Editing Josef Wagner (composer)

{{Short description|Austrian military bandmaster and composer}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Josef Franz Wagner
| image              = Josef Franz Wagner.jpg
| alt                = 
| caption            = Wagner wearing a medal
| other_names        = "The Austrian March King"
| birth_date         = {{birth date|1856|03|20}}
| birth_place        = [[Vienna]], Austrian Empire
| death_date         = {{death date and age|1908|06|05|1856|03|20|mf=yes}}
| death_place        = {{nowrap|Vienna, Austria-Hungary}}
| resting_place      = [[Vienna Central Cemetery]]
| known_for          = {{ubl|Composing military marches}}
| notable_works      = [[Unter dem Doppeladler]]
}}
'''Josef Franz Wagner''' (20 March 1856 – 5 June 1908) was an Austrian military bandmaster and [[composer]].<ref name="vcr">{{cite web|url=http://www.r-vcr.com/~pastmasters/composer2/wagner.htm|title=PastMasters public domain web listing for Josef Wagner.|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20041014100634/http://www.r-vcr.com/~pastmasters/composer2/wagner.htm|archivedate=2004-10-14}}</ref> He is sometimes referred to as "The Austrian March King".<ref>Rehrig, William H. ''The Heritage Encyclopedia of Band Music'', Volume 2. Integrity Press, 1991.</ref>

Hailing from Vienna, which remained a key location in his life, Wagner joined a military band early on following his education. Between 1874 and 1899, Wagner would remain a member of the military band of different infantry regiments of the Austro-Hungarian army, becoming a successful bandmaster from 1878 to his death. Among is most famous work is ''[[Unter dem Doppeladler]]'' (Under the Double Eagle)''.'' Wagner died in 1908 following an accumulation of [[debt]].

== Early life and education ==
Josef Franz Wagner was born on 20 March 1856 in Vienna, [[Austrian Empire]], to Josef Wagner, a doctor, and Maria Anna Wagner (née Oberthanner). Wagner (the doctor) had migrated to Vienna from [[Bohemia]], while Anna had migrated from [[Moravia]]. Their son completed his [[primary education]] in Henriette Kumenecker's singing school in Vienna, and his [[secondary education]] at the Stiftsgymnasium in [[Seitenstetten]] between 1869 and 1873.<ref name=":52">{{Cite web |last=Dokumentation |first=Österreichisches Biographisches Lexikon und biographische |date=2003 |title=Wagner, Josef Franz |url=https://www.biographien.ac.at/oebl/oebl_W/Wagner_Josef-Franz_1856_1908.xml |access-date=2024-12-25 |website=ISBN 978-3-7001-3213-4 |language=de}}</ref><ref name=":42">{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=JOSEF F. WAGNER |url=https://austria-forum.org/af/Wissenssammlungen/Essays/Historisches_von_Graupp/JOSEF_F._WAGNER |access-date=2024-12-25 |website=Austria-Forum |language=de}}</ref> As a boy, Wagner excelled as a [[soprano]] in a [[church choir]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=The Johann Strauss Society of Great Britain - Contemporaries |url=https://johann-strauss.org.uk/composers-n-z.php?id=193 |access-date=2024-12-25 |website=johann-strauss.org.uk}}</ref> After completing his secondary education, he was privately taught at the Austro-Hungarian military institute in [[Košice]] ({{langx|de|Kaschau}}) by Johann Emmerich Hasel who taught Wagner composition, [[harmony]] and [[Instrumentation (music)|instrumentation]].<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":6">{{Cite web |title=Joseph Franz Wagner |url=https://www.geschichtewiki.wien.gv.at/Joseph_Franz_Wagner |access-date=2024-12-25 |website=www.geschichtewiki.wien.gv.at |language=de}}</ref>

