Johann Strauss
Johann Strauss Jr.
Josef Strauss
On December 7 & 8, the Houston Symphony presents A Viennese Waltz Christmas featuring pieces from the Strauss Family: Johann Strauss, Johann Strauss Jr., and Josef Strauss. Discover the relationship between the Strauss’s and a highlight of one of the most well-known operettas in classical history.
The Strauss Family
The name “Strauss” is undoubtedly well known in the world of classical music. Beginning with Johann Baptist Strauss, who paved the way during the Romantic period. But it was more so his son, Johann Baptist Strauss Jr., who really carved a name for the Strauss family.
Shockingly, Strauss, the Father, greatly disapproved of his son pursuing a career or even an interest in music in his early years. Strauss Jr. was forced to practice and study the violin in secret. He was only able to practice and start his career as a musician when his father abandoned the family for a mistress. The dispute between him and his father didn’t diminish but rather extended throughout their lives when the two stood on opposing sides during the revolutions of the Austrian Empire in 1848.
Johann Strauss Jr.
When his father died of sickness in 1849, Strauss Jr. merged their orchestras and continued touring. He eventually gained greater fame than his father and became one of the most famous waltz composers of his era in Austria, Poland, and Germany, where he often toured.
However, with fame comes great pressures and expectations. Johann Strauss Jr. suffered from constant mental and physical demands, such as which forced him to take long breaks. His younger brother, Josef Strauss, was persuaded by the family to quit his career in engineering to take over the orchestra for Johann Strauss Jr.
Die Fledermaus (The Bat)
One of the pieces you’ll hear in this performance is Johann Strauss Jr.’s Die Fledermaus. Although Strauss Jr. was known mainly for ballroom dance pieces, Die Fledermaus has proven to be a timeless classic, making his third operetta his most well-known stage work. The piece was first premiered in Vienna on April 5th, 1872, and based on a popular French vaudeville comedy, a play about a ridiculous situation or event often accompanied by music.
(left to right) Eduard, Johann Jr., and Josef Strauss
The story tells of a long-winded scheme to best a practical joker who, three years prior, embarrassed the narrator at a ball. The scheme consists of a fraudulent prison sentence, a faux Hungarian countess, a human-sized bat costume, and, of course, plenty of “gloriously drunk” chaos!
In this program, look out for Strauss’s famous polkas and dance music. Tickets are going fast so waltz over to Jones Hall for a Viennese Christmas with the Houston Symphony!
