Festmusik Der Stadt Wien

Strauss finished the score of the “Festive Music for the City of Vienna” on January 14, 1943 at his Viennese home. It was written for the Viennese Corp of Trumpeters and scored for 10 trumpets, 7 trombones (2 alto, 3 tenor, 2 bass), 2 tubas and timpani, divided into two choirs. The score is dedicated to the Vienna Town Council, officially in gratitude for having been awarded its Beethoven Prize the previous year. Strauss himself conducted the work’s premier in the Festive Hall of the Vienna Rathaus on April 9, 1943. Ten days later he made a much shorter version of the work known simply as “Vienna Fanfare.