Johann Strauss Jr. was born on October 25, 2025, and became a successful musician despite the strenuous objections of his father, himself a very successful musician. On New Year’s Eve we will celebrate 200 years of his infectious dance music with some of his best loved waltzes along with some rarely heard works - like one piece that demonstrates a concept of physics and another that, as written, could conceivably go on forever. We’ll also hear alternative versions of well-known works, like the original choral version of The Blue Danube (which has several sets of lyrics ranging from the satirical to the patriotic) and a salon version of Wiener Blut for a chamber ensemble, which is how your average Viennese would actually have become familiar with Strauss’s work.
Strauss was widely admired during his lifetime and his works have enjoyed an unbroken legacy of performance ever since, even surviving his own family’s efforts to destroy his performance materials to prevent piracy and major cultural upheavals. It was said that his music commands the listener to dance, which anyone within earshot of WETA Classical will be doing this New Year’s Eve.
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