Under the Double Eagle (arr Glover)

From Wind Repertory Project
Josef Franz Wagner

Josef Franz Wagner (arr. Andrew Glover)


This work may also be known under its German title, Unter dem Doppeladler.


General Info

Year: 1891 / 1997
Duration: c. 3:45
Difficulty: III-1/2 (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: C L Barnhouse Company
Cost: Score and Parts (print) - $60.00   |   Score Only (print) - $6.00


Instrumentation

Full Score
C Piccolo (optional)
Flute I-II
Oboe
Bassoon
B-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II-III
B-flat Bass Clarinet
E-flat Alto Saxophone I-II
B-flat Tenor Saxophone
E-flat Baritone Saxophone
B-flat Trumpet I-II-III
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II-III
Euphonium
Tuba
String Bass (optional)
Timpani
Percussion, including:

  • Bass Drum
  • Bells
  • Crash Cymbals
  • Snare Drum


Errata

None discovered thus far.


Program Notes

Wagner took the title for this march (opus 159) from the state emblem of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The eagle has been a symbol of strength and courage since ancient times; it was the emblem of the Sumerians 5,000 years ago and of Imperial Rome many centuries later. The double-headed eagle was the symbol of the Byzantine Empire for over 2,000 years before it appeared on the imperial coat of arms in Austria-Hungary.

The march itself has been extremely popular for over a century. By 1910, Franz Pazdirek was listing approximately 50 different instrumental and vocal arrangements of the work published by a dozen different firms. Beginning in 1903, Under the Double Eagle March was recorded by the Sousa Band four times before Wagner’s death in 1908. Like Sousa’s Washington Post and numerous other marches around the turn of the century, this march has probably motivated more dancers than marchers. It has been used by country and western fiddlers in the U.S. for so long that many believe the composer was from Nashville, Tennessee.

- Program Note from Program Notes for Band


The original edition of J.F. Wagner’s classic march Under the Double Eagle reads, “March by J.F. Wagner, bandmaster in the imperial and royal 49th IR Freiherr von Hess, Op. 159 Respectfully dedicated to the Imperial and Royal Reich War Minister Edmund Edler von Krieghammer, Knight of the Iron Cross, 1 Class, Holder of the Military Merit Cross, etc.” When this march was premiered on November 30, 1891, no one knew that this was the birth of one of the most famous and longest-lasting marches. Within a short time, hundreds of thousands of copies were sold in the United States.

- Program Note from Heritage Encyclopedia of Band Music


Media


State Ratings

  • Indiana: ISSMA SENIOR BAND GROUP I
  • Kansas: IV


Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

  • Florida Symphonic Winds (Clearwater) (Jeffrey Traster, conductor) - 16 July 2022
  • University of Southern Mississippi (Hattiesburg) Concert Band (Travis Higa, conductor) - 18 November 2021
  • University of North Texas (Denton) University Band (Jochen McEvoy, conductor) – 8 April 2019
  • Berea (Ky.) College Wind Ensemble (James Dreiling, conductor) – 27 February 2017
  • Mount Prospect (Ill.) Community Band (Ralph Wilder, conductor) - 2014


Works for Winds by This Composer


Resources