stanza is from the Hohenfriedberger.
If you like these German classics, among their ten or so best, you may like this one about Fritz.

 

[Joe Shearer]

A brilliant march!
The second stanza is from the Hohenfriedberger.
If you like these German classics, among their ten or so best, you may like this one about Fritz.

Zeiten and Keith are both characters in their own right.

Zeiten was a tiny little man with a filthy temper, one of the finest cavalry commanders of his time, who won battles with Frederick more than once simply with the power of his management of the cavalry. Then, of course, he fought with his King. They made up again before Zeiten died. If I remember correctly, he is one of those on Frederick's famous monument to his best generals.

Keith was the brother of the Lord Marshal of Scotland, and the bluest of blue blood (his brother also served Frederick). When he died, Frederick was inconsolable. There were many Scotsmen and Irishmen in European armies.

 

[Joe Shearer]

I would be very happy if you would tell me any other kind of music - marching music - you'd like to hear.

 

[Nilgiri]

my own favourite, Keel Row,

I can understand why....on many levels.

 

[Nilgiri]

Prussian Drill style (goosestep)

I absolutely hate goosetepping lol.

I cringe each time I see the Chinese do it...that stuff should have stopped at the urals.

If you arent an -ussia of some kind, dont goosestep please.

 

[Nilgiri]

I want to remove that jump-step before eyes right

Haha.... that kind of stuff was parodied in a children's TV show by Robin williams of all people....the silly walks of british officers.... I fondly remember such things now (and I miss Robin so much too)

Later, more grown up.... I saw the monty python sketches mocking the same.

Its all just too much exaggerated license past the original core stuff.

just because some moron saw the Scots pipers swagger and thought rocking like that was a great idea.

I cringe each time I see that stuff....mostly again because in childhood I saw up close the proper way to do bagpipes.

It was Gurkha marching band stationed in HK. They were regular feature in our yearly school fair.... and were always a treat to watch.

 

[Nilgiri]

Sometimes you got to peel the layers a whole lot and you do end up in "Germany" again regarding some tunes...

Going OTOH a bit....sorry if I got any of this wrong (its quite possible):

DDR Matrosen Von Kronstadt (one of my favourite "military" songs).....

Comes from the famous soviet tune (forward red marines!).....I been told a cpl different reasons by some russian friends I know as to why this song was made after conclusion of the kronstadt rebellion (those sailors considered reddest of the red). Quite a poignant story of its own

But that song actually came from the polish march song about the Polish rebellion of 1830: Gdy Naród Do Boju (When the nation fights!)

.......but that tune actually takes influences from Chopin variations on opus 2

which in turn uses a theme from Don Giovanni* by Mozart (the duo between giovanni and zerlina)....which has been used direct or influeced several other pieces of music that come to memory (points if anyone can mention any).

Mozart is technically Austrian I suppose, but you get my point hehe.


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*Don Giovanni btw is one of reasons why I rate Mozart the absolute prodigious best of all time if you ever were to put a gun to my head and force me to pick "one".

The overture was (apparently) written at the absolute last moment when it was mentioned to him it was missing a day? before the opera premiered.... (mozart apparently saying "not to worry, its all in my head!")

 

[Joe Shearer]

Sometimes you got to peel the layers a whole lot and you do end up in "Germany" again regarding some tunes...

Going OTOH a bit....sorry if I got any of this wrong (its quite possible):

DDR Matrosen Von Kronstadt (one of my favourite "military" songs).....

Comes from the famous soviet tune (forward red marines!).....I been told a cpl different reasons by some russian friends I know as to why this song was made after conclusion of the kronstadt rebellion (those sailors considered reddest of the red). Quite a poignant story of its own

But that song actually came from the polish march song about the Polish rebellion of 1830: Gdy Naród Do Boju (When the nation fights!)

.......but that tune actually takes influences from Chopin variations on opus 2

which in turn uses a theme from Don Giovanni* by Mozart (the duo between giovanni and zerlina)....which has been used direct or influeced several other pieces of music that come to memory (points if anyone can mention any).

Mozart is technically Austrian I suppose, but you get my point hehe.


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*Don Giovanni btw is one of reasons why I rate Mozart the absolute prodigious best of all time if you ever were to put a gun to my head and force me to pick "one".

The overture was (apparently) written at the absolute last moment when it was mentioned to him it was missing a day? before the opera premiered.... (mozart apparently saying "not to worry, its all in my head!")

<sigh>

That WAS Mozart.

No wonder he drove Salieri up the wall.

 

[Joe Shearer]

<sigh>

That WAS Mozart.

No wonder he drove Salieri up the wall.

Difficult to pick and choose, but I prefer the Marriage of Figaro, and ONE aria from the Magic Flute.

The Queen of the Night singing her heart-stopping hate speech - OK, make that heart-stopping sound byte.

 

[Joe Shearer]

 

[Ryder]

I would be very happy if you would tell me any other kind of music - marching music - you'd like to hear.

French ones

I listen to Turkish/Ottoman, German and Russian/Soviet military music. I want to listen to lesser known ones.