František Kotzwara - The Battle of Prague, Op. 23

“ACK!”
The last breath from the lungs of Czech composer František Kotzwara (also spelled Kočvara) left his body, as he sat on the floorboards of an English apartment with a noose around his neck, one that he tied for himself. The other end of the rope was fastened to a doorknob, and standing above him was the screaming owner of the apartment.
Earlier on that fateful day of September 2, 1791, Kotzwara, seeking the pleasures of the flesh, met with the streetwalker Susannah Hill in Westminster, Great Britain. After a quick dinner date with her at her lodgings, Kotzwara, in a frisky mood, decided to immediately use her services. He thereby paid her two shillings, and asked her to use a knife to render him a eunuch. Horrified by a request too degenerate for even her, Hill refused to commit such a heinous act, for she was not completely devoid of dignity. Slightly disappointed, but nonetheless still willing to continue his clientship, Kotzwara proceeded to tie a rope to his own neck, aiming to enhance the coming experience. Hill gave in, and did the deed with him. Once the pair finished, Kotzwara lay dead on the floor; his last moments were shrouded in ecstasy. Hill was initially arrested on suspicion of murdering Kotzwara, but was able to get acquitted by the jury in court. Her testimony was later used to produce a pamphlet about strangling, titled “Modern Propensities”. Long after his time, when Kotzwara would have otherwise been completely forgotten into the mists of IMSLP, he remains remembered today not so much for his life but for the lurid manner of his death. To boot, he has the dubious honor of being one of the earliest reported cases of death by auto-erо​tiс asр​hyхia​tіon.
Kotzwara’s most famous piece, “The Battle of Prague”, though touted as a sonata, does not follow sonata form and functions more along the lines of a Baroque Battaglia. It had an orchestrated version, but is most commonly found with the solo piano instrumentation. It remained in print for decades after Kotzwara’s demise, and received a boost in popularity in 1870 at the height of the Franco-Prussian War. The piece was popular during its day, and was commonly played for leisure in middle-class and upper-class households. It even made a cameo appearance in Mark Twain’s book “Huckleberry Finn”, which most readers would miss and be none the wiser.
As a Battaglia, given the Baroque format but written in the Classical musical language, it depicts the eponymous Battle of Prague that occurred in 1757 between the Prussians under King Frederick the Great and the Austrians of the Holy Roman Empire under Empress Maria Theresa. The battle was a Prussian victory, and given the pieces’ jubilant perspective through the eyes of the victors, this may imply certain political loyalties that Kotzwara maintained.
There are between seven to eleven movements in the “Battle of Prague”, depending on edition and distinction between movement and section, which can be fluid in this work. The piece imitates the sounds of the battlefield, including bugle calls, blasting artillery in the form of low register pedal points, charging infantry as Alberti bass, and galloping cavalry as arpeggiated ostinato triplets. Harmonically, the work is rather conservative and rarely ventures outside of F Major, but nevertheless generates a good amount of tension linking between sections and movements. The piece is also episodic, starting with the preparations of the battle, moving onto the vivid scenes from the battle itself, to the victory celebrations enjoyed by the Prussians after defeating the Austrians. In between, one can hear the English national anthem “God Save the King” and some generic Turkish Janissary marching music, even if the armies of both nations were absent from the battle.
Date: circa 1778 or 1788
Catalogue: Op. 23
Movements:
No. 1 - Slow March: 0:12
No. 2 - Largo
a) Word of Command: 1:30
b) First Signal Cannon: 1:54
c) The Bugle Horn Call for the Cavalry: 1:59
d) Answer to the First Signal Cannon: 2:23
No. 3 - The Trumpet Call: 2:29
No. 4 - Prussians and Imperialists: 2:47
No. 5 - Cries of the Wounded (Grave): 6:21
No. 6 - The Trumpet of Victory: 7:13
No. 7 - God Save the King: 7:30
No. 8 - Turkish March (Quickstep): 8:41
No. 9 - Finale
a) Allegro: 9:01
b) Go to Bed Tom (Andante): 9:46
c) Tempo primo: 9:55
Performers:
Caspar Richter as conductor
Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra
Berlin Police Orchestra
Note: This channel does not own the score or audio, and they are used for non-commercial purposes.
Score: Quinn Mason.

[@edgarreitz7067]

ACK!

[@mead1955]

Thanks for using my edition! I forgot I made it when I was merely a teenager, lol

[@calebhu6383]

I'm glad that a score video exists for this piece, but wow its bad.

[@ibish9513]

>I know the Brits and the Turks weren't in this battle it'll sound good it'll just sound goof trust me it'll s-ACK!
HWABAC

[@OuagadougouOrWagadugu]

ACK!