== Career ==
In 1872, Wagner composed his first work: ''Dulde und verzage nicht'' (Endure and do not despair).<ref name=":42"/> The following year, he was presented as a successful composer on the front page of the newspaper {{ill|Deutsche Musik-Zeitung|lt=Deutsche Musik-Zeitung|de|Deutsche Musik-Zeitung}}''.''<ref name=":73">{{Cite web |date=2020-11-22 |title=130 Jahre "Unter dem Doppel-Adler" von J. F. Wagner |url=https://www.anzenberger.info/doppeladler/ |access-date=2024-12-25 |website=anzenberger.info |language=de-DE}}</ref> In 1874, Wagner travelled from Vienna to [[Budapest]] to joined the band of the 23rd Infantry Regiment led by [[:de:Philipp Fahrbach der Jüngere|Philip Fahrbach jnr.]]<ref name=":42" /><ref name="music_dict23">{{cite encyclopedia |title=Wagner, Josef Franz |encyclopedia=[[Oesterreichisches Musiklexikon]] online |publisher= |location= |url=https://www.musiklexikon.ac.at/ml/musik_W/Wagner_Josef_Franz.xml |access-date=8 April 2019 |last=Anzenberger |first=Friedrich |date= |pages= |isbn=}}</ref>

During Wagner's time as bandmaster, military bands in Austria were privately financed by regimental officers, which resulted in competition between bandmasters for jobs.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Josef Franz Wagner (1856-1908) |url=https://grainger.de/music/composers/wagnerjf.html |access-date=25 December 2024 |website=Grainger}}</ref> He ended up first serving with the {{ill|47th Infantry Regiment (Austria-Hungary)|lt=47th Infantry Regiment|de|K.u.k. Infanterieregiment „Graf von Beck-Rzikowsky“ Nr. 47}} between 1878 and 1891 in [[Trento]] in [[Tyrol]], Vienna, and [[Maribor|Marburg]] (Maribor) and [[Graz]] in [[Styria]].<ref name="music_dict23"/> However, due to the 47th's frequent deployment to parts of [[Austria-Hungary]] far from Vienna, Wagner decided to change over to the 49th Infantry Regiment at [[Sankt Pölten]],<ref name=":6" /> which he served in between 1891 and 1899.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=47er Regimentsmarsch |url=https://www.rundel.de/en/article/47er_regimentsmarsch/MVSR2347 |access-date=25 December 2024 |website=Rundel}}</ref> With the 49th, he was deployed to [[Krems an der Donau|Krems]] near Vienna, [[Mostar]] in [[Bosnia-Herzegovina]] and [[Brno]] in [[Moravia]]. When in Krems and Brno, the 49th's played on Sundays and public holidays at the [[Kursalon Hübner|Kursalon]] during the winter, and at the Hotel am Kahlenberg in the summer, both of which are in Vienna. Additionally, they played frequently in other Vienna venues including the flower halls of the {{ill|German Horticultural Society 1822|lt=Gartenbau-Gesellschaft|de|Deutsche Gartenbau-Gesellschaft 1822}} and in the [[Prater]].<ref name="music_dict23"/> When the 49th was stationed in Mostar, Wagner was allowed to stay in Vienna while still receiving a full salary.<ref name=":73"/>

As a result of issues with being in the military, such as no pension for bandmasters and a conflict with his artistic ambitions, Wagner in 1900 founded his own private band based in Vienna that played in {{ill|Café Dommayer|lt=Donmayer's Casino|de|Café Dommayer}} in [[Hietzing]].<ref name="music_dict23"/><ref name=":1" /> His time in the private space, however, was not a financial success as Wagner accumulated large sums of debt. Since the 1890s, he became increasingly ill and often complained of headaches in his letters. He ended up developing [[bronchitis]],<ref name=":73"/> and by the beginning of 1907 a serious heart condition.<ref name=":52"/> As a result of this heart condition, Wagner spent most of his last year of life in bed.<ref name=":73" /> He died on 5 June 1908 in Vienna. He was granted an ''[[Ehrengrab]]'' (grave of honour) at the [[Vienna Central Cemetery]] (Group 35 A, Row G 2, Grave 8).<ref name="music_dict23"/><ref>{{Cite web |title=Wien - Josef Franz Wagner |url=https://www.austriasites.com/vienna/person_josef_franz_wagner.htm |access-date=2024-12-25 |website=www.austriasites.com}}</ref>

