Die Fledermaus Overture

Johann Strauss Jr

Johann Strauss Jr (arr. Lucien Cailliet)

General Info

Year: 1874 / 1946
Duration: c. 8:30
Difficulty: VI (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: Boosey & Hawkes
Cost: Score and Parts – Out of print.

For availability information, see Discussion tab, above.

Instrumentation

Full Score
Flute I-II-III
Oboe
Bassoon I-II
E-flat Soprano Clarinet
B-flat Soprano Clarinet Solo-I-II-III
E-flat Alto Clarinet
B-flat Bass Clarinet
E-flat Alto Saxophone
B-flat Tenor Saxophone
E-flat Baritone Saxophone
Cornets Solo-II-III
B-flat Trumpet
Flugelhorn
E-flat Horn or Alto I-II-III
Horn in F I-II-III
Trombone I-II-III
Euphonium
Tuba
String Bass
Timpani
Percussion, including:

• Bass Drum
• Crash Cymbals
• Glockenspiel
• Side Drum
• Triangle

Errata

None discovered thus far.

Program Notes

Die Fledermaus (The Bat, sometimes called The Revenge of the Bat) is an operetta composed by Johann Strauss II to a German libretto by Karl Haffner (de) and Richard Genée. The operetta premièred on 5 April 1874 at the Theater an der Wien in Vienna and has been part of the regular repertoire ever since.

The supreme example of Viennese operetta, Die Fledermaus both defines and transcends that genre. Its story centers on a magnificent masked ball, given by a Russian prince, that brings together all the main characters in various disguises. The three-act journey from boudoir to ballroom to jail provides ample opportunities for farce and humor, but also for genuine human emotion and a surprisingly realistic view of urban life.

- Program Note from Wikipedia and the Metropolitan Opera

The famous waltz composer Johann Strauss, Jr., wrote a number of operettas, the most famous and popular of which is Die Fledermaus. This comic operetta, a standard item in the repertory of many opera houses throughout the world, was premiered in Vienna on April 5, 1874. The plot explores the foibles of the high born and the low brow with equal parts of wit and humanity, against a background of waltzing and laughter. No other work in the whole of the repertory says "Vienna" any better. The overture contains many of the principal airs of the operetta.

- Program Note from Program Notes for Band

Commercial Discography

None discovered thus far.

State Ratings

• Alabama: Class AA
• Arkansas: V
• Florida: VI
• Kansas: VI
• Louisiana: V
• North Carolina: VI
• South Carolina: VI
• Tennessee: VI

Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

• Peninsula Symphonic Band (Palo Alto, Calif.) (Ted Henderson, conductor) – 24 November 2019
• Philadelphia (Penn.) Wind Symphony (Paul Bryan, conductor) – 8 December 2018
• Philadelphia (Penn.) Wind Symphony (Paul Bryan, conductor) – 10 December 2016
• West Virginia State University (Institute) Wind Ensemble (Scott E. Woodard, conductor) – 4 December 2012

Works for Winds by this Composer

Adaptable Music

• The Blue Danube (Flex instrumentation) (arr. Deterling) (1866/2020)
• Tritsch-Tratsch Polka (Flex instrumentation) (arr. Shiraiwa) (1858/ )

All Wind Works

• An der schönen blauen Donau (arr. Van der Beek) (1866/2010)
• The Blue Danube (Flex instrumentation) (arr. Deterling) (1866/2020)
• Blue Danube Waltz (arr. Leidzen) (1866/1941)
• Der Zigeunerbaron Overture (tr. Nefs) (1885/2012)
• Die Fledermaus (arr. Suzuki) (1874)
• Die Fledermaus (trans. Niese) (1874/2003)
• Die Fledermaus Overture (arr. Cailliet) (1874/1946)
• Eine Nacht in Venedig Ouvertüre (arr. Wagner) (1883/1993)
• Im Sturmschritt (tr. Nefs) (1871 / 2019)
• Night in Venice, A (arr. Walters) (1883/1964)
• Perpetuum Mobile (arr. Reed) (1861/2001)
• Pizzicato Polka (with Josef Strauss) (1869/1909)
• Pizzicato Polka (with Josef Strauss; arr. Remsen) (1869/1992)
• Theme from Emperor Waltz (arr. Johnson) (1888/1993)
• Thunder and Lightning Polka (arr. Reed) (1868/1999)
• Tritsch-Tratsch Polka (arr. Reed) (1858/1998)
• Tritsch-Tratsch Polka (Flex instrumentation) (arr. Shiraiwa) (1858/ )
• Vergnügungszug (arr. Wagner) (1864/1992)
• Waltz Time with Johann Strauss (arr. Cacavas) (2008)
• Zigeunerbaron Overture (arr. Patterson) (1885)

Resources

• Die Fledermaus, Wikipedia Accessed 21 December 2016
• Smith, Norman E. (2002). Program Notes for Band. Chicago: GIA Publications, pp. 568.
• Strauss, J.; Cailliet, L. (1946). Die Fledermaus: Overture [score]. Boosey & Hawkes: [s.l.]
• "Synopsis: Die Fledermaus." The Metropolitan Opera Accessed 21 December 2016