Anna Amalie, Princess of Prussia: Four regimental marches

These four short pieces for military band are a collection of marches written by the sister of Frederick “The Great”, the leader of Prussia. They have been arranged (in chronological order) as a sort of suite. Each march is short and has simple repeated sections. The instrumentation of these marches parallels typical instrumentations of military wind bands in mid-18th Century Prussia: a pair of oboes, a pair of clarinets, a pair bassoons, a pair of horns, and sometimes trumpets and timpani. In several of the marches a snare drum is used. The Germans came to know and love the sounds of the Turkish military and the special “Jannisary” forces which utilized several percussion instruments including triangle, cymbals, bass drum and a crescent jingle. Amalie calls for some of these instruments to be used in her marches. It is a military band; definitely not an orchestra like would be playing at Mannheim, Vienna, or in the courts. The rhythm is exact as marches need to be for the even steps of soldiers marching. The tonality and melodies are surprisingly cheerful in most sections as they use predominantly major tonality. This may have been to give civilian passersby’s a good impression of the military or it may have been due to the tonal limitations of the instruments, especially the clarinets and trumpets.
Each march is dedicated to a specific regiment in Berlin and has its own unique character and slightly varied instrumentation. The first, “Count Lottum”, is a slow march. If Amalie intended it to reflect the leader, she must have found him lighthearted and dedicated. The woodwinds carry most of the melodies which seem silly and almost whimsical. Timpani drums accompany the low brass and a snare accentuates the rhythms of the trumpets. The next march, dedicated to the regiment of General Buelow, is quite pompous and proud. The general must have risen before the sun every morning and worked his troops until dark, if the music is any indication of his character. This one uses a large Turkish triangle to beat out the time during one section. The woodwinds of General von Saldern’s march speak of his love for the countryside, which I can imagine his troops marching through regularly. In the final march for General von Moellendorf’s regiment, more of the banda turka instruments, the bass drum and cymbals, are employed by Amalie to give the impression that the regiment is not only serious, but powerful and have been successful in their battles. These two instruments are quite loud and punchy and create an intense atmosphere of impending battle. There are some nice tuba lines in this one that respond to the simple quarter – eighth – eighth rhythm of the trumpets with interesting counter-melody to the same rhythm.
This collection of marches by the sister of Frederick “the Great” has not been included in the canon of Western Musical History because its author composed only a few musical works in her life. While trained in music and loving it very much, Amelie was still an amateur. She did not need to play or compose to have a livelihood. She had everything she needed and thus music was her play. Also, while these marches perhaps represent a style of the Classical period that often gets overlooked, they are not by any means unique, nor do they signify an evolution line in Western music. They are fun little pieces that were no doubt a compositional game for the princess and gave the military bands additional tunes that made the regiments appear more benevolent.
Keith Polk, et al. "Band (i)." Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online. 2 Feb. 2009 .
Erich Schwandt and Andrew Lamb. "March." Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online. 2 Feb. 2009 .
Darrell Berg. "Anna Amalia (i), Princess of Prussia." Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online. 2 Feb. 2009 .