This edition of Brass, Reeds, and Percussion features marches composed by the German march king Hermann Blankenburg, who may be the prolific march composer in the world with over 1,300 marches to his credit. Blankenburg learned to play a number of wind instruments—ranging from the highest to the lowest; in other words, from the piccolo to the tuba. He also played the violin and the bassoon. He was a member of various German military bands and played in bands of the German Army Reserve during WW I, as well as playing in numerous orchestras. He also worked as a police officer and a bricklayer. Today’s edition opens with Blankenburg’s personal favorite march “My Regiment.”

This is the Mardi Gras edition of Brass, Reeds, and Percussion. “Trombone Shorty” Andrews is one of the hottest of curret New Orleans talents. His grandfather was Jessie Hill, who lived from 1932 to 1996. In 1960, Hill had a big New Orleans party-song hit: “Ooh Poo Pah Doo.” In recognition of Mardi Gras, New Orleans, and its contributions to American music, today’s edition of Brass, Reeds, and Percussion will open with “Ooh Poo Pah Doo” as performed on the television series Treme by this grandsons: “Trombone Shorty” Andrews and his brother James Andrews. It will be followed by music from the soundtrack of Tune in Tomorrow, a 1990 film set in New Orleans. The music was written by another hot New Orleans talent: Wynton Marsalis.

This edition features music composed by a Slovenian and music composed by the Swedish march king. But this edition opens with a march by Herman Ludwig Blankenburg, a German composer who was born in 1876. He may actually be the most prolific of all march composers with over 1,300 marches to his credit. Although he was a member of German Army bands, a British music publisher made his marches famous when Blankenberg won a march contest in 1904. Blankenburg’s favorite instrument was the one he learned to play first: the piccolo. But he also learned how to play the bassoon, tuba, and violin. He conducted his school orchestra when he was 10. He played in and conducted community bands for much of his adult life and also performed in orchestras.

This edition of Brass, Reeds, and Percussion features Hungarian music and Hungarian composers. Born in Hungary and famous for his operettas, Franz Lehar has a strong wind-band heritage. Truth be told, he's actually Franz Lehar, Jr., the son of Franz Lehar, Sr., the bandmaster of Regiment 50 of the Austro-Hungarian Army. After attending the Prague Conservatory, Franz Lehar, Jr., became an assistant bandmaster in his father's band at age 18. But 2 years later, he became the youngest bandmaster in the Austro-Hungarian Army. Then he became a bandmaster in the Austro-Hungarian Navy. Yes, the Austro-Hungarian Empire had a Navy because it was not land locked. It accessed the Mediterranean Sea mostly through the port of Trieste, now part of Italy. The Austro-Hungarian Empire controlled most of what is now the northeastern corner of Italy and much of the Croation Coast.

This edition of Brass, Reeds, and Percussion opens with what has been called the most famous of Franz Schubert’s works: his March No. 1 in D Major, also known as the Marche Militaire. The original composition was for piano four-hands. This march has been arranged for both orchestra and wind band, not to mention other combinations of instruments. In addition, the melody has been borrowed by such other classical composers as Stravinsky and Liszt. It was used in Autolite commercials during the 1940s and 1950s and in the more recent video game Challenger.

This edition of Brass, Reeds, and Percussion features official German military marches based on themes from operas. But this edition opens with a triple play of a jazz standard written by Jelly Roll Morton in 1906; namely, “The King Porter Stomp.” We will begin with the first recording of the tune, the one made in1923 with Morton himself playing the piano. Then we will hear the 1935 recording by the Benny Goodman band, a recording that became a big big band hit. The third version will be a 1955 recording of the tune arranged by Pete Rugolo, obviously made with better recording equipment.

This edition of Brass, Reeds, and Percussion features original classical wind-band hunting music from the 1700s and 20th century movie music composed by John Williams. This edition opens with two German military marches. As required by a 1817 decree of Prussian King Fredrich Wilhelm, the Prussian Army adopted a list of official marches to be played at military ceremonies. This practice continued when the German Empire was formed and continues to this day. There have been three different editions of the list of official marches. The first is a parade march from the first list and was written by the military musician Julius Mollendorf. The second is also a parade march written by Princess Princess Charlotte of Saxe-Meiningen and can be found on all three lists.

This edition of Brass, Reeds, and Percussion features original classical wind-band music that depicts a hunting trip and 1960s music from television shows. But this edition opens with a big hit from 1968: “Those Were the Days.” Boris Fomin, a Russian who lived from 1900 to 1948, composed the music with original lyrics by a Russian poet. Gene Raskin, an American, wrote the English lyrics; and Mary Hopkin, an English singer, recorded the song for the newly minted Apple Records, encouraged by Beatle Paul McCartney, who played the acoustic guitar for the recording. The song was a number-one hit in Great Britain, Canada, and France. In the United States, it topped at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Joseph Lacalle was born in Cadiz, Spain, in 1859. He immigrated to the United States in 1884 at age 25. He played clarinet in the John Philip Sousa Band and the Patrick Gilmore Band. Eventually, he started his own band and became known as a composer, conductor, and music critic. He wrote his biggest hit in 1920: “Amapola.” "Amapola" is Spanish for the poppy flower, but is also used as a girl’s name in Spanish. In 1941, the Jimmy Dorsey big-band recording of “Amapola” became a number-one hit. The song has appeared in various movies since that time, and Natalie Cole recorded it for her 2013 album.

For 2024, Hanukkah began at sunset on December 25 and will end at sunset on January 2, 2025. So in recognition of Hanukkah, this edition of Brass, Reeds, and Percussion features Hanukkah songs and klezmer. Klezmer is an instrumental musical tradition of the Jews of Central and Eastern Europe. Most klezmer is dance music, which is very appropriate for Hanukkah which is a happy celebration. Over the years, klezmer has incorporated elements from many other traditions: Turkish, Greek, Romanian, German, and Slavic, as well as Jewish religious music. In the United States, klezmer has incorporated big band jazz and Dixieland elements as well. And as two selections aired during this edition will demonstrate, even Latin music has been incorporated into klezmer.