20 August: The 1812 Overture

On this date in 1882 the 1812 Overture was first performed. 10 things you might not know about this piece of music:

1. The 1812 Overture was composed in 1880 and is said to have taken Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky six weeks to complete. Its full title is The Year 1812 Solemn Overture, Op. 49, and it's a concert overture in E♭ major.
2. The piece is often used as an accompaniment to Firework displays, especially on American Independence Day, so Americans might be forgiven for connecting it with the War of 1812 between the United States and the British, but it actually has nothing to do with that at all. It was to commemorate the successful Russian defence against Napoleon's invading Grande Armée in the same year.
3. The venue for the first performance was a tent beside the almost completed Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, which had been commissioned in 1812 by Tsar Alexander I to commemorate the aforementioned Russian victory. An All-Russia Arts and Industry Exhibition was being planned for Moscow in 1882. Tchaikovsky's friend and mentor Nikolai Rubinstein had suggested that he write a grand commemorative piece for the festivities.
4. Although the Overture was a massive hit and remains so to this day, Tchaikovsky actually hated it. Never a fan of big patriotic displays at the best of times, he said it was “very loud” and “noisy” and thought it lacked artistic merit. Even though it was his own idea to use actual cannon fire and to arrange for neighbouring churches to ring their bells as part of the performance. The conductor for this performance was Ippolit Al'tani.
5. The music incorporates Russian folk tunes and the French National Anthem. The piece begins with a simple Russian song known as O Lord, Save Thy People played by four cellos and two violas. This represents the Russian people praying to be saved from the French invasion. La Marseillaise represents the French army and the two tunes seem to compete with each other, representing the fighting. The Battle of Borodino is represented by five cannon shots and La Marseillaise is dominant at this point with the French apparently winning. After this, a long descending run represents the French army retreating out of Moscow as the freezing winter takes its toll on them. Then the hymn that opens the piece is repeated – the people's prayers have been answered. The climax of the grand finale is eleven more cannon shots and the melody of God Save the Tsar!.
6. There's some artistic licence on Tchaikovsky's part here as in 1812, La Marseillaise had been banned by Napoleon and wouldn't have been played during the actual campaign. It was reinstated as the French Anthem in 1879, the year before the Overture was written.
7. Want to stage a performance of the 1812 Overture? Here's what you will need: A brass band, 1 piccolo, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 1 cor anglais, 2 Clarinets in B♭ and 2 bassoons, 4 horns in F, 2 cornets in B♭, 2 trumpets in E♭, 3 trombones (2 tenor, 1 bass) and 1 tuba, timpani, orchestral bass Drum, snare drum, cymbals, tambourine, triangle, carillon, Violins I & II, violas, cellos, double basses. Finally, one battery of cannon, or ceremonial field artillery with a well trained crew to operate them because safety and skill is paramount in getting the timing right. In fact, it would be almost impossible to achieve with the artillery available in the 1800s. So you might want to use a bass drum and gong/tam-tam instead, especially if the performance is going to be indoors.
8. The earliest known recording of the Overture dates back to 1916 and was by the Royal Albert Hall Orchestra conducted by Landon Ronald, issued by His Master's Voice on 12-inch 78-rpm records. It omits the cannon fire.
9. Malcolm Arnold parodied the piece in A Grand, Grand Overture. His version features 4 rifles, three Vacuum cleaners (two uprights in B♭and one horizontal with detachable sucker in C), and an electric floor polisher in E♭. It is dedicated to President Hoover.
10. The piece has inspired many other works including the opening and ending scenes of the film V for Vendetta; the melody of Dan Fogelberg's Same Old Lang Syne was inspired by the leitmotif representing the Russian forces; the riff of The Move's Night of Fear; Canadian progressive rock band Rush used the brass theme in their suite 2112, from their album of the same name. The piece itself was used in an episode of Agatha Christie's Poirot, when Hercule Poirot plays a recording of the Overture to cover up the sounds of him breaking into his own safe.

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