Ludwig van Beethoven - WoO 29 March for Wind Sextet in B-flat major

This little march is shrouded in controversy and a lot of complexity. First of all, its instrumentation of pairs of clarinets, horns and bassoons that takes it out of the world of typical band pieces of music. However, its colors and its character make it quite rooted in that domain. It is, however, in its history, where the real problems and controversies emerge. In a slightly modified version, this work appeared as No. 25 in a 1932 publication of 32 pieces written by (Franz) Joseph Haydn for "Flötenühr" (musical clock). Was this a misattribution? Apparently not. Another version of the piece for "Flötenühr" appeared in the early 1800s entitled "March of the Grenadier arranged by Ludwig van Beethoven". The word "arranged" suggests, of course, that the composer, in effect, used music by Haydn for this work. On the other hand, the "Grenadero" march, technically speaking, was for a musical clock, not for a wind ensemble. The second version of this piece, probably written at the same time as the musical clock version, is known simply as "March in B flat for 2 clarinets, 2 horns and 2 bassoons". Hess even assigned a number to the "March of the Grenadier" as "Hess 107", considering it a different piece from the work WoO 29. In any case, the "March of the Grenadier" contains Haydn's march, only 20 bars long. and some music added by Beethoven in the process of the transformation. It is, in effect, an arrangement for "Flötenühr" from WoO March 29 for wind ensemble. As for its musical value, it is an attractive but definitely light work, without great importance among the composer's works. The wind ensemble version was published posthumously.

Instrumentation: 2 clarinets, 2 horns and 2 bassoons.
Performers: Members of the wind ensemble of the Berlin Philharmonic.