Zauber der Montur
Magic of the Uniform

Carl Michael Ziehrer (1843-1922), the last court ball music director, was one of the truly great personalities of Viennese music. This means that he was for more than “only” a preeminent military bandmaster of the Danube Monarchy. The march “Zauber der Montur” (“Magic of the Uniform”) which is based on motifs of his operetta “Die Landstreicher” (“The Vagabonds”) testifies to this. When this operetta was premiered in Vienna in 1899, the audience easily grasped the artistic value of the music – quite to the contrary of the local press attending. Ziehrer composed this fine march making the duet of the Lieutenants Mucki von Rodenstein and Rudi von Muggenheim “This is the magic of the uniform…” and another tune “Here is to the couple celebrating a special anniversary” blend to become one of the gems of the Austrian art of the march.