A song heard once, sixty-one years ago

[Bob Womack]

Sixty-one years ago my family traveled forever on the pre-Interstate highways to visit Tidewater, Virginia, and its three historic colonial-era towns, Jamestown, Yorktown, and Williamsburg. Even at six years old I loved music of the fife and drum corps that swirled through the filmed narratives surrounding the historic triangle. I've long had a knack for remembering music that is inspiring to me. While we were at Yorktown, at the battlefield museum, one piece of music showed up in one of their films and it struck me. It was a very melodic fife and drum piece, and I picked it up.

Since then I have tried various ways to track down that melody, unsuccessfully. I have returned to Williamsburg and actually got to discuss the piece with the director of the fife and drum corps there. I sang the tune to him and he didn't recognize it at all. When the Internet happened I thought I'd find it easily. Nope. I've spent years trying to find it, working off memory.

This weekend I was at a performance of the Virginia International Tattoo in Norfolk. This tattoo is a celebration of all the countries involved in the NATO alliance, with its U.S. headquarters in Norfolk. On the bill was the Deutsches Bundeswehr Wachbattaillon, the main German Army honor guard from Berlin. When it was time for them to march on, on they came, marching to THAT SONG. It was the first time I'd heard it in sixty-one years and I had remembered it remarkably well. I quickly thumbed through the program and found the name of the piece: "Parade March of the Minstrels."

As soon as I got home I started searching on that name but what came up, in every case and in cases of altered searches, was an entirely different tune, but under that name. The song by that name was an old Prussian fife and drum song. There had to be some communication between Prussia and the states od Hesee-Kassel and Hesse-Hanau, so it would make sense that it was heard in in Yorktown because there were Hessian auxiliaries (soldiers of their state who were loaned or rented to another government) in Yorktown who ended up surrendering along with their British Allies.

However, that still leaves me with real doubt about the real name of the march I remember and thus can't search it down in YouTube media to listen to. I've tried a couple of the "hum it to me and I'll find it" services but they couldn't find it. So... I've knocked together a quick guitar version over lunch and it is HERE. The real tune is faster, probably a "quick march" around 100bpm, but I needed to learn and spit it out quickly for you. Has anyone heard this tune who has the ability to steer me to the real name and some media?

Thanks in advance!

Bob

[Acousticado]

Too bad you didn’t record it with your phone while at the event, then used an available app to try to find the name of the song. Perhaps run your recorded interpretation with such an app?

[frankmcr]

Google translate gives the German as Parademarsch der Minnesanger (minnesanger = medieval wandering musicians / troubadours).

You might try searching for that.

Even better probably would be to contact the Tattoo organizers. You may end up getting passed on to somebody else a few times but eventually you should be able to reach someone who can give you information on the tune, and very possibly a source for the sheet music.

[TomB'sox]

I can't help, but I am immensely impressed that you could remember the melody of a tune you heard once as a 6 year old. That tells me that music is truly your mission in life. I hope you find it.

[Murphy Slaw]

Originally Posted by TomB'sox

I can't help, but I am immensely impressed that you could remember the melody of a tune you heard once as a 6 year old

Yep.

Me too...

[Bob Womack]

Thanks for the kind words, guys.

Bob

[stokes1971]

Originally Posted by Acousticado

Too bad you didn’t record it with your phone while at the event, then used an available app to try to find the name of the song. Perhaps run your recorded interpretation with such an app?

Phone? 61 yrs ago? They had cell phones up north in Canadia 61 yrs ago?

[Bob Womack]

Originally Posted by Acousticado

Too bad you didn’t record it with your phone while at the event, then used an available app to try to find the name of the song. Perhaps run your recorded interpretation with such an app?

Good idea, but his was a large event with NO RECORDING signs everywhere. The Bundeswehr Wachbattaillon came out of the tunnel to this and only played one iteration of the melody before they moved directly to another selection, so I didn't have a chance. Thanks!

Bob

[TomB'sox]

Originally Posted by stokes1971

Phone? 61 yrs ago? They had cell phones up north in Canadia 61 yrs ago?

Read the thread again, he heard it recently for the second time at a current event.

[Gitfiddlemann]

It could be this one: Preußische Locke
That's the song they were playing when marching in, according to the video details. Have a look here:


here it is in a different version:

[dnf777]

Cant help, but this came to mind…

https://youtu.be/1EyadKDhgBU?si=ID9e8vntRa3Whuwc

[Bob Womack]

Originally Posted by Gitfiddlemann

It could be this one: Preußische Locke
That's the song they were playing when marching in, according to the video details. Have a look here:


here it is in a different version:

I'm afraid it isn't the right one. However, the first video is from Saturday Night. I went on Friday. I wonder if they substituted the march I heard on Friday evening for some reason? That tune on your videos is the one that I have seen on YouTube under the name in the program flier and isn't the tune they marched in to on Friday that almost made me jump out of my seat. But thanks!

Bob