The Blue Danube is the common English title of An der schönen blauen Donau,
Op. 314, a waltz by the Austrian composer Johann Strauss II, composed in
1866. Originally performed in February, 1867 at a concert of the Wiener
Männergesangsverein, it has been one of the most consistently popular pieces of
music in the classical repertoire. Its initial performance was considered only
a mild success, however, and Strauss is reputed to have said, "The devil take
the waltz, my only regret is for the coda—I wish that had been a success!"
After the original music was written, the words were added by the Choral
Association's poet, Joseph Weyl. Strauss later added more music, and Weyl needed
to change some of the words. Strauss adapted it into a purely orchestral
version for the 1867 Paris World's Fair, and it became a great success in this
form. The instrumental version is by far the most commonly performed today. An
alternate text was written by Franz von Gernerth, "Donau so blau". "The Blue
Danube" premiered in the United States in its instrumental version on 1 July
1867 in New York, and in Great Britain in its choral version on 21 September
1867 in London at the promenade concerts at Covent Garden.
When Strauss's stepdaughter, Alice von Meyszner-Strauss, asked the composer
Johannes Brahms to sign her autograph-fan, he wrote down the first
bars of The Blue Danube, but adding "Leider nicht von Johannes Brahms".
Composition notes The work commences with an extended
introduction in the key of A major with shimmering violins and a horn spelling
out the familiar waltz theme, answered by staccato wind chords, in a subdued
mood. It rises briefly into a loud passage but quickly dies down into the
same restful nature of the opening bars. A contrasting and quick phrase in D
major anticipates the waltz before three quiet downward-moving bass notes "usher
in" the first principal waltz melody. The first waltz theme is familiar gently
rising triad motif in cellos and horns in the tonic D major, accompanied by the
harp; the Viennese waltz beat is accentuated at the end of each 3-note
phrase. The Waltz 1A triumphantly ends its rounds of the motif, and waltz 1B
follows in the same key; the genial mood is still apparent.
Waltz 2A glides in quietly before a short contrasting middle section in
B-flat major. The entire section is repeated.
A more dour waltz 3A is introduced in G major before a fleeting eighth-note
melodic phrase. A loud Intrada is then played. Waltz 4A starts off in a
romantic mood before a more joyous waltz 4B in the same key.
After another short Intrada in A, cadencing in F-sharp minor, sonorous
clarinets spell out the poignant melody of waltz 5A in A. Waltz 5B is the
climax, punctuated by cymbal crashes. Each of these may be repeated at the
discretion of the performer. The coda recalls earlier sections before
furious chords usher in a recap of the romantic Waltz 4A. The idyll is cut
short as the waltz hurries back to the famous waltz theme 1A again. This
statement is cut short, however, by the final codetta: a variation of 1A is
presented, connecting to a rushing eighth-note passage in the final few
bars: repeated tonic chords underlined by a snare drum roll and a
bright-sounding flourish. A typical performance lasts around 10
minutes, with the seven-minute main piece, followed by a three-minute coda.
Instrumentation The Blue Danube is scored for the
following orchestra: Choral version
The Beautiful Blue Danube was first written as a song for a carnival choir,
with rather satirical lyrics. The original title was also referring to a
poem about the Danube in the poet Karl Isidor Beck's hometown, Baja in Hungary,
and not in Vienna. Later Franz von Gernerth wrote new, more
"official-sounding" lyrics: In popular culture
The specifically Viennese sentiment associated with Strauss's melody has
made it an unofficial Austrian national anthem. The waltz is traditionally
broadcast by all public-law television and radio stations exactly at midnight
on New Year's Eve, and on New Year's Day it is a customary encore piece at the
annual Vienna New Year's Concert. The first few bars are the interval signal
of Österreichischer Rundfunk's international programs.
The piece was prominently used in the Stanley Kubrick film 2001: A Space
Odyssey. The waltz is heard as a space plane docks with a space station while
another spacecraft departs for the Moon. It is also heard over the film's closing
credits. References
Notes Sources
Lloyd, Norman, The Golden Encyclopedia of Music, New York: Golden Press, a
division of Western Publishing, Inc., 1968.
Jeroen H.C. Tempelman, "By the Beautiful Blue Danube in New York", Vienna Music,
no. 101, pp. 28–31 External links
Media related to The Blue Danube at Wikimedia Commons
The Blue Danube: Scores at the International Music Score Library
Project Sheet music for "On the Beautiful Blue
Danube", John Church Company, 1868.