Egyptischer Marsch (Egyptian March), Op. 335

Program notes

About the Work

The Egyptischer Marsch (‘Egyptian March’) is one of Johann Strauss II’s most colourful and exotic miniatures, first performed at Pavlovsk, near Saint Petersburg, in 1869. The work reflects the period’s fascination with the Orient, heightened that very year by the opening of the Suez Canal, which turned European eyes toward Egypt. Strauss, ever attuned to the public mood, responded with a march that wraps a brisk military tread in ‘Eastern’ atmosphere, a piece of nineteenth-century musical exoticism that makes no claim to authenticity but delights in evoking a fantasy of distant lands. Its most celebrated feature is a passage where the orchestral players are asked to sing a wordless vocal refrain, a touch of theatrical fun that always charms audiences at the New Year’s Concert. Light, vivid, and faintly comic, the march is a perfect example of Strauss’s gift for turning the day’s headlines into irresistible entertainment.

What to Listen For

Listen for the ‘exotic’ colouring with which Strauss conjures his imagined Orient: piccolo, percussion, and decorative turns of phrase suggesting distant climes over a steady march rhythm. The highlight comes when the orchestra’s musicians lift their voices in a brief, wordless sung refrain, a delightful surprise that breaks the instrumental texture. The whole piece is brisk, bright, and good-humoured, exotic spice atop a jaunty parade.