Max Derrickson

Richard Strauss     (Born in Munich, 1864; died in  Garmisch-Partenkirchen, 1949)

Till Eulenspiegel’s lustige Streiche (Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks), Op. 28

German composer Richard Strauss (no relation to the Viennese waltz family) possessed an extraordinary talent for composing lush, extravagant music.  It might be said that Strauss both perfected and ended the late Romantic style in the tone poems and operas for which he is best known, by pushing their musical and dramatic elements to, and past, their limits.

His tone poems, such as Also Sprach Zarathustra, Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks, and Don Juan, are firmly entrenched
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Completed in 1895, Till Eulenspiegel was Strauss’ first and greatest international success.  In rondo form, the piece tells the boisterous tale of a rogue’s misadventures, which ultimately lead him to the gallows.  Probably the most famous theme is the opening horn call.  Its rhythmic scheme is, cleverly, exactly like the declamation of the name “Till Eulenspie-gel.”  (Incidentally, the opening melody of Thelonius Monk’s 1967 jazz classic “Straight, No Chaser” is nearly identical to Strauss’.)  This theme by the horn represents Till’s prankster spirit in humankind, and a second theme played by the clarinet represents Till’s scurrilous and wheedling behavior.

Strauss depicts Till’s misdeeds and their consequences.
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