== Music ==
{{listen
| type         = music
| filename     = Under the Double Eagle.ogg
| title        = "Under the Double Eagle"
| description  = "Under the Double Eagle", played by the [[U.S. Navy Band]]
}}
[[File:Wagner-Josef-Franz_Holzhacker.jpg|thumb|Tyrolean Lumberjacks' sheet music]]
By the time of Wagner's death in 1908, he had composed around 400 to 800 compositions,<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |date=2021-02-09 |title=Josef Franz Wagner |url=https://heritagebrassband.com/2021/02/09/josef-franz-wagner/ |access-date=2024-12-25 |website=www.heritagebrassband.com |language=en}}</ref> although only around 250 were published.<ref name="music_dict23"/><ref name=":0" /> Although majority of these were marches (he had published 206 marches),<ref name=":52"/> he had also composed waltzes, overtures, tone poems and operettas.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Joseph Franz Wagner |url=https://www.rundel.de/en/person/joseph_franz_wagner/1399 |access-date=25 December 2024 |website=Rundel}}</ref>

Wagner is best known for his 1893 [[March (music)|march]] "''Unter dem Doppeladler''" (Op. 159) or "Under the Double Eagle", referring to the double eagle in the [[coat of arms of Austria-Hungary]].<ref name="vcr2">{{cite web |title=PastMasters public domain web listing for Josef Wagner. |url=http://www.r-vcr.com/~pastmasters/composer2/wagner.htm |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20041014100634/http://www.r-vcr.com/~pastmasters/composer2/wagner.htm |archivedate=2004-10-14}}</ref> The march became a favourite part of the repertoire of American composer and bandleader [[John Philip Sousa]], whose band recorded it three times.<ref>University of California Santa Barbara: Encyclopedic Discography of Victor Recordings [http://victor.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/matrix Matrix BVE-355. Matrix BVE-355. Under the Double Eagle march / Sousa's Band] Retrieved August 23, 2011.</ref><ref>University of California Santa Barbara: Encyclopedic Discography of Victor Recordings [http://victor.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/matrix/detail/200000662/B-355-Under_the_Double_Eagle_march Matrix B-355. Under the Double Eagle (march) / Sousa's Band] Retrieved August 23, 2011.</ref> The piece was the official regimental march of Austrian [[Artillery]] Regiment Number 2 until its dissolution in 2007.<ref name="vcr2" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Artillerieregiment 2 wird aufgelöst – oesterreich.ORF.at |url=http://kaernten.orf.at/stories/197976/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110725042843/http://kaernten.orf.at/stories/197976/ |archive-date=2011-07-25 |access-date=2011-05-05 |publisher=}}</ref> Below are some notable published works:<ref>{{Cite web |title=J. F. Wagner |url=https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/mastertalent/detail/107208/Wagner_J._F |access-date=2024-12-25 |website=Discography of American Historical Recordings}}</ref>

=== Marches ===

* ''Der Stutzer'' (The Dude's March; 1890)<ref>{{Cite book |last=Pratt |first=Charles E. |url=https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mmb-ps/326/ |title=The Dude's March |last2=Wagner |first2=J. F. |date=1890 |publisher=Century Music Pub. Co |language=en}}</ref>
* ''[[Unter dem Doppeladler]], op. 159'' (Under the Double Eagle; 1893)
* ''Gigerl Marsch, op. 150'' ({{ill|Gigerl|lt=Gigerl|de|Gigerl}} March; 1900) - by the beginning of the 20th century, over 300,000 copies of the march's sheet music had been sold.<ref name=":52"/>
* ''Schwert Österreichs'' (Sword of Austria)
* ''47er Regiments-Marsch'' (47th Regiment March)
* ''Tiroler Holzhackerbuab'n'' (Tyrolean Lumberjacks)

=== Operettas ===
In his career, Wagner composed three [[operetta]]s listed below:<ref name=":0" />

* ''Herzbub'' (Jack of Hearts; 1895)<ref>{{cite web |title=Opera Composers: W |url=http://opera.stanford.edu/composers/W.html |publisher=}}</ref>
* ''Der Kognakkönig'' (The Cognac King; 1897)
* ''Der Soubrettenjäger'' (The Soubrette Hunter; 1905)

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* {{IMSLP|id=Wagner, Josef Franz|cname=Josef Wagner}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wagner, Josef}}
[[Category:1856 births]]
[[Category:1908 deaths]]
[[Category:19th-century Austrian male musicians]]
[[Category:20th-century Austrian male musicians]]
[[Category:Austrian opera composers]]
[[Category:Military music composers]]
[[Category:Austrian male opera composers]]