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Время создания: 1809-23 гг.
1. Version: Hess 6 ("Marsch für die böhmische Landwehr")
2. Version: WoO 18 ("Yorck'scher Marsch")
Духовой ансамбль Берлинского филармонического оркестра (Berliner Philharmoniker)
In the period between 1809 and 1810, Beethoven wrote three marches for wind band and this one was the first of the trio. Some believe the second, in C, WoO. 19, may have been written much later, but it most probably also came from this same two-year period. The March in F major, Für die Böhmische Landwehr (For the Bohemian Militia) is, like its siblings, a so-called Zapfenstreiche ("military tattoos," but in a musical sense, a march with a trio). After Beethoven completed this march, he added a brief trio, probably in 1809 or 1810. The other two lacked trios at the time, which in a strict sense, did not qualify then as Zapfenstreiche. But the composer, wanting to enhance chances for publication, wrote another and larger trio for this "Böhmische" march and added ones for the other two later on, probably in 1822-23. Beethoven's plan failed to get them into print then, but all three Marches were published posthumously. This March No. 1, however, seems to have first been published in Berlin around 1818.
Near the end of this work a theme is heard by the trumpet that turns out to be the main theme of the March No. 3, in C (actually, the middle one of the three as Beethoven arranged them), thus establishing a link among this trio of works and indicating to many musicologists that the three stand as a unit or cycle, meant to be played together. Indeed, when viewed as a single entity the ties between the marches tighten further: played in the apparently intended order, the C major March serves, in a sense, as a grand trio within the whole cycle.
The March No. 1 was first performed on August 15, 1810, for Empress Maria Ludovica. Already Beethoven had added the original trio and done some reorchestrating. The march theme is attractive, as is the trio section that Beethoven added in the 1820s. The tempo is fast for the march and the whole piece is quite colorful. While it is certainly a better work than its neglect would indicate, this march may be the least compelling of the three.
(All Music Guide)