Classical Sprouts: The Blue Danube interlochenpublicradio.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from interlochenpublicradio.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Strauss’s Blue Danube keeps waltzing
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Sophie Makris -
Born out of defeat, initially not that popular and dedicated to a river that’s more greeny-grey, the beginnings of “The Blue Danube” 150 years ago this week were inauspicious.
But Johann Strauss Junior’s rousing waltz, first performed on February 15, 1867, is now one of the world’s most famous and catchiest pieces of classical music.
It features in movies galore and is being performed and danced to still.
“An der schönen blauen Donau”, as it is known in the original German, began life as a choral work commissioned by the Vienna Men’s Choral Society.